Gorodischche Orphanage
Gorodishche 'Internat' (asylum) is home to 220 children and young adults with special needs who are aged between 4 and 25. Gorodishche is a remote village a little over a two hour drive south west of Minsk. Since our first visit in the late '90s the place is totally transformed. A new building which was 13 years under construction has finally finished and most of the groups have moved in there, the older buildings that are still occupied have undergone huge renovations. The Burren Chernobyl Project has three programmes running annually in Gorodishche.
For the year 2000 the good people of the Parish of Shannon asked us through Canon Brendan and Fr Tom to find an orphanage in need which they would take on as their Millennium Project. And so we found our way to Baranovichi and out the road to the orphanage of Gorodishche, where there were over two hundred children, some in quite appalling conditions. Thanks to the ongoing fund-raising of the Shannon Parish and our volunteers we have been able to make a real difference.
Amongst other things, we have done the following:
- washed and massaged the children in the old days when things were not good
- provided kitchen equipment
- bought new laundry washing machine, drying machine, centrifuge as well as doing repairs to the building
- bought cows, horse, boar
- provided seeds, apple trees for orchard, fish for lake as food
- helped repairs to the main building
- spent ten thousand dollars for old building doors, windows
- provided curtains, beds, bed linen, pillows,
- set up playground equipment and verandas
- sent many lorry loads of Humanitarian Aid
- provided wheelchairs, walking aids, supports, crutches
- continue to provide Pampers at a cost of Euro 1,000 per month
- set up a Physiotherapy program
- set up a Volunteer program every year, which is now year round
- given them a chainsaw
- provided summer visits to Ireland for children
- improved the cemetery with head stones for the children’s graves
- arranged day trips for the children to town and to the restaurant and amusements
- provided extra food, yogurts and fruit for all the children
- paid for holidays in summer camp in Belarus for children
- help to finance furniture and fittings for the new orphanage there
- assisted in the purchase of a van for daily duties
- funded and built an outdoor drying facility (2015) to enable the drying of sheets and clothes throughout the year, regardless of weather conditions.
Burren Chernobyl continues to support Gorodishche Oprhanage right up to the present day with help continuing to provide improvement, helping to support the teachers now employed there, providing safe veranda shelters for time spent outdoors in the summer, and sending many volunteers every summer to organise Summer Camp activities for everyone.
For the year 2000 the good people of the Parish of Shannon asked us through Canon Brendan and Fr Tom to find an orphanage in need which they would take on as their Millennium Project. And so we found our way to Baranovichi and out the road to the orphanage of Gorodishche, where there were over two hundred children, some in quite appalling conditions. Thanks to the ongoing fund-raising of the Shannon Parish and our volunteers we have been able to make a real difference.
Amongst other things, we have done the following:
- washed and massaged the children in the old days when things were not good
- provided kitchen equipment
- bought new laundry washing machine, drying machine, centrifuge as well as doing repairs to the building
- bought cows, horse, boar
- provided seeds, apple trees for orchard, fish for lake as food
- helped repairs to the main building
- spent ten thousand dollars for old building doors, windows
- provided curtains, beds, bed linen, pillows,
- set up playground equipment and verandas
- sent many lorry loads of Humanitarian Aid
- provided wheelchairs, walking aids, supports, crutches
- continue to provide Pampers at a cost of Euro 1,000 per month
- set up a Physiotherapy program
- set up a Volunteer program every year, which is now year round
- given them a chainsaw
- provided summer visits to Ireland for children
- improved the cemetery with head stones for the children’s graves
- arranged day trips for the children to town and to the restaurant and amusements
- provided extra food, yogurts and fruit for all the children
- paid for holidays in summer camp in Belarus for children
- help to finance furniture and fittings for the new orphanage there
- assisted in the purchase of a van for daily duties
- funded and built an outdoor drying facility (2015) to enable the drying of sheets and clothes throughout the year, regardless of weather conditions.
Burren Chernobyl continues to support Gorodishche Oprhanage right up to the present day with help continuing to provide improvement, helping to support the teachers now employed there, providing safe veranda shelters for time spent outdoors in the summer, and sending many volunteers every summer to organise Summer Camp activities for everyone.
A Veranda built for the bedbound children to enable them to be out in the fresh air during the summer.
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Some young adults enjoying the playgroud equipment installed by BCP.
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Volunteering Programme
Our volunteers travel all year round. Many on repeat visits, and plenty of new faces each year too. The role of our volunteers is to spend quality time with the children and young adults. They are fed, washed and have a bed but one-to-one interaction is a huge part of life that they don't receive on a daily basis. Our volunteers bring fun and laughter. Every trip is different but the main activities throughout a typical trip to Belarus would include:
For more information on volunteering in Gorodishche please contact our office on 065-7071130.
- Hand and Foot Massages.
- Sensory play.
- Assistance with feeding with groups 3 & 4 (bedbound/physically disabled).
- Taking children out for walks, especially those in wheelchairs.
- Various sports and activities in the gym.
- Quality time with a small group in the physio room, building strength in their little bodies.
- Serious games of football with the older boys!
- Hair and nails with the girls.
- Discos, indoors and outdoors, wherever they can find a plug for the speaker! We all love a good boogie.
- Trip to a nearby lake on very hot days, to cool down in the water.
- Day trip to the local town Baranovichi where we take them to the fairgroud, petting zoo, cinema, park, restaurant, or anything else that might be of interest.
- Spending time with the Independent Unit in the evenings with a well deserved cup of tea and a game of cards after a long days work (by both the Irish and the Independents themselves!)
For more information on volunteering in Gorodishche please contact our office on 065-7071130.
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Nutritional Programme |
Disposable Nappy Programme |
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In order to provide additional nutrition into the children's diets, the Yogurt Programme was implemented. The programme runs throughout the year.
The number of children able to receive the yogurts depends on funding. We generally try to feed the weakest and when possible other groups. 
Artiom enjoying his yummy yogurt.
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Disposable nappies are very expensive and the orphanage cannot afford nappies for all the children and young adults who are incontinent. The children are changed three times a day. Disposable nappies are bought locally and distributed to cover 30% of the orphanages requirement. The monthly cost of this programme is €1,000.
The older boys hanging out the sheets to dry. A shortage of Nappies can make this a long and tiring process.
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