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To Russia with Love

Monday, 24 March 2008

WHEN a Northside housewife decided to do whatever she could to help the impoverished children of an isolated orphanage in Eastern Europe, little did she know that her efforts would lead right to those at the very top of the Russian Government.
After witnessing the horrendous conditions in which children were forced to endure at the Hortolova orphanage on a visit to Western Russia in 1998, Clontarf woman Debbie Deegan decided to set up the charity To Russia With Love.
Ten years on, the Northside-based charity has managed to put a smile back on the faces of hundreds of children at up to 20 orphanages throughout that region of Russia.
It is a testament to Debbie’s brilliant work that up to 100 of these children that had been abandoned and left with no hope at rundown orphanages, are now looking forward to starting their studies at universities and colleges in their home country.
As To Russia With Love prepares to celebrate its 10th anniversary, Debbie told Northside People she never envisaged it would last so long.

“When I first decided to set up the charity to do something for the children in Hortolova, I thought we would spend about three months at it,” Debbie said.
“The idea was that we would go over there and help in whatever way we felt we could, and then leave having done a nice little job for the children.
“However, we made promises to those poor orphans that we simply had to fulfill, as they were living in dreadful conditions with absolutely no hope.”
Debbie said one of her biggest challenges was changing the perception of orphaned children held by those in authority in Russia.
“When we first visited the country, I don’t think people in Russia held much value on the orphans,” she stated.
“Our aim was to build up the children’s self esteem and make them realise that they were worth something.
“Once we continued arriving at the orphanage and doing our best to improve the conditions for the children there, we gained a lot of publicity that eventually reached those in authority.
“Childcare is now top of the social agenda in Russia and I would have to say that out of all our achievements, the effect we have managed to have on the Government’s policy towards the orphans is probably our biggest.”
Alongside her orphanage work with To Russia With Love, kind-hearted Debbie also spearheaded a major fundraising campaign to help those most affected by the appalling Beslan tragedy in 2004.
After 184 children were among those murdered in a school, Debbie visited the Russian town to offer her help and support to the shattered community.
Meanwhile, she has no intentions of winding down and is already looking forward to the challenges of the next 10 years.
“The situation we have now is that many of the children we initially started to help are reaching the age of 17 and 18 where they will be moving on from the orphanages and starting life out on their own,” Debbie revealed.
“As with any teenager in this situation, they need money and proper resources to get by on a daily basis and what we have to be able to do is help them to maintain their progress.
“So sustaining our organisation is one of the big challenges we will be faced with in the coming years and why we must continue to maintain a big focus on the work that we do.”
Meanwhile, Debbie is calling on all women who are interested in walking, jogging or running to take part in the Dublin Women’s Mini-Marathon this June in aid of To Russia With Love.
“We want to have a sea of green t-shirts on the day to mark our 10th anniversary year,” she added.
To get involved or to donate, please call the To Russia With Love office on 8532920 or log onto the website www.torussiawithlove.ie

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