“Dad, where have you been?” That question burned in the heart of Nikolay Shagarov and ultimately led him to establish Children’s Path – a home in western Ukraine for children deprived of parental care. On March 14th, 2016, Children’s path had only 4 children. Today, they have 26, with room for up to 32.
Before the foundation of his ministry, Nikolay outlined two
objectives:
1. Specify the children with whom we place on God’s path
2. Place them in a family that will take care of them and provide
them with important life needs.
Most of the children living in the home come from terrible and heartbreaking situations where alcoholism, abuse, and neglect are all too common. From being locked in a barn with livestock for days to being savagely beaten for not knowing the answer to a game show playing on the TV, these children have experienced hardships no person should ever have to endure. Currently, 21 of the 26 children have experienced various physical and psychological trauma.
Nikolay believes that their greatest need is love and attention. He and the other staff members give them just that. Working in shifts, five teachers (one of whom being a psychologist), four assistant educators, Nadiya (Nikolay’s wife), four chefs, three boiler officers, an accountant, and Nikolay as the director all work together to give these children a life of love and attention they would never have experienced in their previous situations. In selecting his staff, Nikolay was very particular. Before hiring anyone, he made sure that they desired to serve the Lord and children with love and attention.
Nikolay explains, “at the age of seventeen when I started to serve the Lord, I asked him, ‘What is my calling?’ After a brief time, Lord came and began to speak to me. He did not speak aloud, but His voice was gentle in my heart. The Lord said, ‘Your vocation is to serve children, orphans. The time will come when I call you to this ministry. You build the orphanage and serve afflicted children.’ I took this word as the opening of the Lord by faith. Today is our home is nearly 10,000 square feet, which is intended to house 32 children through our efforts with financial support from donors.”
The operational budget for Children’s Path is about $4,000 a month. They have a constant need for funding and they often do not know where the funds for next will come. Frequently all they rely on is a simple prayer: "Lord, finances - it's not my problem, but thine.”
“I thank our Lord that allowed us to now perform this important service!”
With love,
Nikolay Shaharov
