2019 Report – Diaconia Mission offered 426.000-Euro Family Support in the Republic of Moldova

Basilica News Agency – Ștefana Totorcea – 2/9/2020

The “Diaconia” Social Mission of the Metropolis of Bessarabia published its activity report on year 2019: the organization, which is the social arm of the Metropolis, has raised 426,000 Euros, which was redistributed as complex services of support and material donations to families, orphans and parishes.

Metropolitan Petru writes in the report introduction that the most important social intervention of the moment is to support families. “Family, blessed by God, is the earthly image of perfect and infinite love within the Holy Trinity,” the hierarch writes.

Current spiritual and social issues affect the family first and foremost. And on the wellbeing of this “centre of social existence” and “foundation of humanity” depends the health of tomorrow’s society, the hierarch adds.

The organization also supports those without a family: young orphans, single mothers, women in pregnancy crisis.

“Beyond all the data you will find here, what we have managed is to bring the warmth of family where it has never existed, we have become a family for those who have no one else in the world,” says Igor Belei, Executive Director of the Diaconia Mission (photo above, centre).

The Diaconia Mission has proved the most important partner of companies willing to develop Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) programmes in the Republic of Moldova.

Last year it organized the first edition of the event “Corporate Social Responsibility ‑ Ce Să Rezolvăm? (‘What To Solve?’)”, which resulted in new partnerships. Also, TVR Moldova awarded the organization the Prize for Social Responsibility.

Another line of social intervention is the transfer of know-how and helping parishes to develop their own support actions.

We present below a synthesis of the projects and campaigns fulfilled last year, as reported in the document.

Material support

• The mobile social canteen “Close to Our Neighbour” offered, on a daily basis, a total number of 40,000 hot meals for 180 elderly and homeless people from the city of Kishinev.
• The “Clothes Bank” programmme collected, through the boxes placed in the capital city of Kishinev, 50 tons on clothes, footwear, toys and bed linen sets which it redistributed in 33 towns across the Republic of Moldova.
• The “Meal of Joy” Easter campaign reached its 10th edition last year, when it collected, with the help of 1,000 volunteers, 50 tons of non-perishable foods and 150,000 MDL.
• “In Mother’s Arms” Christmas campaign annually collects hygiene products and funds to ensure the operation of the Maternal Centre “In Mother’s Arms” for the first three months of the next year.

Enabling communities

• The “Solidarity Guide” Resource Centre offered know-how and material resources to the parishes’ social centres to identify and solve the needs of their communities: 50 tons of goods reached 2,000 families through the 23 parishes and 10 locale partner organizations.
• The Community Facilitators project turned the centre into a social initiative hub for 10 towns, where it helped the creation of three local NGOs, the operation of two summer camps for children and the organizing of three fundraisers.

Child protection counselling

• The DENAMIC project of the “Solidarity Guide” Resource Centre offered consultancy to all the actors involved in protecting the minors whose parents left to work abroad. Social workers, doctors and teachers learned legislation, children were informed on the effects of migration and the adults were trained in gaining custody of the children from their extended family.
• The Uninstutionalization project aimed to increase Moldova’s capacity to assist families in crisis situations: 250 child protection experts were trained – including in parental assistance.

Supporting families and single mothers

“In Mother’s Arms” programme consists of a Maternal Centre, a Counselling Centre and a secondary hosting centre named “The Mary House”.

• Last year, the Maternal Centre accommodated 20 mothers in pregnancy crisis and their babies. They were helped to make their own life plans, which involved consolidating the relationship with the baby, learning child care and becoming socially autonomous.
• The Counselling Centre assists single mothers and families in temporary crisis: 270 families received psychological counselling, social assistance, legal advice, spiritual services and material support throughout their crisis period.
• The social apartment “Towards Independence” annually helps six orphans to integrate socially after they come of age. They are offered social assistance services, psychological counselling, spiritual and vocational guidance. 73 young women were socially integrated between 2007 and 2019 by finding a job and a new place to stay and proving they could manage on their own.

A culture of community involvement

• The “Young Diaconia” project was launched in 2007 to develop community initiative and involvement among children and young people. In 2019, over 1,000 volunteers joined fundraising and food-raising campaigns, distributed 40,000 hot meals with the mobile canteen and organized five summer camps for 320 children.

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The Diaconia Social Mission of the Metropolis of Bessarabia has been active in the Republic of Moldova since 2001 and is a member of the Filantropia Federation of the Romanian Patriarchate. Its mission is to develop social intervention models based on the vision of man as created in the image and likeness of God. It aims to create an active society, guided by Christian values.

Downloadable full report in Romanian here.

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