Page 86 - Book about Friendship and Future.Stories of Volunteers.

Alexandra Sapova

An Orphanage Graduate
Nakhodka

My fate is such that I have been living in the orphanage of the
town of Artem since I was 12. Frankly speaking, I am pretty fine
in that place. Sympathetic, loving and responsible people work
here.
After I had spent 2 years in the orphanage, the volunteers from
the fund “HOPE Worldwide” and the KFC company came to see
us. Later, I understood that they were the best people I had ever
met. They appeared just at the moment when I was feeling de-
pressed because of my past, missing my previous acquaintances
a lot. I found it very difficult to trust the environment, but thanks
to them I managed to do that…
During our first meeting I did not feel much interested in
them. It seemed to me that they were the ones that “just come
and go”. At that time, I could not even imagine that they would
start visiting us on a regular basis. They were engaging us into
interesting events and excursions, introducing us to new people!
I had never met people like them before.
One of the excursions, that I still remember, was to a KFC res-
taurant. I saw from inside how the things worked: how the meals
are prepared, wrapped and served. I started making plans for
future: after my graduation I would like to combine my studies
with working in a restaurant.
And besides my future planning, I realized that in the course of
communicating with the volunteers I started feeling more com-
fortable among other people, I can easily start talking to unfamil-
iar people and the last but not the least, I have accepted myself
just as I am!