We are excited to announce the NEW AFPVO Website, professionally designed and built by Louie Lambrou, from Lambrou Marketing LLC (Thank you, Ken Liu for the recommendation) which went live in late March. We encourage everyone to check it out — afpvo.org — and let us know your thoughts. It is much easier for us to maintain so if you have suggestions for additional information, please contact us at afpvo@gmail.com.
We had a productive conversation with Melanie Tanase in late March. All is well and busy at Pro Vita. Everyone is healthy; the boys and girls who transferred from Bacoi are still adapting to the rhythms of life at Pro Vita in Valenii de Munte. Some of the Ukrainian teens and the Romanian children were able to go to the mountains in January for a brief vacation which they really enjoyed. Some even got to go skiing!
The re-located teens from Bacoi are still housed in the Admin Center (the refurbished 1910 police station) and recently a second bathroom has been added and approved by the local inspectors. At the same time, the inspectors viewed the land at the Social Center which has been set aside for the additional house to accommodate some of the Ukrainian teens, so we are hopeful that approval is forthcoming and construction can finally begin shortly. The funds and many of the building materials have been available for over a year as the local and national building regulations have been in flux and final approvals to build have been in limbo.
As the BAC exam approaches this summer, several young ladies are frantically preparing to take the exam and go on to university.
Father Roman is fully recovered from his Fall surgery and ably tending to his flock in Valea Plopului even while researching the possibilities of options to return to Ukraine. Unfortunately, the facility where the 36 elderly were living was destroyed in the earlier bombing of the Donbass region.
The $10,000 that we forwarded to Mihail Tanase in December has all been spent. Mihail has provided a breakdown on how the $10,000 was used operationally: $3000 for wood (used for heating and cooking in Romania), $3700 to pay the electrical bill, and $3300 to assist in paying staff salaries. Pro Vita received a grant from UNICEF which paid for the new bathroom and Melanie is submitting applications for additional grants.
As always, the Board is very grateful to its sustaining donors: Wendell B., Edith C. , and St. Mary Orthodox Church (Falls Church, VA) as well as new and returning donors: Nicholas K., Mary and Hank Z.,Diana and Don M., Anonymous, Sean C., Adrienne F., Joanna B.
Reminder: Also note our new address for donations, etc.
AFPVO
45001 Audubon Square, Apt 507
Ashburn, VA 20147
Warm regards,
Fr. Sean Cavanaugh, Chairman
Donna Shelton, President
Frank Doe, Treasurer
Kerry Garikes, Communications and Design