Star of Hope longtime staff member and missionary, Judith Löfsund has gone home to be with the Lord after a brief illness in her beloved Kenya. The news reached us Monday afternoon. "Now our mother has left us," read a text message from one of the employees in Kenya who, like many others, was very close to her.

Judith first went to East Africa and Tanzania 50 years ago where she served with the Pentecostal mission until she responded to Star of Hope founder Erik Gunnar Eriksson's request to help in Kenya. She served along with her friend Marie Zetterby and was involved in developing schools in Mikindani outside Mombasa and also starting a school in Rakwaro, northwestern Kenya.

Her dedication to Star of Hope was very well received and Judith was, to the end, a very strong woman who attracted great respect from all.

In addition to the commitment to the thousands of children, her heart burned for the Christian faith and its spread the word in Kenya. She founded the "Church of the Living World", Mikindani and in ecumenical contexts, she came to be a strong unifying personality. Her name was well known among the missionaries and native pastors and evangelists in the country and she was highly respected for her dedication and desire to see Kenya remain as a Christian country.

She was the one who became involved in starting and developing the extensive missionary work in the former infamous prison in Kenya. An effort in partnership with its former prison warden that reverberated all the way up in the Kenyan government.

She finished her days in the country she loved so much. While we grieve and will miss Judith, we join in gratitude of all she contributed to the people of Kenya. Judith Löfsund was 75 years old.

Donate to the Kenyan Ministry

In Romania Star of Hope is improving the lives of children with special needs.It's hard to believe that just a short time ago, it seems, that Romania suffered from a ruthless dictator.

We are also working to keep children off the streets. We do this, for example, by providing support for various daytime activities for socially excluded children as well as children with special needs.

We also run fitness activities, integration of work and working with the development of parent associations.

Our Christian women's conferences encourage mothers of special needs children in their faith while providing knowledge and skills on caring for their child.

Through visiting occupational therapists, physical therapists, specialist teachers and others, we provide transfer of knowledge to the Romanian health professionals and authorities that in many areas changed their way of working.

Star of Hope continuously work to improve the public's opinions and attitudes toward children with special needs.

Text by Carmen, Philips Mother.

There are so many things to be written about the following chapter of my life that I don't know where to start... Filip Timotei Profiri, how could I include in words everything he is to us? So that I don't keep you in suspense, I have to tell you that around 2 months old, he was diagnosed with Down syndrome. I have to admit that I still don't know his clear purpose in our family, even after one year since his birth. I might never know clearly his purpose in our family and in my life. Often, we feel that we need to have things under control, to plan our lives, to live them like we want and how we consider to be better. Instead, we forget that we are not the ones controlling our lives; actually, we forget who gave us our lives. We forget that God is the one giving us life, keeps us alive and controls everybody's lives, whether we agree with that or not.

When the doctor examined my pregnancy, he recommended a triple test; I analyzed the situation and I decided not to take the test. I knew several mothers who received false news after this test, they worried a lot, but gave life to perfectly healthy children and I didn't want to go through such period. Within our family, we would have never approached abortion. It could have been more serious than that and any anomaly our child would have had, as long as God brings him into our life, I'm not the one who can say NO. Evil doesn't come from God, this thing is very clear to me. But still, when we encounter it in our lives, so many questions arise. God transforms evil in blessing only when we give Him the occasion. And the blessings that come from Him can cover for any bad thing.

I gave birth to both my children by C section and due to the post operatory recovery, I interacted with them as babies a little later. The day following the birth, when the doctor who assisted me explained to me that there were some problems with my baby, but there was nothing confirmed, I thought he was being ironic. But shortly after that I could read on his face a real empathy, a suffering he wanted to share with me. But there was no room for deception in my mind and in my heart. And I think that there has never been room for that and it will ever be. This doesn't mean that I don't worry for my child, for his health, his future, or that I don't admit that he is different from the others. It is true that he has Down syndrome. This syndrome is among the most common chromosomal disorders, which means that it is installed right at the moment of conception. Neither the mother, nor the father has any power to prevent this thing from happening. There is nothing I could have done differently. I would like to say that you will meet persons, even health professionals, who, unaware of it, but well-intentioned, will try "help you" find a cause for this syndrome in your child: maybe a cold you had in the first semester of the pregnancy, or maybe other untreated health problems and the list can continue depending on the general knowledge of that person. I write to you as a person who has read and has discussed with specialists in this field, just to clarify this matter. NOBODY, NOWHERE IN THE WORLD, CAN ACTUALLY SAY WHAT IS CAUSING THIS EXTRA CHROMOZOM. THIS CAUSE CANNOT BE IDENTIFIED FOR NOW. SO FAR< NO ONE CAN ANSWER THE QUESTION "WHY?" and in this case, I beg you, don't bend the ear to the opinion of your neighbor, of the seller at the grocery store or even of the teacher or of the priest, related to this subject. This issue is really unknown, take it as it is and don't search for reasons to apologize or to blame yourself, thus carrying a heavy burden. You have many more important things to do. For example, first of all, enjoy this new baby in your family.

