Orphanage child Aziza gets ready for adult life at Egehuset

Aziza from Kyrgyzstan grew up with deeply alcoholic parents who moved from place to place and she felt they didn't care about her. Aziza was placed in an orphanage, but by the time she turned 16, she could no longer live there due to Kyrgyzstan law.

Image: Azizi

Egehuset is a transition house that Danish European Mission donors have supported since 2011. Here, the most vulnerable orphans like Aziza can seek refuge and receive support so they can integrate into society and stand on their own two feet as adults. Without this support, former orphans are at risk of ending up in crime or prostitution.

Parents were slaves

The only thing Aziza remembers from when she was little is that they moved from place to place because of financial problems. One day her parents got a job on a farm and they worked there for two years, but one night their house caught fire and everything burned down. All their papers burned.

Image: At Egehuset, girls are given peace and quiet to do their homework so they can get an education.

Aziza says: "After that, my parents just wanted to get out of that place and they asked the landlord to give them their money and let them move. But he wouldn't let us go. He didn't give them their money and for several days he used my parents as slaves.

But praise God, after a few days we got away from that house and those horrible people. When we got to Bishkek, my parents tried to find another job and it was difficult for them."

Placed in a shelter, then orphanage

"Every day my parents drank alcohol and they didn't care about me. After a few weeks, the police found me and put me in a shelter for children. That's how I ended up living in an orphanage. My parents moved to Karakol, and when I finished at the orphanage, my parents still couldn't help me."

Image: It can be cold outside, but inside the Oak House there is warmth and security.

At a local church, Aziza met some of the Danish European Mission's contacts and they recommended her to stay at Egehuset.

Children in orphanages can get an education

Thanks to the support of the Danish European Mission's donors, Aziza and the other girls can live at Egehuset. They don't have to worry about where to get food from, as a staff member cooks for them. With their basic needs for shelter and food covered, they can focus on studying and getting an education - so important for their future.

Image: Chairman of the Danish European Mission, Niels Peder Nielsen, says: "The Oak House will help a lot of people. I've been there myself, and it's been amazing to see how they get a whole new life and a whole new opportunity. " 

They also learn to cook for themselves and have small chores around the house so they learn responsibility. Social workers are employed who are there for the girls, talking to them and acting as a kind of 'big sister' to them.

Bible study group

At Egehuset, the girls can participate in Bible studies. Most participate and find that the Bible studies change their lives. In the recently produced video from the project, which can be seen above, another girl, Asel, narrates: "When we read the Bible together and one of us understands the deeper meaning, she shares it with the rest of us so we can try to understand what God's Word is telling us." Some of the girls come to faith and start going to church.

Asel, who had a tough childhood, now has courage for the future and plans to start a technical education in September. She is currently preparing for her studies.

Asel and the other girls at Egehuset need our financial support now.