The children woke up earlier than normal and there was an exciting atmosphere building up between them as they were packing their belongings for the move. Some children were filled with emotions as they were leaving, whilst others had tears in their eyes.

It was an amazing feeling to witness the joy and excitement of the children as they explored their new home. The children have settled in very well in the new, more accessible Educational Complex in Omsk - we are extremely thankful to all of our donors, supporters and volunteers who have helped make this dream come true.

We would like to thank everyone who has supported us, had faith in us, and have trusted us with their generous donations to deliver on our promises and we urge all of our supporters to help us spread the word about Allies and our achievements as we look to embrace many more orphaned children around the world.

To celebrate their move, we organized an excursion for them around Omsk city together with the Omsk Rotary Club. The kids visited the old center of the city: the fortress, the church, and different monuments. Then we went to the Rotary park where the kids played on the playground and were presented a science show. The final stop was at McDonald’s and they could not stop talking about the excursion and their new place.

Many thanks to Vladimir of the Omsk Rotary Club who helped us a lot in organizing this including transport and the tour guide. He also helped us last summer with organizing a tour for Muromtsevo and Artyn kids.

During the tour, we had a chat with Zhenya Etchin, an 8th grader who has been in the orphanage for two years. He is pleasant, smart and sociable, but his teacher had mentioned that he would not be able to make it to the 9th grade, which is discouraging for him.

We believe that motivation is the drive for greater learning and the key for children like Zhenya. Since they lack basic needs, such as love from parents, good shelter, food and clothes, they will be less motivated to perform well in class.

Zhenya needs help. We’re looking to get him signed up for the Allies tutoring program. With the right elements in place and a team of leaders backing him, we believe Zhenya has a bright future!