Reaching Volgograd for Christ

The Children’s Center In the Central District of the city there is an entire area that is dedicated just to kids. There is a very small amusement park, that resembles a fair, except it’s permanent rather than traveling. There are rides for the kids, bumper cars, popcorn, cotton candy, and the like. This is, of course, a favorite location for children. Across the street is the Volgograd Circus. Unlike our traditional notion of a circus, this is a permanent facility. The circus is open seasonally, and there are various exhibitions that use this round, “one- ring”, indoor auditorium. Not long ago, a Moscow circus had a show here that ran for a limited time, complete with clowns, acrobats, and even tigers. Recently, we visited the circus again for a dolphin show. The circus ring had been adapted as a small pool and there were two dolphins that did tricks. The circus has long been a proud part of the Russia heritage, since Soviet times. I think there are even special schools in Russia for circus performers and larger cities almost always have their own circus. Also in this area of Volgograd dedicated to kids, it is not uncommon to see animal trainers (usually outside the circus) offering pony rides to kids, pictures with a live camel, and so forth. While communist-gray city-blocks, and somber-looking expressions are often part of our reality here in Russia, it is undeniable that the Russian people have a soft-spot for kids.

From the Central Square in Volgograd you can walk along the “Alley of Heroes” all the way to the Volga River. The Alley is a strictly pedestrian zone that crosses several main streets in downtown Volgograd before reaching the riverfront area. The Alley of Heroes gets its name from the WWII casualties commemorated along this walkway. Just off the Central Square there is a large obelisk and an “eternal flame” in memory of fallen soldiers. As you continue walking down Hero Alley there is a green park and then a section of walkway that has been dedicated to souvenir vendors. Along this stretch of Hero Alley local artists sell oil paintings, watercolors, and made-to-order portraits. There are also vendors here who set up their little tables each day with Russian nesting dolls, folk handicrafts, and even jewelry. Past the vendors you’ll come to the section of the Alley for which it is named. This section is lined on either side with marble slabs adorned with the names of fallen heroes of the famous WWII Battle of Stalingrad. Finally, the Alley of Heroes comes to an end at the spacious downtown riverfront area where you are greeted by a picturesque fountain, classical columns, and large stone steps leading down to the Volga River. You can make the entire walk in under an hour, depending on how long you stop for souvenirs. It is a must for every visitor to Volgograd.

Plans are still being made for a Christian Camp that we’ll be involved in this August. It will be a two-week day-camp at the beginning of August. As you may remember, this camp is part of the outreach to Spartanovka that we’ll be doing this summer. Then, in the Fall, we’ll start a community Bible course in that part of the city. We’ve been working with the Russian team of young people who will be conducting the camp. They have chosen the camp program, gathered a team of leaders, agreed upon a schedule, and are meeting regularly to prepare. It looks like it’s going to be a great program. A group of American volunteers will be with us for the first week of the camp, and an American sports-instructor will be with us during the second week. The bulk of the camp, however, is being put together by this Russian youth group, which I think is very healthy. It is a blessing to see the Russians themselves stepping forward to take responsibility for reaching this community. We’ve also been meeting with interpreters to prepare them for their job of translating for the American volunteers. We are planning for 50 kids for this camp. Please pray that this camp will be a blessing to these children and that through the camp we will build relationships with adults who need to hear about Christ. Pray that they will take part in the Fall Bible Course that we’ll be offering in Spartanovka this Fall. We have finally secured a location for the camp (Praise the Lord!) but still haven’t found a facility in which to do the Bible study in the Fall. Please pray for this need as well. So far, every door has been closed to us. More and more, doors of facilities are closed to the work of the Lord.

This is a really easy summer drink that’s very refreshing. Take any combination of fresh berries and fruits and put in a large pot of water. (I like strawberries, cherries, and gooseberries.) Put two handfuls of berries into the large pot of water and add sugar to taste (about 2 cups?) Bring the pot to a boil, then let simmer for about 10 minutes. Cool and drink. You can add mint leaves if you like. It’s great straight from the refrigerator.

Well, it’s been quite a while since we’ve written anything about the band program we had hoped to start in Volgograd. As some of you may remember, we were striking-out with various music schools about this time last year. Finally, we found a couple of locations that would “allow” us to come in and teach music, but only as an after-school program. By the time all the dust settled, we had a handful of kids at each location, and by the end of the school year it was down to one trumpet student at one school and two students at the other place. Not exactly what we had hoped for! But we promised them an entire school year, so we gave them just that. Do you remember the elderly gentleman who was learning to play the recorder? Well, we finished out the year at the local House of Culture. After a year of meeting together, he knows how to read music, can play a few songs on the recorder, and has heard the Gospel at least once.

As the school year began to wind down and our last meeting was in sight, we began to talk about next year. I confided in him that it had been like pulling teeth to get any kind of program started. I had really put a lot of effort into trying to start the program but just couldn’t get it going! Well, upon hearing about this, Evgeny Alexandrovich (that is the old gentleman’s name) took it upon himself to do some research on my behalf. He visited the district administrator, and then went to visit a local public school. (A school that we had already visited to try and recruit students for our program at the House of Culture.) To make a long story short, Evgeny Alexandrovich was able to accomplish in one conversation what I had not been able to do in a year. After that one meeting, he gave me the phone number of the contact person at the school and put the ball in my court. When I went to this school to talk with the principal and vice-principal, I was surprised at how productive this meeting was. The suspicion, apathy, and game-playing that I had become accustomed to wasn’t there. After a year of being strung-along by endless bureaucracy, I was bracing myself for one more answer somewhere between “yes” and “no.” What I met with was something totally different. They treated me as a fellow educator and we began almost immediately talking about how to fit the band program into the schedule, how to choose children for the program and other such logistics. They seemed grateful and excited about the opportunity to have this program in their school. You see, Evgeny Alexandrovich has spent a lifetime in this community and has equity here. He has spent his life in this area of the city, working in the factory, writing children’s literature, and even working on the publication of a local gazette. Acting as my spokesman, he was able to quickly open the very door that I had been banging my head against for almost a year.

So, this Fall, we will begin a band program at Public School #106 in the area close to the oil refinery. I’ve already been to the school several times and have given musical aptitude tests to over 30 students who want to participate. The school administrators sort of hand-picked some of their best students to take part in the program. And, best of all, this will not be considered an after-school program, but rather a class during the actual school day. What about instruments? Well, many of you will remember that Gadsden Music Company in Alabama has championed this cause and began collecting used instruments for this project. Collecting, repairing, and shipping instruments is not a simple task, especially with the precarious nature of the mail system in Russia. Would you believe that these instruments are now arriving in Volgograd just in time to get this band program going! To date, we have enough instruments in-hand for most of the students who want to participate. I’ll go back to the school in August to make some last-minute negotiations in terms of scheduling and set the stage for the actual “kick-off” in September.

Please pray with us that this band program will come together and be a top-quality service to this community. Pray that the students will learn well and that the adults in this community will see the program as beneficial. Above all, pray that through this we will be able to show the love of Christ, and that God will open “doors of utterance” to share the Gospel with people that we meet. Our desire is to give this school a band program of true excellence, and thus earn a hearing for the Gospel. Jesus said, “let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.” (Matthew 5:16) With this verse in mind, please pray for this band program, and the souls of those connected with it.