Viktoriya needed heart surgery (update)
Updated news here!
Young Viktoriya arrived at Nikolaiev Baby House in November of 2006. Director Olga Ivanovna asked us to find a sponsor for urgently needed heart surgery at Kiev Cardio Center (KCC). Approximately at the same time we were contacted by Verena from New Zealand, who was looking to sponsor an orphan in Ukraine, a lucky coincidence.
Financial crisis hits Ukraine too
Ukraine is sinking into a deep depression. Yushchenko has forecast that the economy will contract by up to 10 percent in the first quarter of 2009. Tens of thousands of workers face layoffs as steel and other plants across the country freeze. Industrial output shrank nearly to 30 percent in November 2008, from a year earlier, the sharpest drop in a decade.
Flu vaccine for NBH
Winter season is not far. Chief doctor Olga of Nikolaiev Baby House (NBH) has asked to help them pay for flu vaccine this year again. At the moment there are 153 children at the orphanage who need to be vaccinated. Each dose costs 52 hrv. Injection has to be done twice with two weeks interval in between.
Total amount is 15,900hrv or US$ 2,650 (~ € 1’800 or ~ CHF 2’300).
Any help will be appreciated by Olga and the children.
Find out how you can make your donations here and if you live in the United States here!
or just click on the “PayPal Donate” button on the left column of this page!
Trip report fall 2008
Friday December 5th
Mission completed 
Pascal has been driving from Nikolaiev to Odessa airport from where he is now flying via Prag to Zurich.
Thursday December 4th
Weather today is better, no rain and no fog.
After visiting the Baby House of Kremenchuk, Pascal and Vika are heading back to Nikolaiev, from where Pascal will be flying home to Switzerland tomorrow afternoon.
Wednesday December 3rd
Today it was still overcast, but less fog.
First, Pascal and Vika visited potential suppliers for Vika’s shop in Nikolaiev. Then they were heading for Kremenchuk. Today, as a bonus, it was also raining 
General Assembly 2008
The general assembly of our association took place on November 21st, 2008 at the Hôtel Restaurant Bel-Air in Praz.
The minutes of the general meeting (in French) can be read here shortly.
Steering committee.
3 new NBH children need a bailout
Nikolaiev Baby House (NBH) director and chief Doctor Olga Ivanovna has presented us Svetlana Igorievna, Svetlana Anatolievna and Olga.
All three arrived to Nikolaiev Baby House with a congenital heart disease diagnosis that needs to be operated.
All 3 travelled to Kiev Cardio Center (KCC) last October and had their diagnosis confirmed.
They all will need cardiac surgery very soon and we ask you for help and support in order to organize their next visit to KCC.
Considering girls actual health conditions, we foresee this operation for first quarter 2009.
Total amount required is US$ 3,600 (~ € 2’800 or ~ CHF 4’300).
Please help save the life of these three girls.
Find out how you can make your donations here and if you live in the United States here!
or just click on the “PayPal Donate” button on the left column of this page!
Ukrainian orphans need a bailout!
Orphans in Ukraine and “Les Amis de Svieta” need a bailout, too.
Hank Paulson isn’t about to send any of the $700 billion you’re being forced to pay to help Ukrainian orphans, so we have to turn to you for help.
Please donate to help pay monthly expenses and continue to save orphans’ lives.
Donations can be made here.
Please consult our list of ongoing projects in Ukraine.
Thank you very much for your kind support!
Bogdan needed urgently a heart operation
Olga Ivanovna, the director of NBH in Nikolaiev, has contacted us in July and requested urgent assistance for newborn Bogdan. Due to heart deformity ‚tetralogy of Fallot’ his life was in danger.
The health status of Bogdan was so unstable that he could not move from maternity home of the hospital to NBH. Chief doctor urged a speedy operation in the Kiev Cardio Center (KCC).
Call for donation and news about Nikolay
Updated news as of July 27th 2008 can be read here.
Updated news as of June 15th 2008 can be read here.
Updated news as of May 28th 2008
In March 2008 Nikolay was taken to the Institute of Urology. The doctors were glad to see him again and admitted that he had made unexpected progress in physical development (the boy really has grown a lot). The chief doctor of the hospital called several other doctors, they had a conference and they came to the conclusion that Nikolay can be operate in Kiev. The operation will take place on May 12th.
Nikolay will be accompanied and looked after by a nurse. Transportation to Kiev, operation and accomodation for two months will cost approx. $ 4,000 (CHF 4,000 or € 2,500).
Here you can read the first and second article about Nikolay.
Please consider making an online donation to help Nikolay.
New pictures of Montessori outdoor playground
The children of Nikolaiev Baby House can now enjoy the fully equipped Montessori outdoor playground and enjoy the beautiful weather too.
Latest pictures can be found here.
LAdS has got a new car
Previous LAdS car was sold successfully. Thanks to generous donations Les Amis de Svieta Ukraine and Vika are motorized again 
Our Mazda is a 2nd hand car that has been sold by a bank. It is two years old and has just 40,000 kilometers.
Further pictures of new car can be seen here.
News of Nataliya and Ilona
Updated news as of June 30th, 2008 can be read here.
On November 4th, once financing was secured, we took Ilona and Nataliya by car to the orthopedics in Evpatoriya (Crimea).
Svieta USA officially registered as non-profit
Les Amis de Svieta USA, Inc. has officially been registered as a non-profit organization in the United States and has opened a bank account allowing sponsors to send their donation tax free.
Please read here how Les Amis de Svieta USA, Inc. was established.
Check to be made payable to:
Les Amis de Svieta USA, Inc.
Attn. Jim Smith
302 Orchard Lane
Clarkesville, GA 30523
Bank contact is:
Habersham Bank, in Clarkesville, GA
It’s also possible to wire money by contacting Jim Smith,
Svieta car success story
Les Amis de Svieta Ukraine has been motorized since April 2006!
The Peugeot was registered in Ukraine in the name of our local representative Vika.
In two years we traveled 35,774 km, we visited numerous orphanages, baby houses and boarding schools and we transported many children to hospitals, e.g. Nikolay, Vitaly, Irina, Natascha, Illona, Vika, Julia, Ekaterina and Olga.
Thanks to this car our association was much more mobile in Ukraine and we could reduce travel expenses while at the same time increase our efficiency by at least a factor of two. We simply couldn’t have done all the things we did.
Pictures of this success story can be seen here.
Due to changes in Ukrainian car registration law we couldn’t continue to drive and use this car and Vika had to sell it, which she managed successfully.
What do we do now without a car?
We are looking to purchase an other car, one that satisfies Ukrainian regulations, one that is big enough to travel savely with two nurses and two children, one that is reliable enough to cope with Ukrainian weather and road conditions, one that is save to drive, one that is clean and doesn’t use too much petrol to save money. In other words, we are looking for a rather costly car, considering Ukrainian used car prices.
Help required for final Montessori certification in Nikolaiev
Updated news as of May 28th 2008 can be read here!
In order to complete Montessori certification in spring 2008 Nikolaiev Baby House needs a kit of special Montessori educational toys. Cost to buy those Montessori toys (called “standard” kit) is US$ 1,000 (~ € 750 or ~ CHF 1,200)
Before final Montessori certification NBH staff needs to attend a final training course in Kiev which costs for travel and subsistence US$ 300 (~ € 220 or ~ CHF 360).
More about Montessori pilot project can be read here and here.
Pictures can be seen here und here.
