Star of Hope is a non-denominational Christian organization that gives children across the world; knowledge, physical well-being, spiritual growth and social skills through educational programs and local and international partnerships. Join us!

Star of Hope's own Maria Presson visiting the work in Romania, here in a small town named Murgeni, some of the local kids welcome visitors.

Ulrika Kallin, Lennart Eriksson, and Maria Presson with friends.

Welcome visitors!

Here it is.

Murgeni, is inland and needless to say very depresses economically, but things are happening that give positive signals. Of course, Star of Hope's presence has addressed certain real needs. Children with disabilities now have access to, first class help and not only that, church plantings are done and more are on the way. Murgeni is a town that has been changed by grace and love and an environment for greater change has been created.

Maria at one of our development centers. 

The visitors were serendipitously just in time to attend a fundraiser in Iasi Romania. Iasi Romania is 2hours north of Murgeni. The fundraising event was called, "the Vivaldi Spring Fling". Star of Hope Romania's Director Aurora Vatamaniuc and the local chamber of commerce, together with other friends, enjoyed the Spring Fling-Vivaldi Edition and at the same time informed the local businesspeople about the work.

Maria, Aurora, Lennart, and Ulrika representing Star of Hope from 4 countries.

Maria says she was impressed by the turnout of businessmen and happy that representatives from Iasi and also from Sweden, Norway and the USA attended.

Star of Hope Romania was keen on thanking the chamber of commerce as they and their members chose to be with us and our children and their parents at this event. Aurora thanked local students, dancers and faculty of Iasi academy and the College of Art. "It was a magical night," says Aurora.

Maria Presson meets with the Mayor of Iasi Mr. Mihai Chirica

Maria told us, "this is a blessing to be here and see the community involvement and dedication to Star of Hope's work in Romania, this is the fruit."

Click here to learn more about our work in Romania

Maria Presson - foto Samuel Andersson/Star of Hope

Maria Presson and Ulrika Kallin representing Star of Hope USA and Star of Hope Sweden are in Iasi Romania visiting children in a Star of Hope center; here children with disabilities and their parents get the help and education they need to move forward. Inbetween meetings is playtime! 

Ulrika Kallin

Maria Presson told us "I'm so impressed with the work at the Star of Hope center for children with disabilities. I have been blessed with the opportunity to see the children develop over the years. The children have become more than anyone ever thought they could, be is a wonderful experience."

The Star of Hope Romania Foundation is a Romania nongovernmental organization, apolitical, established in 1998, having the headquarters in Iasi. The mission of the foundation is to improve the quality of the life of children in need, especially those with disabilities. Since 2011, the foundation operates 12 centers for children with disabilities and of course for the families too. "Star of Hope reaches over 500 children each month and nearly 2000 people total every month!" reports Maria Presson.

Star of Hope is also working actively to change the attitudes of health professionals and political leaders. The sight of these children with special needs has long been characterized by the notion that people with special needs cannot contribute to society and that therefore they are inferior. Instead, they have been placed in institutions, where they had to endure both physical and psychological abuse. They never get out of bed, do not learn to walk, talk, feed themselves, dress themselves or do without a diaper. There was simply no time to give every child adequate care. The children were under-stimulated and forced to a life without the possibility to develop as human beings and live full lives.

In 2007, Star of Hope Romania began projects in neighboring Moldova, with the goal to improve the lives of children with special needs and socially excluded children.

We need your support to change lives is expensive working one on one and this situation demands one on one teaching.

www.starofhope.us/give Don't wait!

See reports here: https://www.starofhope.us/romania-moldova/coneference-report-from-romania

Thank you! 

Just tags below

#DisaBodyPosi #TheBarriersWeFace #WheelchairLife #ActuallyAutistic #abuse #asd #autism #empathy #mentalhealth 

Will you go without something this Lent? Let Star of Hope suggest a few options that will rock someone’s world. It does not matter who you are, you can be a part of making sure a child will have a smile and plate of food, this Easter!

Lent is surely a time to think of others and one way is through sacrifice, decide on a family sacrifice; let’s be clear this is an act of self-denial that everyone can participate in. Doing this together as a family will give everyone the chance to encourage one another. As a family perhaps you can skip a movie out or a dinner.

Allow each member of the family to choose one’s own unique sacrifice for Lent.

That special coffee, video games, snacks, soda, sugary cereals, toys, cigarettes, quick burger and so on, for kids it seems the standard heartfelt item to give up is candy.

Take those savings and together as a family place the funds you would have spent into an envelope and send it to Star of Hope, again as a family, we will be sure it does great work by feeding and helping this Easter.

The big thing is, please pray as a family every day, pray for your family, your friends, the USA and the world. There is a supernatural power in prayer and your gift from skipping will have power as well when we feed the hungry. Your prayer as a family will help make all things stronger.

Again it is easy to make your sacrifice have compound effects, skip something and give it away to the needy, send the envelopes or checks to Star of Hope, PO Box 427, Ellinwood KS, 67526 ( or visit us at www.starofhope.us ) The small amounts when pooled together have a big effect, it adds up fast!

A refresher on Lent, it is the forty day period before Easter, excluding Sundays, which begins on Ash Wednesday “today” and ends on Holy Saturday (the day before Easter Sunday). The current or modern calendar counts Lent as only from Ash Wednesday to Holy Thursday, up to the Mass of the Lord's Supper. Even so, Lenten practices are properly maintained up to the Easter Vigil, excluding Sundays, as before.

So, why are the forty days called Lent?

A: They are called Lent because that is the Old English word for spring, the season of the year during which they fall. This is something unique to English. In almost all other languages its name is a derivative of the Latin term Quadragesima, or "the forty days."

And then, why is Lent forty days long?

Forty days is a traditional number of discipline, devotion, and preparation in the Bible. Thus Moses stayed on the Mountain of God forty days (Exodus 24:18 and 34:28), the spies were in the land for forty days (Numbers 13:25), Elijah traveled forty days before he reached the cave where he had his vision (1 Kings 19:8), Nineveh was given forty days to repent (Jonah 3:4), and most importantly, prior to undertaking his ministry, Jesus spent forty days in wilderness praying and fasting (Matthew 4:2).

Since Lent if a period of prayer and fasting, it is fitting for Christians to imitate their Lord with a forty day period.

Christ used a forty day period of prayer and fasting to prepare for his ministry, which culminated in his death and resurrection, and thus it is fitting for Christians to imitate him with a forty day period of prayer and fasting to prepare for the celebration, Easter Sunday (the day of the resurrection).

Again it is easy to make your sacrifice have compound effects, skip something and give it away to the needy, send the envelopes or checks to Star of Hope, PO Box 427, Ellinwood KS, 67526

Thank you and Blessings.