BACKGROUND

The Inn of Love is a project that was set up to feed the most vulnerable elderly people in Dancu, Moldova. Dancu is a very poor village that used to be thriving. However the large factory in the centre of the village closed down many years ago and left poverty. The project manager at the time realised that many of the elderly had no support. They had no-one to rely on to feed or care for them. The town hall realised the same and presented him with a list of names of elderly people. He took the list and started to visit them. At the first house he visited a lady who had laid down to die because she had no more food. She had no family and no-one to help her or bring her food. The project manager had a meal in his hands and the Inn of Love was born.

HOW WE HELP

The Inn of Love has now expanded to feed nearly 60 frail and vulnerable people in Dancu and Cioara. Some of the elderly are able to be brought to the Community Centre that Link to Hope built. They all meet and eat together and this means that they socialise and combat loneliness. Other elderly people who cannot get to the community centre due to their disabilities have food taken to them. Food is delivered to their homes and it is often the only person they see from day to day. Their faces light up when they see the team arrive not just for the food but also the company.

Latest Update – August 2024

The Inn of Love team sent an update of the work they are doing.

“We are so grateful to God and to all those at Link to Hope that this year we have been able to continue the Inn of Love programme for the elderly and vulnerable in our community.  It really is a lifeline for so many of them – not only physically with the freshly prepared food they receive three times a week but also emotionally, knowing someone will be visiting them and they will receive a smile, maybe a hug but also an ear to listen to them, a moment when they know they are not alone.

We are so blessed to have a great team who work together to plan, prepare and cook the food and take it out to the elderly people in our project.  Our team consists of Veronica, Dona, Valentina, Ira and Andrei.  It has been great that Ira has been able to join our team. She is a refugee from Ukraine who has been staying with us since the war began in Ukraine.  When working with Dona and Valentina in the village, they have helped her learn Romanian.  Since starting to work within the project she has felt she has more purpose and she has told us that for her it is a pleasure to visit the elderly and speak with them and it does not feel like work.  For them, Ira brings a smile to their faces and new energy and joy to their day.  Andrei also enjoys visiting the elderly and sharing his faith with them, giving them encouragement and hope and being able to pray with them when they are feeling low and desperate.

We have continued to cook and deliver meals to 70 elderly people in Dancu, Cioara and Calmatui three times a week, on a Monday, Wednesday and Friday.  Since we last wrote, 13 have been added to the project.  Sadly, we have lost 9 members of the project during 2023 -2024. We miss them greatly but are pleased that through your generosity we were able to support them and show them God’s love and care. The number of people 65 or older is increasing faster than ever. We believe that everyone has the right to a quality of life as they grow older, irrespective of their gender, religion, health or economic status. Elderly people deserve to live with dignity, free from the perverse effects of poverty, illness, homelessness and malnutrition; and deserve protection from isolation, abuse, neglect and discrimination.

This group is often marginalised in Moldova as there is no state provision in place for the development of much needed services, and currently insufficient empowerment or self-representation of older generations. This situation is equally inadequate for seniors living in both urban and rural areas with a lack of services and general poverty affecting many people.

Your support also allows us to maintain and buy fuel for the car which we could not do the project without.

As you will read in the individual stories below, your support not only provides much needed food to the elderly but also provides friendship and care, some of whom would not see anyone else during the week, only when family are able to visit maybe at the weekends.  It also provides an income for 4 people within the village, enabling them to look after themselves and their families.

We are so grateful for your support and your partnership in this program which would not be possible without you and your supporters and your generosity.  We do not take it for granted.  We wish that you could all see in person how much of a difference it makes in the lives of so many people here and how grateful they are every time they receive a visit with food.  We want to thank you with all our hearts for your support.”

The Inn of Love Team

“I am alone. Nobody visits me.”

Up on a hill in the village of Cioara, Vasilita, a 76-year-old widow, is living alone in a very old house with very poor conditions. When it rains and especially in the winter time it is so difficult to get to her house but we cannot imagine not going to see her knowing that we are the only people visiting and helping her. She had her son living with her but sadly he died 2 years ago at the age of 41 yrs old and since then every time we visit her she says this “I am alone. Nobody visits me. I used to work very hard in the collective farms during the Soviet Union and never thought that after so many years of hardworking I would be living alone and struggling through my daily life having no food on the table.”

It is truly heart-breaking to see how this dear lady is living but when we go there with meals and tell her that people from the UK are sending their love, prayers and care for her and others, she can’t stop thanking us with many tears in her eyes.

A lot of the elders are alone and nobody visits them but friends with your support we can open many doors and reach out to these people and bring them encouragement and hope through the practical help.

Ion and Nina are living in Calmatui village. Andrei first heard about this couple from his neighbour who told him that Nina was in the hospital. Her leg was amputated and she needed a wheelchair. Andrei visited them when Nina came home from the hospital and he realised they needed more than a wheelchair. When we offered to bring them warm meals both were brought to tears because this was one of their biggest worries after getting her leg amputated.

“We are so lucky with Andrei and Ira, they visit us 3 times a week. Without their help we would live on other’s pity and mercy. Thank you all for the wonderful care and love that you are giving us. Our lives have dramatically changed since I lost one leg and it is very hard for us to go through life but we are so grateful for your help. Your love and care for us have blessed our hearts with peace and comfort and helped us through this terrible and sad situation.”

Sofia is a widow of 12 years and is living alone in her home in Dancu. Similar to the story above, Sofia got one leg amputated and she has asked us if we can help her with a wheelchair. Our visit to her was so overwhelming, hearing her story about how she needed the second surgery because the doctor did something wrong on the first surgery. Because of her physical conditions she is totally dependent on our help and we thank God that we met her and are able to help her with hot meals and encourage her every time we visit her.

“Please extend my heartfelt thanks to your friends from Link to Hope who care for me and many others who need your help. Let them know how very important their support is to me and many others. I hope they all continue to bless more people with their specific gentleness and compassion. THANK YOU ALL”