11-2011 Care Packages for Orphanage

After my return to London in July, I received an urgent plea for help from a Moigrad family for a young girl, "O". Some of you may have heard her story, but if you have not, it is very captivating.

"O" is a 23-year-old girl who lives in an orphanage in Crasna, Romana. Her mother had her when she was very young and subsequently did not want her. When they moved to Moigrad, her mother kept her in a box in the back yard. She did not feed her or teach her any motor or communication skills. The neighbors took pity on the girl and kept her alive by feeding her. At the age of three, "O"s mother sent her to an orphanage where she has been ever since. She did learn to walk and talk but "O"s cognitive abilities were never well enough developed for her to be on her own. Typically at the age of 18, orphanages allow children to leave and go on to “fend for themselves” in a sense. With "O"s inability to do this, and the orphanages poor state, she has little food and little in terms of clothing or possessions.

My goal before returning to the states was to send "O" and some of the other children at the orphanage a care package. I sent out a request to all my university colleagues asking for donations. I received a great response and was able to send a huge box of goodies to "O". It included new and used clothes, candy, stationary, sketching materials, lots of girlie things like nail polish, manicure set, slippers, lip gloss, head bands and some more practical items like blankets, towels and a comforter. I also was able to send a box for some boys, which included lots of clothing, shoes, jackets, another comforter, and a skateboard.

In November I received word that "O" and the orphanage had received the care packages. "O" in particular was allowed to keep everything her box contained, something I worried about. We heard that she was very excited, and just before the new year, I received a letter written on "O"s behalf giving thanks for all the items.

I would like to thank everyone who gave their time and effort to donate and assist in storing and transporting all the donated goods around London. You made the care packages possible. I know they made a huge difference in many children’s lives, especially "O". On behalf of all the children, thank you! I hope to make it out to visit the orphanage the next time I am in the area.

05-2011 Distribution of First Scholarship

This year we chose a woman who has worked several years for the PFP. She is a wonderfully hard worker with a personality to match. She has a young son with a heart condition that is in need of immediate medical attention. She is saving money for a very expensive surgery for the boy, and we wanted to assist in her efforts. If anyone knows a charitable heart surgeon, let us know! She is recently remarried and has just given birth to a baby girl. I am hoping to hear this summer how the family is doing.

04-2011 Update of Families and Scholarships

I have just returned from Romania after spending an amazing 2.5 weeks with friends and local families. After discussion with connections in Romania who are helping with the Porolissum Prietenie efforts, we have decided to focus our efforts into an annual scholarship for one person/family. I have also updated new families and individuals who are in need of help. It has been 4 years since we began our efforts, and the needs of some of some of the families have changed. Please take some time to get to know the new faces.

12-2010 Officially Non-Profit!

It has been a long road, full of pages and pages of mundane paperwork, but we have finally recieved our Federal Non-Profit Status. We will be sending letters to all of those who have donated thus far. Thank you for all your support and hard work!

09-2010 Death of a Friend

In September, we all recieved news that a dear friend and a father figure to many of us had passed away. Alexandru Matei was a dedicated archeologist who dedicated his life to Porolissum. He quietly helped many local families from his own resources and was a big inspiration and supporter of Porolissum Prietenie. He may no longer be with us, but his spirit lives in the hearts and minds of everyone he touched. You are sorely missed Matei! RIP

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04-23-2010 Donations

The past 8 months have been amazing. We raised almost $1500 from all the generous donations from last years PFP 2009 participants and Annie Lane's Romanian Relief Concert at Monmouth University. Great job everyone and thank you for all your help!

04-01-2010 Teresa's False Alarm

I have recieved word from Czolt who says that the doctors mis-diagnosed Teresa's cancer relapse. I hear that she is still in remission! Yeah! Oh the other hand, her husband, , is not doing well. He is having trouble walking and unable to work. I have heard that they have hired a new person to look after Porolissum. I am unsure of how this affects Teresa and he family. Our prayers are with them!

12-18-2008 Teresa is ill again!!!

We've heard that Teresa is ill again. She had uterine cancer a few years ago and underwent a hysterectomy. She just had an exam and will have to undergo chemo therapy for about 5 weeks. If that does not work, she will need another operation, which is rather expensive for Romania - about 2000 euros.

10-24-2009 Romanian Relief Concert

It is time again for the Romanian Relief Concert! It will take place at Monmouth University, IL on October 24th. Annie Lane has does a wonderful job of starting up this big event for us. This will be the second annual concert and we hope to beat last years $550 record and pull more money in for Teresa!!!

09-30-2009 State Non-Profit Status

It has been a while since any updates, but I just wanted to let everyone know that we have officially gotten non-profit status with California. Now we need to file for our federal. This will cost a one time payment of $300 and we unfortunately have a time frame of several months, or we will lose our non-profit status. I know that this comes at a difficult time, but it is something we really need to start working toward.

12-18-2008 Non-Profit Status

Ok, so we are an official corporation now! Last week I sent in the paperwork for our IPC number, which is necessary for us to complete the paperwork for non-profit status. This is big news, we are hoping to have the number by the end of the month, and non-profit status filed by early January. This means, once that happens, we can start targeting businesses and people to donate. Once we recieve the IPC number, we can officially open a bank account under the "Porolissum Prietenie" name. So we will have that created in no time. Thanks for being so patient through this slow process. We are almost there!!!

12-2008 Christmas!!!

It has been 4 months since I left Romania! This means, It has been 4 months since any help has gone to the needy families. Time has flown, and Christmas is now fast approaching. We are going to try to get the money from Annie's Romanian Relief Concert out ASAP. It would be great to also get some gifts out, so get out your thinking caps...and start fundraising!!

12-1-2008 Romanian Relief Concert Completion

Annie's Romanian Relief Concert was great. She was able to pull together $400! Not bad for our first fundraiser. Congrats Annie, and thanks for all the hard work!

11-2008 Romanian Relief Concert

Annie Lane, a fellow student who participated in the 2008 diggings, has put together a great fundraiser at Monmouth University in Illinois. The concert will take place in November and will feature local bands with all proceeds going to the people of Moigrad. This is a great fundraiser! I wish her luck and hope that she does well.

03-10-2008 Cristi's bus pass

Today I received an email from Cristi. He told me that he was able to use the money that I left him, before leaving Romania, to pay for his bus pass to school for this month. Making enough money to pay for the bus pass was a constant burden on him, and I am ecstatic that for his first month back at school, he will not have to worry about it.

16-10-2008 Articles of Incorporation

Today I sent in the Articles of Incorporation to the Secretary of the State of California. This is the first step to creating a nonprofit organization. With these letters we become a legitimate organization and can then file for tax exemption. We are on our way to helping!!!

22-10-2008 The Website

Website created ....Finally!!