Day Four- February 4, 2007

The melatonin did the trick! We both got a full night’s sleep and felt good when we woke on Sunday morning. We had three visits scheduled for the day, and two of them were pretty far from Tbilisi, so we were prepared for lots of time in the car driving through the Georgian countryside. Our first appointment took us way out of town to a place called Martkopi. We arrived there at approximately 11:00 am and were greeted by two adults who led us inside. We did notice as soon as we drove up that this was the first place we had visited so far where the children were outside playing. Previously the children had always been inside usually all in one room with a wood stove to stay warm. As we entered the building, we also noticed that it was in much better condition than any of the previous places we had been to. I was surprised by this because I expected that the orphanages away from the city to be in worse shape. The building had all new windows and doors on the second floor, which was the bedroom level. The bedrooms had all been recently remodeled and all had new paint, flooring, beds, and furniture. Each room had a nice heater and everything was neat and clean. This was a huge contrast to all of the other places we had seen before. We were also showed a large bathroom that was in the process of being remodeled. We were told that they had gotten about 1/3 of the work done before they ran out of money and now the room was sitting idle. The existing bathroom that they were currently using was not in very good shape.

As we were touring the building, we were introduced to Tea, the director. She was a young and energetic woman who had only been the director for less than a year. She told us that the building was in the same condition as the others we were used to seeing before she arrived. We learned during our discussions with her that the reason she had been able to make such progress was that she just wouldn’t take “no” for an answer and when she needed things she would ask and beg and do whatever necessary to help her children. She currently had 32 children living there full time. During our meeting with her in her office, she was always surrounded by many of the children and she allowed them to listen in to all of our questions and her answers. She had a great rapport with the children and it was obvious that the children really loved her. When we asked her what her needs were at first she would only talk about one of her children who was in need of a kidney transplant. He only had one kidney left and it was diseased. She said that they had a donor lined up but no money or doctor to do the procedure. After some pressing, she also told us that they needed a used van so that she could take the children into the city for performances like plays and musicals. They also needed funds for fresh water and for electricity. The water main serving her place was broken so they had to pay to have fresh water delivered by truck. We really took a liking to Tea because of her energy and her vision for her children. She talked about how she was getting her older children apprenticeships to learn trades such as carpentry and had set up bank accounts for those children so they could save any money they earned for when they had to leave the orphanage at the age of 17. Before getting back in the car for our next appointment, we allowed each child to pick out a scarf for themselves and all were very happy with their new treasure.

Our next appointment took us to Rustavi, which was another long drive through the country. Rustavi looked to be a very economically depressed area with many large and old concrete apartment buildings as far as the eye could see. Upon our arrival, we were led into an office and sat at the end of a large table across from a middle-aged woman who was the director. The overall impression we got from her was that she was very satisfied with her situation and was not very interested in our help. She currently had about 40 children living there full time. We did tour the building and it was in similar condition as to most of the other places we had seen before. There appeared to be great need for building repairs and for personal items for the children. As we left, we gave each child a new scarf, much to their delight. We then headed back to the city for a lunch of local Georgian cuisine and our final appointment of the day. Again, the food was very different than American food but was indeed outstanding. Susan and I both posed for pictures at the restaurant with our gracious hosts and new friends.

Our final visit for the day led us up into the mountains surrounding Tbilisi. We drove for about an hour up steep and winding roads until we arrived at the orphanage house in Kodjori. I will say that this place was definitely the coldest of all that we visited, probably because it was dark outside by now and high up in the mountains. Inside it was no warmer than outside. Again, Susan and I were shivering and could easily see our breath as we sat inside a large office waiting for the director to come in. The director, Roland, was a very nice and pleasant man who we could tell cared deeply about his children. The man had a very rugged look about him and he told us of the many projects he completed himself to repair the old buildings at his orphanage. He currently had a little over 100 children living with him and his needs were very similar to most of the others. The buildings needed new heating systems, new windows and doors, and new bathrooms with functional plumbing. We went into one of the bathrooms and it smelled terrible – the floor was completely covered in wastewater. Unfortunately, that was common for most of the places we visited. The bedrooms all had very old beds and mattresses and very little furniture. The children had little of anything to call their own. As we departed, we gave Roland a huge bag filled with crayons and other art supplies to share with the children. The drive back down the mountain was slow because the road was very dark and icy. Again, once back in town we stopped at a grocery for a few quick items for a light dinner back in our room.