In 2011 Orphans Tree will celebrate with Nadezhda Fund 
the fifteenth anniversary of its ministry in Russia and eleven years since its first Ministry Center opened its doors to older orphans and became a hub for many long-term, holistic and multifaceted programs that help them learn life, employment and family skills; integrate successfully into society and achieve their dreams. Today Orphan’s Tree supports programs and projects in four Ministry Centers in Vladimir, Ivanovo, Kostroma, and Ryazan which serve over three hundred youth at risk.
To provide efficient support to the orphans, the centers are equipped with computer labs, workout rooms, baby rooms, dental clinics and kitchens.
The staff working with the young people include counselors, social and medical workers, computer instructors and coaches. Volunteers with a variety of professional backgrounds come and spend time with the older orphans, and this interaction is both important and useful for them.
Over the eleven years of just one, the Vladimir Ministry Center, more than a thousand orphanage graduates have participated in various programs and the stories of their lives are the stories of the success of Orphan’s Tree programs. They learned to make the right choices, have started their own families, are raising their own children, have found jobs, and are making a significant investment in the life of the regions where they live. Many have completed or continue higher education and are getting prestigious jobs. We are pleased that the ability to find and keep their jobs, value family and friends, communicate effectively with others and to choose healthy life styles has become part of our older orphans’ personality.
For more about each program visit the program pages.