THE SHOES TIE US TOGETHER by Ashley WIlliamson, Manager of Shoes for Orphan Souls® O
ver the years, the faces of children have stuck with me. There’s Angel in Mexico, Ursula in Peru, Daniel in Ethiopia and Dulce in Guatemala. And then there’s Yulia from Russia.
After I graduated from college, I spent four weeks serving in various orphanages outside of St. Petersburg, Russia through Project Go with three other women. During our first day at the orphanage, Yulia was dropped off. About 6 years old, she was playful and full of energy. I doubt she had any idea what was happening as she jumped in to play with the rest of the kids. I never learned about her family situation, but I imagine that she is a social orphan, like the vast majority of children living in orphanages. Social orphans are children who have parents, but have been abandoned, removed from their homes because of abuse or were placed in the care of government institutions due to extreme poverty. When we had the opportunity to spend some time with that same group of kids three weeks later, it was obvious that Yulia was struggling to navigate the new home she shared with 60 other children and not enough caregivers. I can only imagine how confused she must have been during those first few weeks.
The weight of witnessing that moment in
Yulia’s life still sneaks up on me, and I ache for her and the millions of other children around the world who have lived through the same experience. It is because of children like Yulia that I am passionate about the work that Buckner does worldwide to offer help and hope to vulnerable children and families.
It is because of her and so many others that I work for Buckner Shoes for Orphan Souls.
• • • Buckner took over the Shoes for Orphan
Souls program in 1999. My mother worked for Buckner at the time, and I immediately {continued on page 19}
16 Buckner Today • SPRING 2015 ISSUE
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