In the fall of 2008, our expatriots from Saint Petersburg, who have been living in the USA for the past 10 years, visited Idrica's boarding school Shushkovo, located in the suburbs of Idrica, Sebezh County. This visit made a strong impression on out expats, one of the visitors remembers his feelings after the trip: "The conditions, in which the children reside, do not withstand any criticism. The bathroom is outside - how do the make it through the winter? But the kids themselves are very nice and polite, they greet the visitors and smile..."
After multiple visits to the boarding school, out expats had an idea of creating and launching a website, which would help to collect money for Idrica's boarding school. The website, www.shushkovo.org, has been online since May of 2009 and it already brought its "fruits". Dozens of private individuals or Russian and foreign decent, as well as a few non-profit and non-governmental organizations made monetary donation to the fund help buy the goods for orphans.
At the very end of December, the Children Fund received $3,500 raised by the volunteers in the US. That money was used to buy sports equipment and multimedia projector with a screen. The merchants of Pskov Region responded to the Fund's call and the learning collector and sporting goods store "Raketa" ("Rocket") gave significant discounts on all purchases, which were made using the money raised by the American helpers of the boarding school.
With a great joy the boys and the girls from Shushkovo grabbed the gifts brought to the boarding school: 10 bicycles, 20 sleds, few table tennis sets, soccer balls and volleyballs, mats, hoops, and hockey sticks.
On behalf of the pupils of Idrica's boarding school, we'd like to thank everyone, who took a part in the project and would like to invite Pskov businessmen to join in and to give the kids a new tennis table.