URIK SHELTER

Urik Shelter is situated 10 miles outside of Irkutsk and surrounded by 16 small villages. The shelter can house 40 children for 18 months or more if necessary. The children range in age from 3-16. Historically this area was thriving with agriculture, but over the last 15 years, all of that has been destroyed. Unemployment is extremely high in this region and many of the families are plagued with neglect and alcohol abuse. Most families receive $10 a month per child from the government so they can feed their children, but even that doesn't keep the kids from begging on the streets. While at the shelter the children receive social, medical, and physical rehabilitation so they can adapt to a more "normal" life. There are a total of 15 staff members at the shelter, they love the kids and do their best to help them find a good family or relative to live with until they turn 18 years of age. The shelter shares a one story building with the village hospital, former hospital rooms are now the childrens bedrooms.