Moldova

Billy Turkington has been a member of MPC for over twenty years, serving in various missions abroad and at home over the last ten years. Beginning in Moldova at a needy orphanage and recently supporting work in Romania. His efforts are currently focused on Helping Hands Aid Outreach charity and shop, supporting an orphanage in Balti, Moldova and many other people in need.

About the work:

A number of years ago I believe God challenged me to become involved in helping those less fortunate, in a practical way. At that time I was aware of a great need in an orphanage in Moldova. The conditions there were horrendous to say the least, children not being fed, living in cold conditions, no heating or lights during the winter. The beds were often infested with rodents, the children were dying because of a simple lack of food, care and medicine. I became aware that these are the very things we so often take for granted.

I continued to travel back to the orphanage, each time our team made a difference in the lives of those children. Conditions gradually improved, as the work continued and people prayed, the results were amazing. There are now people who care for the children, there is food, heating and also medical treatment when required. I recently had an opportunity to visit the orphanage and see the work I had helped to establish, the difference was truly astounding, what a difference from my first visit, thanks to the work of the team and many prayers.

The focus of my work changed as I became involved in missions work in Romania. I was invited to drive a truck out there at short notice, I visited a well run orphanage in Brasov, the kids had been living on the streets, finding shelter in basements and sewers during the winter months. I was also asked to visit a village, typical of where these children come from. The poverty and conditions of this village would be hard to imagine, families living in shacks, two or three generations in the same shelter. On return from this trip, myself and another man started Helping Hands, which later became Helping Hands Aid Outreach, our motto is "Raising basic human living standards through practical help".

Until recently we were involved with a group that ran a community centre in Valcale, Brasov region, Romania. The centre worked with two villages, Valcale and Highia, our job was to collect items and send them to the centre, where they would be sorted and sent to the people in each of the villages. We would also arrange teams of people to work within the community, with the goal of preventing the children from ending up in a terrible orphanage or institution.

Currently my work is focused on Helping Hands Aid Outreach, supporting an orphanage in Balti, Moldova, where there are mixed children who are blind or partially sighted, aged from 6 to 18 years old.

It has been possible for me to help others because of the support of my family, friends and my wider church family, both prayerfully and practically.

Billy Turkington

For support or information contact Helping Hands Aid Outreach,
Tel: 0044 (0)28 3831 7766 or Email: helping-hands@fsmail.net