New Thing was established by Doug and Kristina Brendel in 2002 to help people in need in the Republic of Belarus, in the former USSR.
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For the child delighted by an unexpected gift... For the homeless person grateful to finally sleep on a real mattress... For the mommy finally able to warm her newborn’s bottle in the maternity ward... For every Belarusian child and adult whose life is better today because good-hearted strangers stepped in... This is just a word of gratitude. God bless you for giving. Your love matters. Thanks for…
As our “Response of the Heart” team wrap up a well-deserved season of vacation (in the Belarusian tradition), I want to thank you again for journeying with New Thing. It really means a lot to me, and to our team, that you’re willing to track with this work of compassion in a place most folks never think about. Most friends of New Thing were introduced to the work when I spoke to their Rotary Club…
Beautiful? Depends on my definition. Lovable? That depends on me, too. We all draw circles of love. You’re inside, I love you. You’re outside, well then, not so much. Friends of New Thing have been drawing great big love circles for a long, long time. Whoever needs love in Belarus — regardless of how they’re “defined” — we love them. The child with “deformities.” The old person. The woman with one…
A truck from Germany pulled up at our “Response of the Heart” warehouse on Shuadrina Street in Minsk. Inside, 11 tons of donated humanitarian aid: boxes and bags, wheelchairs (a prized commodity), medical equipment, and on and on. Electric radiators. These would be priceless come winter. A support group for the blind needed chairs for their meeting place. Problem solved. A family couldn't afford a…
A child says, “Gimme a hug.“ Of course. That’s what kids say. Your arms go around them. That’s first. ”What’s up?" you ask. Maybe it’s something big. Probably something small. Maybe it’s nothing at all. Just wanted a hug? Friends of New Thing have been doing "hug first" for 20+ years. Give a little love ... then see if there’s more we need to do. Thanks for journeying with New Thing. More…
Ten years ago tomorrow, I visited the boarding school for 80+ children with physical and mental disabilities at Osipovichi, Belarus. When a child is hurting, you don't want to tell them no. So every Thanksgiving, friends of New Thing provide a year's worth of medicine cabinet meds and supplies to make sure the caregivers are able to meet the children's basic needs: a headache, a scraped knee,…
First things first: I’m delighted to report that 32 households gave generously to provide Life Starter Kits for all 14 of the graduating orphans at the Children’s Village in Kobryn, Belarus. God bless all who gave, and thanks to all who have journeyed with the orphans on this adventure! And now, from our hardworking ”Response of the Heart” team this week.... It may not look like much, but a…
The orphans about to graduate have come a long way they first arrived at the Children’s Village in Kobryn, Belarus. Now, they’re about to step into adulthood! We’d like to give each of them a Life Starter Kit. We’ve come a long way, too. To provide bedsheets, pillowcases, blanket, pillow, towels, dishes, frying pan, saucepan, electric kettle, iron, table lamp, and more for each graduating orphan,…
Graduation. Salute the accomplishment! A day of pride. Of joy. Even laughter. Then, of course, a lump in the throat. Maybe some tears. Maybe lots of tears. The graduating orphans will soon leave home. Their house-parents will feel all the emotions of biological parents. Their siblings, too — including biological siblings. Some of these kids have been living at the Children’s Village since they…
Ordinary kids in an ordinary school, in the Belarusian village of Ilyushyna, near the Russian border. This was the motherland of Liudmila Kozovaya, the co-founder of our “Response of the Heart” team. Such a humble woman, I jokingly called her “The Great Kozovaya.” Members of our team were there in Ilyushyna to honor Kozovaya’s memory; she died 6 years ago, in the first wave of Covid. (Here are my…