The most difficult thing for me was the fact that during my stay in the maternity I was approached by a doctor to discuss the possibility of this syndrome only after 4-5 days, during which I knew that something might be wrong. Because the doctors tended to avoid this difficult subject, without an actual diagnosis (DNA analysis can take one month), I imagined much worse things. And I think that the difficulty in taking care and raising a child with several problems is in the fact that we don't have the situation under control.

There aren't actually specialists in the field. Or if they do exist, I didn't get to meet them and if their work I not accessible, I don't see their final purpose... Star of Hope Foundation had a very important role in Filip's development. But I want to mention that the resources they have are limited, both regarding the personnel and the information given to the parents. Within this foundation, I went with my little boy at physical therapy meetings since he was 2 months old. He could sit independently at 8 months and now, at 1 year old, he is able to spin in circles crawling and to stand for approximately 5 seconds on both his feet, but he still can't walk. I also interacted with more mothers, whose children were older, and I now have a more concrete opinion regarding this field. I made a list of actual needs for which we need to find solutions, answers so that our children grow and develop in a society that will accept them and want them. And this can happen starting with a right mentality of the mothers first and then of the specialists who work with the children, who have an important message to send to the next generations, and getting to the average people in the society we are in.

Personally, I was profoundly hallmarked by the words of the genetics doctor who diagnosed my boy during our stay in the maternity. I honestly don't know if he shares the same principles for the moment, but I can share with you what he told me when we went to his office to give us more details on the syndrome. We were told that "in other countries, they are integrated as adults, but this thing is not and it will not be possible in the following years. Statistically, their IQ will not exceed the IQ of a 6 year old." I refused to think such a thing and I am glad I did that, but I wonder which of the mothers who find out this thing accept it as it is and leave home thinking that they gave birth to a handicapped child, who will never manage to integrate in the society. At that time, I knew about the existence of a medicine student with Down syndrome in Iasi, but I decided that it would be better not to bring this into discussion, as I could have been labeled as a person lacking connections with reality or not accepting the fate of my child.

I found the geneticist doctor from the children hospital in Iasi very loving. When he started examining Filip, at only 2 months, she took pictures of him, she talked to him, she treated him as a person and I felt that she was really there for the patients. In other medical clinics, most of the doctors only discuss with me giving the impression that my son is not even there. It might be a small thing, but as they grow up, children feel such differences.

We like to be the masters of our lives and of our families and, in those moments when something is not clear to us, we go into a crisis, in depressions because of our imagination and our lack of faith in God. When we take care of live alone and we encounter such problem, we realize how limited we actually are, and even so, many people still try to find causes, solutions and ways to fix the problem. Therefore, there are no specialty paper works, no specialists, no plan, and no better perspective in this field (Down syndrome). Don't think of me as a negativist person, we are far better than 5-10 years ago, when children with Down syndrome were locked in the home or isolated in special care centers, but wouldn't it be better be wonder: If God gives us all life, if He takes care of each of us and, in all of our weaknesses He gives us strength to overcome life's circumstances, why would she change His attitude about the persons with Down syndrome? And if God doesn't have another attitude for them, why do I think of myself as superior and think of them as inferior human beings, a burden for the family in which they were born? No, please, do not accept such attitude, not from your own mind, not from anybody. It is just another life circumstance which can be overcome and, overcoming this struggle which is taken at a psychological level, you will be able to really enjoy life together with your own family.

If this story moved you please consider supporting our conference series in Romania. A series of educational workshops that equip mothers of handicapped children the tools and attytude to care for thier children all while building local groups for individual support for the mother and the child.

