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Rebuilding Social Bonds Our organization, Healing Hearts, promotes reconciliation between
different ethnic groups in the former Yugoslavia, helping minority groups
to overcome their sense of isolation Our programs focus on projects for
children and young people designed to rebuild social bonds destroyed through
years of war and ethnic violence.
When the speeches were made later that day, one official mentioned repeatedly that their desire was for all the young people to “go change the world” when the camp finishes. Living in a war-torn country, or should we say of more recent conditions, a "mafia war-torn" country, still deeply affects the Kosovar people. There have several assassinations this year--first a close advisor to President Rugova (as well as three members of his family who were killed in the attack), followed by the assassination of the Prime Minister of Serbia. These events have caused an increased heart-searching and a huge vacuum in the lives of these people who just want to lead normal lives. Youth Week in Kosovo The UN promoted "Youth Week" for the youth of Kosovo, and our project was accepted to participate by the U.N. Department of Youth. So for five days we were involved with different activities for kids from 8-12 , and 13-15 years of age. Volunteers Abner, John, Vicky and Lana came all the way from Denmark to assist us. Having had little experience with this particular type of undertaking, we first experimented with a simple program at a local orphanage/handicapped center, which went very well. This was followed by the real thing, and though we were only expecting 50 to 100 children to show up, 600 children packed into the not-so-big cultural center!
The next day centered around an art exhibition. Prior to this we had approached the art departments at different schools and arranged for the children to create a drawing or painting with the theme for Youth Week, “Youth, What Can You Do For Kosovo?” 75% of the children's drawings centered around peace, depicting the ethnic factions all living in harmony together. It was beautiful to witness these 7-12 year olds all so ardent about seeing peace return to their land. The third day we made a make-shift “cinema” utilizing an overhead projector, sound system, etc. To fully appreciate this, one must realize that these children live in an isolated enclave, with no freedom of movement. There are no movie theaters, cinemas, or any other kind of activities for the children or teenagers here. So for them to have something recreational like this was a big treat.
Our last activity was a “Bicycle Rodeo”,launched in cooperation with KFOR and the International Police. Since this was the first of its kind in Kosovo, we were a little unsure how the turn-out would be, or how many kids would even have bicycles. Three of the American international police, along with FCF Volunteer John, were up to their elbows in bicycle grease, fixing up the kids’ bicycles so they could take part. The KFOR soldiers helped set up obstacle courses, and during the day bicycle safety tips were shared. Many people volunteered to help with the translating. It was wonderful to see everyone pull together to make this a special event. The kids were so happy to have these activities, and everyone was asking when the next Youth Week would take place! What a joy to offer at least a temporary surcease from the fears these kids face, ranging from stepping on a land mine to the constant threat of a renewal of hostilities.
Our First Hurdle -- Restoring Hope to a War-Torn Generation in Bosnia, 1995-1999 By Geoffrey and Anna Wormus "Many humanitarian groups come here giving us food and clothing, but there have been none like you!" You are the best, because you give our children smiles and lift up our spirits. Please come here every week!" Such was the reaction of the director of a refugee center, as he spoke to us after our presentation. For the most part, orphanages in Bosnia are home to children who have lost either one or both parents in the war. Unlike orphans in most countries, all these children lost their parents around the same time and under horrible circumstances. Many suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder and extreme fear.
When the fighting in Bosnia ended, we at Healing Hearts realized that putting a smile on the children's faces was a very important step in their recovery. Thus, we put together a light-hearted variety show including clowns, songs, games and skits, which we began to present throughout the country. From the beginning of 1997 through the summer of 1999, we performed in 182 different locations to over 48,000 children, meanwhile distributing several tons of humanitarian aid to these same folks. Knowing what these children have been through-sights and scenes which most of us cannot even imagine-what better reward could be had than to see these same children's joyful expressions of thanks as they scurry to the front at the end of the show to meet the "foreigners who showed us God's Love?"
Although the war in Bosnia is over, the pain and suffering that it has left in its wake continues to haunt the population-adults and children alike. With very few people having employment, it is difficult for them to view the future optimistically. Our goal was to instill hope for a better tomorrow, and a belief that in spite of their difficulties, God still loves them. You Are our Mother Theresa! No matter how much help we may have been to Mustafa and Lydia, we weren't really comfortable when they likened us to the modern-day saint Mother Teresa. At the same time, since Mother Teresa was Albanian, it was understandable that this ethnic-Albanian couple would think in terms of this lover and champion of the poor.
