Tulca Foundation, Romania Changing Lives. Sylvia & Sean Marcus in Tulca

Roma Life in another village

Why Education? Girls are expected to be married by 14 years of age and then have a child every year. Many Roma families have ten children. Feliţia (pictured here) left school at thirteen to have her first baby and now at fifteen is expecting her third child. She was not one of the children to benefit from our education programme. Boys look for any labouring jobs, when available.

Sponsoring Students We started our education programme eight years ago to help Rom children to stay in school. Parents were wanting to pull children out of school to assist them in labouring in the fields. Massive changes in agriculture in Romania, means less and less work available for uneducated labourers. We ran an after-school programme, paying Romanian staff, until this year. Children were fed, clothed and some families were provided with basic housing. We have had to persuade many parents of the value of their children’s education and the better chances of employment in the future. With God’s grace, we won these battles! The children came to our school at eight years old and most are now fifteen, attending High School in Salonta and Oradea, thanks to our sponsorship.

The Students Sisters, Daciana and Bianca, were the first to go to Salonta High School. Now they are in their third and second years there.

The Students Madelina is now in her second year. Without the sponsorship of £50 a month, none of the students could afford their bus passes (£30 a month) or school requisites.

The Students Adriana, also a second year student, would have been married by now if her father had had his way. Her mother, married at thirteen, wanted a different life for her daughter.

The Students Gabriela has started High School. Her sister (not at our school) is two years older and has two children.

The Students Dacian is now in High School. His dream is to be a policeman. His father is serving a life sentence for murder!

The Students David has started a mechanics course and hopes to be a lorry driver one day.

The Students Florin is on the same course as David. His seventeen-year-old sister is expecting her third child.

The Students Moise has earned a place in Oradea Sports College. His dream is to be a world-class football player. Besides his intensive training, he is receiving an excellent education in ten subjects. Moise is boarding-in at College and we are paying his boarding fees.

A Special Family In addition to our work with Roma (gypsy) children, we have sponsored a Romanian family with seven children. The father is a local pastor, but ill with pancreatic cancer and can no longer work. His educated, intelligent girls would have had to leave High School and find basic employment if we had not intervened. One of his daughters was able to finish her last year at High school and has gained a place at Timisoara University to study medicine, because we were able to cover her costs last year. She now needs £700 a year to pay her tuition fees. We hope to be able to cover her lodging fees from our funds. We pray that she can find a sponsor for the rest of her needs. Two other children in this family are being sponsored by us at High School.

A Special Family We hope Marilena will be able to finish her course to graduate as a doctor.

A Special Family Dina, seen here with her parents, has two more years at High School and then hopes to join her sister at University. Please pray for Pastor Cosmin and his family that we can help them over the next few years.

A Special Family Onisim (Onesimus, from the Bible) has joined his sister at High School.

Tulca All the Roma children live in sub-standard housing with no sanitation, but their futures will be brighter with our help and yours. Pray that they will benefit from this chance of completing an education. All these children attend church in the village. Pray that the gospel will be preached and heard.

Thank you for your help.