Please visit our Mothers day page.

The journal of a Romanian mother (By Catalina C)

I always knew that I would have a boy and that his name would be Mathew. I dreamed of him years before his birth: it was him, the boy he is now, with his big green eyes, with delicate features. With a mature seriousness he told me in my dream "I saved your life", and ever since then his words remained in my mind.

Mathew with his mother Catalina

I wanted to have a child like the one in my dream and I imagined that he would nice, smart, the center of attention, talented. His intrauterine existence was a continuous wonder for me and the moment I perceived him as a distinct human being I knew that my love for my child was born. This new feeling materialized in my health care, attention to everything I ate, to the drugs I used, to the experiences I chose to go through during my pregnancy.

I remember how he smelled soon after he was born, a fragrance I hadn't found anywhere, only maybe in the holy fragrance of ointment. The fact that he depended on me one hundred percent and that he had as much confidence in what I was giving him was truly shocking. I prayed to God with a silence that was unknown to me, that I learned from my child's face and I thanked Him for everything I had received. We started knowing and loving each other. He was doing this by accumulating life experience and I was learning how to be a parent. All the development standards were met, the pediatric books confirmed that he was within the parameters of growth, the specialists said that he had age appropriate reflexes.

Suddenly something happened. He was around two years old. A strange, unknown power started taking him away from me, from reality, from himself. I started looking up in books, I got informed, I went to specialists who told me: "everything I alright", "there are no reasons to worry about", "you are too worried as a mother", "it is just a delay in his development", but "everything is alright, stay calm."

Months have passed and the differences between him and other children were more visible. I prayed fiercely and although I had heard the words "it will be alright", "be patient", I felt my soul grow desperate. He turned three years old. He was accepted with reluctance at the kindergarten, from where I received a lot of reproaches and lack of goodwill: "he is too quiet", "he doesn't collaborate", "we did everything we could, but he won't do what we tell him to do."

One day brought him home full of bruises because the other children beat him and he didn't know how to defend himself. After a year, I transferred him to another kindergarten, where they received him "on trial", only to be rejected after a few months, just like an expired product. Preschool education seemed to had exhausted its resources and specific methods with a child who was "too quiet", but who "won't sit down on his chair."

I prayed to God with clenched teeth, grinding the outrage. I returned to the hospitals, the specialists and the pharmacies. This time, the encouraging words were gone; I saw hesitations. My patience in listening to medical explanations had diminished and I was only left with anxiety. I prayed with fists tight with pain and anger to a god who was strange to me. Somebody said: "pervasive disorder with autism elements!" Autism! Lord, who has planted this evil in my child? I am the guilty one, aren't I? I am guilty! People blame me, I blame me!

I entered in a hell-like twirl in which my parents blame me, my friends smile with complacency to me, the doctors prescribe treatments after a 5 minute evaluation, I went through a divorce after 5 years of marriage... I am alone... I scream to a deaf god! Where are you? I prayed to you! What is with this punishment? What did you do? You! YOU! WHY? I'm in hell. People watch us in the bus, some laugh, pointing fingers: "He is ill", "Poor him, he is retarded", "who knows what his parents have done if he ended up like this"... "You handicapped child! Ha! Ha!" Lord, where is my Firefly, my soft Boy? ... I don't understand, I am stupefied, I am under anesthesia. The days go by... Maybe everything will be ok, my boy will be healthy, if... I do all I can possibly do. It's clear, right? The solution is in me: I HAVE to give him more of my time, I HAVE to buy him more toys and I HAVE to treat him with more patience. I will heal him. I pray for him and somehow I am sure that I do what I have to do.

After interventions at the School Inspectorate, he now goes at a different kindergarten. Children treat him as a younger brother, especially the girls, who hug him every morning. Some parents are reluctant: "Is he mentally ill? Is he violent?" Others look at him with compliance. Anyway, passive tolerance is all I can want, what more can I desire? I begin looking for therapy solutions and foundations that can help me. Yes, I need help, I cannot do this by myself, not everything depends on me! I begin to pray with fear... I also pray for me... "Lord, help me! This is all I can do, you do the rest!" The twirl stops, people around me try to support me, therapy solutions appear. I can feel hope in my soul. "Lord, You know why You gave me all these, help me see your gift in all these! May the presence of my child be an occasion for me to heal my wounds!" And yes, I am the mother of my child, but I am not the main element in his life! He himself has an important opinion and God is with him! Just like every child in this world, my son is also the image of God!