We met Mustafa, Lydia, and their children in the winter of 1998. Lydia was nearly due to deliver their fifth child but was so thin and malnourished that she hardly looked pregnant. They and other Kosovar Albanian refugees were living in a freezing-cold abandoned Coca-Cola factory just outside of Sarajevo, Bosnia. The government of Bosnia, which was still recovering from a devastating civil war itself, sympathized with their plight but couldn't offer them more than a tin roof over their heads. We had gone to visit this makeshift refugee center to distribute humanitarian aid and perform for the children. We didn't have much time to get to know Mustafa and Lydia during that first brief encounter, but were happily surprised to see them again a few weeks later in another city. They had been moved into a transit center. This shelter was a little better in that it was at least moderately heated, but the air was so stale and humid that tuberculosis was spreading rapidly. We began delivering aid to this center regularly, and each time we prepared a special package for Mustafa, Lydia, and their children especially for Lydia and their unborn baby. Then they were moved again. The Bosnian government had finally finished building an official refugee camp where the ever-mounting number of Kosovar refugees could have better conditions. This camp consisting of wooden barracks that housed up to six people per small room, was in an isolated area of central Bosnia, a three-hour drive for us. We continued to visit them as often as we could. Finally, Lydia's baby came--a beautiful baby girl. It's a miracle that both survived, considering Lydia's frail condition. We continued bringing them whatever we could gather. During each visit they insisted on treating us like kings with what very little they had. They served us Turkish coffee and biscuits, and sometimes juice. They had adopted us as much as we had adopted them. Not long after the UN determined that it was safe for Kosovar refugees to return, word reached Mustafa and Lydia's camp that they would soon be able to return home. Of course, no one knew how much "home" would be left. On our last visit to their camp, we told them that we were planning to begin humanitarian aid trips to Kosovo from our base in Bosnia, and they gave us their family name and the name of their town. (There are no street addresses in rural Kosovo.) Several months later we drove to their town, crumpled piece of paper in hand, hoping to find someone who knew them. The first person we met said he might, and offered to show us the way. Even after working for three years in war-torn Bosnia, we were shocked by the condition of the area he led us to utter devastation! We couldn't believe that anyone could be living in the shells of houses that remained. After winding our way down some muddy back tracks, we pulled up to a high wall and banged on the metal door. A moment later, it was opened by a wide-eyed, smiling Mustafa. The reunion was a joyous one! We had come bearing as many gifts for the family as our van could carry. Their house had been burned out, but they had managed to restore one room where they could all sleep and keep warm. We continued our trips from Bosnia to Kosovo for the next nine months, and then moved to Kosovo when the bulk of our work shifted there. We continue to see Mustafa, Lydia, and their children regularly. Their baby is now three. They are still struggling to rebuild their house and lives, but we are thankful for how the Lord is helping us continue to help them. Mother Teresas? Far from it. Simple Christian volunteers, trying to change a small part of the world with God's love? Yes. The Kosovo Conflict - Refugees Flood into Bosnia! As the Balkan tragedy continued in Kosovo, we expanded our relief efforts to include 1,200 Kosovo refugees who were living in an abandoned and unheated soft-drink factory outside Sarajevo. These people, most of whom made their way into Bosnia through the rugged mountains, had no place to go, as no other countries would accept them. One mother, who together with her six children had fled into the mountains after their home was burned, and had been living there for six months, particularly touched our hearts! We visited this camp regularly, delivering humanitarian aid gathered from all over Europe. These people were very thankful for anything we could bring. Shoes, socks and even toothbrushes were much appreciated! We made many friends in this camp who counted on us and anxiously looked forward to our every visit. NATO Intervenes - Kosovar Refugees Given Hope to Return Home Soon, June 1999 We consider it a miracle that an accord was reached, allowing these poor, sweet people who have lost so much, to be able to return to their homeland. In the biggest camp in Bosnia, the refugees were so happy and waiting impatiently for their opportunity to return home! From Bosnia, they can only go back through Montenegro in a special UN convoy, which took weeks or even months to organize. On our last visit to the refugee camps, we made little packages to present to each refugee family: various seeds for planting in their gardens, clothing items, hairbrushes, toothbrushes, etc. One hot item with the boys was footballs! Sport equipment helps these active young boys make better use of their idle time in the camp. We received many invitations to visit when we go to Kosovo ourselves, and as we were leaving the camp, everyone called out to us "See you in Prishtina!"
Healing Hearts Moves to Kosovo, August, 2000 It was difficult to leave our beloved Bosnia! We had poured our heart and soul into the work there, but could feel God tugging on our heartstrings to make this move, and knew that our colleagues who would be staying behind were well able to take care of things. We immediately dove into the task at hand, and in the past year and a half, have participated in the following activities, amongst others:
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