BELARUS NEWS AND ANALYSIS

DATE:

July 7, 2005

Host families plump up Belarus kids

By BECKY SHAY

Of The Gazette Staff

How does one explain the feeling of sending a child halfway around the world to be cared for by strangers, people who don't speak the youth's language or know her culture?

For a Belorussian woman whose child is making her third summer visit to Billings, it boils down to "trust, gratitude and, I would say, hope."

Larissa Tryhubava and her daughter, Dasha, arrived in Billings June 29 with nine children from the Eastern European country of Belarus. Tryhubava serves as an interpreter for the kids and their host families.

This is the fourth year children from Belarus have taken medical respites in the Billings area. The kids, ages 9 to 14, spend six weeks here with host families who have paid their travel costs.

Belarus, which is smaller than the state of Kansas, was contaminated by radiation fallout from the Chernobyl nuclear reactor accident in 1986. The radiation contaminated the ground and food sources and left generations of Belorussians with increased incidents of thyroid cancer and other ailments, including genetic mutations in the children of exposed adults.

During their stay in America and several European countries, the children receive basic medical care, healthy diets that include foods not safe to eat at home, such as dairy products, fruits and vegetables, and lots of clean air and exercise.

It's so important for the kids to eat well that the host parents will give a prize to the child who gains the most weight during the stay.

While here, the kids visit an endocrinologist, pediatrician, dentist and eye doctor. Other than pulling bad teeth or maybe providing glasses, there is no intervention such as surgery if a child is found to have a malady, said Debbie Ricci, who with her husband, Vince, is a Montana director for the program.

"There is an awesome medical community in Billings that has been just wonderful about giving care and support to these kids," Ricci said. "We've never, ever had to pay a doctor's bill on any of them."

Beyond providing medical care, the respite program has created relationships that reach around the world, Tryhubava said.

"Sometimes I think that horrible disaster from 19 years ago brought people together," Tryhubava said. "How would we know such nice people if we didn't know that disaster? I have the best image of the United States because I meet the best families."

The host program is sponsored by Global Family Alliance, a nondenominational Christian organization. The largest American program is based in Seattle, where 84 kids are being cared for this summer. Debbie Ricci said that people around Montana have shown interest in serving as host families and that she believes the program will go statewide.

"Good things are contagious," Tryhubava said.

Jacob and Patricia Platt have been host parents and this year are respite hosts, meaning that if other families need backup, they are available to take in children.

"I feel like it's one of the most worthwhile things we, as a family, have ever been involved in," he said.

Part of that may be the close family connection that the hosts and visitors make.

Dasha said that when she is in Billings, she misses her father in Belarus. When she is in Belarus, she misses her host family.

"It pleases my soul," Tryhubava said. "She feels very comfortable in the host family and feels part of the family."

Dasha's host mother, Julie Gibbs, who has two sons, said she enjoys fussing over a girl. "I get a daughter for six weeks," Gibbs said.

While visiting with Tryhubava, Gibbs said she was struck by the stark Belorussian existence in comparison with the lush American lifestyle.

"It really hit me hard how spoiled we are here," Gibbs said. Rather than moping, however, Gibbs said she "turned it into something positive. God allowed us to have this so we can share."

Aksana Korolyova, 11, said she feels at home with her host family, the Krofts. Although Aksana speaks little English - and the Krofts speak less Russian - they communicate easily, said 15-year-old Hannah Kroft. Hand motions and pointing help them understand each other, and the Russian-English dictionary is always nearby.

"If we just can't figure it out, we look it up in the book," Hannah said. "If it's not in the book, it's not too important."

Twelve-year-old Dasha said it is important to experience the world. The American experience is amazing - especially events like the Laurel Fourth of July parade.

"This is something fantastic," she said, blue eyes twinkling.

The host families also have new experiences. Although the American-speaking tongue doesn't "r-r-r-roll" its r with the ease of the Russian speakers, host mother Diana Kroft said Aksana has patience and works with her on vocabulary.

"Aksana repeats it until I get it right," she said.

This is the second year the Riccis have hosted young Sasha. Last year, when Sasha was 8, he arrived with just a plastic bag containing a gift for each of the Riccis. They sent him home with suitcases full of clothing and other essentials, Ricci said.

"It is amazing how rich we are as Americans," she said. "We send them home with as much as we can that will help them have a good year after they are gone from here."

The children's American experience is not just about money, Tryhubava said

"The hosts are very generous people," she said. "But it's not how much people make - it's how much they are willing to share. That's what I've learned.

"Our kids are learning how people can help, how they can open their hearts and their homes," she said.

Source:

http://www.billingsgazette.com/index.php?id=1&display=rednews/2005/07/07/build/local/30-belarus-kids.inc