Announcement

Building on its thirteen years of experience working to address the acute needs of homeless and at-risk children and youth in St. Petersburg, Doctors of the World-USA (DOW) has recently partnered with the Russian NGO Doctors to Children and the Kalininsky District Administration to establish a halfway house for homeless and at-risk children and youth.
 
The new home will provide up to seven residents from 15 to 18 years of age with a stable environment and support services to make possible their transition from life on the streets or a dysfunctional family environment to a return to their biological or extended family, a foster family, or independent living.  The halfway house staff of social workers, psychologists and counselors will provide a range of services including psychosocial counseling, educational assistance, case management, help with guardianship and other legal issues, vocational training, independent living skills-building, and employment preparation and possible job placement.  Most importantly,  residents will be given a safe and supportive space in which to prepare for the future.
 
Fifteen year-old Serezha is one of the first residents of the new home.  In the apartment in which he had lived with his parents – both unemployed and suffering from alcoholism – he experienced neglect, poverty, and constant conflict.  The situation became too much for him, and he was forced to leave.  After finding temporary shelter from a kind-hearted neighbor but with few options left to pursue, Serezha was recommended to the staff of DOW and the new halfway house. 
 
Project specialists, working with Serezha, have developed an individual program to help him avoid ending up on the streets and transition to his new situation.  The specialists will help Serezha with his studies and to develop independent living skills.  He will also have the opportunity to fulfill his dream to study martial arts in one of the local sports clubs.  With support and time, Serezha will leave the halfway house healthy, stable, and ready to pursue an independent life. 
   
While his future may be unique, Serezha’s story is disturbingly familiar to many of the estimated 60,000 homeless and at-risk children and youth in St. Petersburg.  While many of these youth, like Serezha, come from families dealing with difficult economic and social impediments such as illness, unemployment, and alcoholism, others live without access to services, shelter or any family support.
 
The current options provided by the social system for these children and youth are limited and grim.  If they are not accused of criminal activity and sent to a detention center, many end up in shelters and orphanages.  The damage done in these institutions is borne out by the fact that in 1997, of the 15,000 teenagers who left orphanages at age 18, 10% ended their lives in suicide, 20% now live on the streets, and 33% have gone to prison.
 
“We are facing a situation where tens of thousands of children and youth are living in the margins of society,” says Tom Dougherty, Executive Director of DOW. “Strengthening the ability of local actors to address this deep-rooted problem will be at the heart of any lasting solution.”
 
Doctors of the World-USA in Russia.  Since 1994, DOW has been working to address the crisis of homeless and at-risk children and youth in the Russian Federation.  Working to build the long-term capacity of local partners, such as Doctors To Children, DOW places Russian community members, health professionals and others at the core of its activities and aims  to develop lasting, replicable community-based models of services for children. 
 
The halfway house will add a critical element to the comprehensive services already provided by DOW and its local partners, including: drop-in centers, a short-term shelter, support for foster family placement, and the MAMA+ Project to prevent the abandonment of infants born to HIV-positive mothers.
 
The crisis of at-risk children and youth can be solved.  Through long-term commitment, and through the support of partners around the world, DOW works to find long-term solutions to address the health and human rights needs of the most vulnerable.  We are grateful for the generosity of our supporters, who make all of our programs possible.  Please make a single gift or join our monthly giving program as a Doctors of the World-USA PARTNER.  To donate, click here, call 1-888-817-HELP or send gifts to the address below.
 
For more information on Doctors to Children, please visit http://www.vd-spb.ru.