2009 Humanitarian Conference--Tirana, Albania

Hello...and...

Salute...from Albania.

A walk through the market place.

In a Roma school children sang and danced a traditional Gypsy dance for us.

Roma boys show off their growing muscles.

Elder & Sister Snow have developed two successful projects with the Roma/Gypsy school, where orphaned and abandoned children are taught the Albanian language and how to live in society. Without schools like this, Roma children cannot go to public school, and lose the opportunity for future employment and education.

Attended more meetings.....

We visited one of Elder & Sister Snows projects at the Tirana Home For the Elderly.

We spent time in meetings with our supervisor, John Mulligan, the Area Welfare Manager.

The Europe Area Humanitarian couples--Left to Right:

E/S Schmoe, E/S Densley, E/S Funkhauser (PA), E/S Durrance, E/S Edwards,

E/S Snow, Sister Wilde, and E/S Hinson

In previous years the Humanitarian Conferences were held in Frankfurt, but we decided this year to hold it in Tirana, Albania. Our humanitarian couples came from Moldova, Romania, Serbia, Croatia, Slovakia and Albania. The reason for the conference is to allow the couples to share ideas, talk about the problems and successes they experience in their related countries, receive direction from the Area Office, share a common experience with each other as a humanitarian team, learn from each other, and get to know each other. It was great to visit with them all and to see their bound as a Europe Area humanitarian team grow.

Slovakia, the Moldava Roma Community

These will not be lavish apartments...just the bare necessities. This one building is actually three apartments. But, it is more than most Roma have, and is partly funded by what little savings they can acquire. The amount they save is not as important as the act itself. For some, it is only a few hundred Euros. With some of their own funds involved, we hope they will feel a greater desire to take care of their home and surroundings.

EPT has asked that LDS Charities partner with them in a pilot program to try to help the Romany people learn more effectively how to help themselves. In partnership with Slovakia Habitat for Humanity and the government, EPT has designed a program they hope will help Roma afford small housing. The government, HFH , and EPT will match every Euro that a Roma can save towards building and improving their home. LDS Charities, through our office in Frankfurt, has agreed to provide toilets and basins for the 12 new apartments. These apartments will have the few working, indoor bathrooms in the village.

LDS Charities is partnering with ETP, hopefully to help change the lives of Roma people. Slavka (right) the ETP director, chose these young people from the Moldava community to help make a difference in their village. They are now trained Social Workers who will operate the new, small community center. They will counsel, tutor and work with the new generation of Moldava Roma. The goal is to help redirect the mindset of Roma, teaching them to think out of the box of poverty.

The trash and garbage thrown from this apartment building becomes a playground for Roma children.

90% of those living in poverty in Slovakia are Roma. And, 95% of those living in the Moldava community are without employment. Roma are often the first to lose their jobs in a struggling economy. They are often seen begging on the streets...washing car windows at a red light, playing an instrument for change, or holding a cup for donations. But, they are a happy people who love being around others...and love having their pictures taken.

On our first day together we drove to visit the Roma community in Moldava with Slavka, the director of EPT, an organization that helps Romany people. It was the Alexander’s first visit to a Roma community.

We visited Kosice, Slovakia in June to train the new humanitarian couple, Elder Archie & Sister Nadine Alexander. They are a fun couple --ready and eager to begin work.

Weekend in Berlin

A remaining section of the Berlin Wall--freedom side


The way it was.

The way it is today.

...and more

We spent a relaxing weekend in Berlin during the Memorial Day Celebrations. It was a day of fun and parades--while remembering those whose freedoms were confined by the
BERLIN WALL.

Daily Life in Croatia and Bosnia & Herzegovina

Kids Playing Ball

Bosnia & Herzegovina Country Road

Elderly Couple Watering Their Garden

Bosnia

Tending the Garden

Bosnia Countryside

Dancing with the Waiter
Dubronic, Croatia

Selling Honey and Juice at the Roadside Stands

Bosnia

Backyard beekeeping

Bosnia Country Road

Tending the Lambs

Bosnia Country Road

Carrying a Load
Bosnia Country Road

Making Music
Dubronic, Croatia

A tween on her phone....

they're the same all over the world.

Dubronic, Croatia

Making a Living

Mostar, Bosnia & Herzegovina

A Man In Thought

Mostar, Bosnia

Stone reads..."Don't Forget"
...in English

A Few Restful Days In Bosnia & Croatia

We enjoyed a relaxing, informative, fun day in Mostar, Bosnia i Herzegovina.

No matter where we went, kids gathered and became Elder Joe's instant best friends. It was fun just to see how long they'd hang around visiting us. We were suppose to be eating lunch, but our table became a beehive--surrounded by swarming teens. FUN!

What can I say. He attracts 'em like bees to honey.

No matter what country we're in, we find all teenagers to be alike. These girls were on a school field trip from Sarajevo and had fun teasing Elder Joe and trying to speak English with him.

Muslim girls find fun and interesting ways to blend traditional attire with modern styles. They dress in beautiful colors and tasteful fabric. These girls are wearing jeans under their dresses--a common style among Muslim/Islamic girls in Bosnia.

Mostar is a beautiful, quaint village with a strong touch of Turkish ambiance. The ancient bridge and many buildings had to be rebuilt--to scale--after the war.

Sister Dee in the ancient Turkish village of Mostar, Bosnia i Herzegovina.

Hello! from Elder Joe in Sarajevo, Bosnia i Herzegovina.

The Yugoslavian Army heavily attacked the ancient city of Mostar in 1993. This photo was taken from our hotel balcony on the opposite side of the river. Bridges and buildings have been reconstructed, bringing the city back to life. But, there is still a lot to do. The deepest wounds are in the hearts of the Bosnian people. They still speak of the fear and pain from the war that killed nearly 100,000 people throughout Yugoslavia--a country now known as Croatia, Bosnia i Herzegovina, Serbia, Slovenia and Kosovo.

Apartment building with bullet holes patched up...We like the exclamation mark. Coincidental?

In one canyon along our drive, we came across 32 homes within 1/2 mile that had been completely destroyed. It's hard to imagine the fear that must have existed for families. In some communities, the enemy actually lived among them.

Along the beautiful mountainous countrysides of Bosnia are blown up, shot up homes--a memory of the recent 1991-1999 war and revolution--started at the death of conservative communist leader Tito, and the onset of the aggressive communist regime of Slobodan Milosevic.

Some of our favorite photo moments are catching the common people living their common everyday lives. We caught this man shaving in his side yard.

After a few days of meetings in Sarajevo and Tuzla, and a wonderful wheelchair distribution,

we decided to take a couple of days to ourselves--at our own expense--and drive through the countryside of Bosnia i Herzegovina and along the Croatian coastline, before returning to our desk work in Frankfurt.