I got out of my hell-like twirl, I go straight ahead now and everything that I can do, I do it with God's help. I still want the people to stop staring at us, stop pointing fingers, stop speaking false and bad things about us. But I know that these are symptoms of the hell-like twirl in my soul. Beyond this twirl, I see my son as a happy, playful and lively child. "Lord, help me be a straight line and nothing more, Lord, you can put joy and love in my heart and healing for my child, for me, for people around him." I only wish one day I will be able to say "Blessed be my child's disease!"

Please visit our Mothers day page.

Text and photos Inese Ansone Velki Association and Star of Hope Latvia

Boys and girls of grade 4 have just had lunch. Their school lessons have ended, but they need to go back to the classroom. They have to prepare homework. They wish something would happen that would make the break a little longer. It would be wonderful if it was possible to get out, but not today as it's raining. While the feet slowly get closer to the classroom, their thoughts are about running and playing in the school yard. And then a miracles happens.

Presents this time!

Lots of nice things.

"Velki Association's" bus has just arrived at the school. Will there really be presents? It seems that this time there will be presents, indeed! The teacher is looking for some help unloading the bus. Presents it is!

Grade four students are always ready to help! The boxes are bigger than their carriers. The boxes are not closed and when they are taken out, it is possible to see what's inside. There are doll houses and castles! Children love to play!

The doll prams look just the same as young mothers have strolling down the street next to the school. The prams are red, convertible, all the details are like the real pram has. There is a boy who has a little sister at home. He enjoys pulling the pram so much.

I will push my sister with this.

Mother has come to take Viktorija to the music school. Viktorija can not go alone. There is little time, but mother understands daughter's wish to just touch the doll pram. Very quickly Viktorija manages to go a couple or rounds in the school yard and after promise that the pram will be waiting for Viktorija at the dormitory later, Viktorija is ready to go. Viktorija's mother is very happy about such eagerness of her daughter to come back later. Mother needs time for herself that is why a couple of night a week Viktorija stays in the school's dormitory. Before each time mother and daughter have long conversations. Mother hopes that the doll pram will make these conversations shorter. Viktorija suddenly has so many questions about to her mother that there is no anger on rain and wind which disturb going to the music school left.

I have a nice doggy.

Also the next presents which are taken out from the bus make great surprise too. There are brown rocking horses packed in big plastic bags. The horses look so real. After the 4 graders have unpacked the horses and checked how strong the backs of horses are, the first graders make friends with the horses.

The teachers think that maybe twin girls have sent their toys from Star of Hope Sweden. Everything is in 2! The girls must have grown and their toys can start a new life.

Thank you, unknown donors! Your presents will help to grow and develop children of Riga 5th special school.

Moldova. Lev is 8 years old and lives together with his elder brother and his parents in a house in Durlesti, Moldova. His family is from Ukraine part of the Republic of Moldova. Although his mother had no problems during pregnancy, and after birth he was developing like an ordinary child, she was worried by his permanent anxiety and cries.

Lev, just having fun and learning too.

His first words were mother and water, soon he ceased to pronounce these words and watching TV and food were the things that preoccupied him mostly. Mother has decided to see a pediatrician that recommended her a neurologist, the latter prescribed medication. After starting the medicine Lev had a better sleep at night but nothing changed in his behavior. Later on he was diagnosed with autism. He received therapy at home and a psychiatric hospital. Soon afterward his mother came to our association asking for help. After a detailed evaluation the centre team established a program for him. Besides his aggressive behavior, the team had also to fight against his appetite as he suffers from obesity too. Partly he learned to go to the toilet, eat by himself and use tea towel after meals.

Now Lev attends a special school. In Moldova there are no government programs where children with special needs could be helped by a teaching assistant so his mother, Vita accompanies his at school.

The progress made by Lev is impressive for us, he can successfully accomplish tasks although he still sometimes fights against his tasks. Vita is also happy enough by the improvements her son has had in about a year and a half and thanked the whole team at Star of Hope Romania, (who operate the help center) for the good results they obtained in working with her son.

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