History
On October 28th, 1991, Father Georg Sporschill SJ departed for Romania with three volunteers from Germany and Austria in order to help street children in Bucharest.
The first children’s home was bought and renovated; at the same time they began to work with children at the train station and on the streets. Originally they planned to stay for six months -- this was transformed into a life-long task.
In January of 1992 the organisation CONCORDIA for Social Work in Romania was founded. A building on the Piata CONCORDIA was bought as a centre for offices, employees and guests.
The “Farm for Children”
In Aricesti - Rahtivani, 80 km north of Bucharest, an abandoned collective farm was acquired and renovated as a farm for children that provides flats, farming, a bakery and workshops. 100 children find not only a roof over their heads, but rather a family, care and training.
In February 1996, the first four young adults move from the farm into a flat in the neighbouring village where they begin to live independently.
CONCORDIA organises follow-up support for former charges: the task is to provide friendly accompaniment and help in the search for work and a flat.
The “City of Children” in Romania
In March 2002, CONCORDIA founds the “City of Children” in Ploiesti. Four residential buildings, a community house, a training centre and a gymnasium are opened. 96 children, living together in 8 family groups, find a new home here.
Now, not only street children but also children from broken and impoverished families are given the chance to grow up in a protective environment in our homes.
Since Christmas 2002, the Social Centre St. Lazarus offers a first point of contact for children and young adults from the street. First of all a place to sleep, food and a shower are important. The CONCORDIA team helps the children with problems with public authorities and police, documents and the search for work. In the social centre ill children are given medical care. Together we search for a way into the future for every child.
Over the course of the years, many more children’s homes and social group flats are founded in Bucharest.
In February of 2009 the Youth Home Casa Iuda is opened in Bucharest as the new central office for CONCORDIA in Romania. It provides space for those street children who have grown to hopeful young adults as well as for the numerous volunteer helpers from the countries of Europe.
CONCORDIA Moldova
In 2004 the organisation CONCORDIA-Proiecte Sociale in established with the goal of training self-confident youth in Moldova in order to build up the country again.
In Pirita, a rural community on the banks of the Nistru, the establishment of the “City of Children” begins providing ten children’s homes, a medical station, a nursery school, a community house, a gymnasium and work rooms.
CONCORDIA helps where help is needed. Due to the ever-increasing number of children sick with tuberculoses in Moldova, CONCORDIA supports the renovation of the dilapidated children’s station in a hospital in the capital Chisinau. Since January 2007, children ill with tuberculoses can be helped in the “Etage Valerie”.
Not only the children of Moldova need our help. In the villages there are also needy people among the elderly. In September 2007, the first social centre is opened in Casa Nadejda in Pirita. Every day poor elderly people are fed and cared for in the social centre. Volunteers bring the bed-ridden food in their own homes with bicycles and horse drawn carriages. In the whole country CONCORDIA is still supporting 40 soup kitchens through which a total of 5000 people can be cared for.
CONCORDIA in Bulgaria
Since the fall of 2008 CONCORDIA has been running the social centre “Dom Konstantin” in the Bulgarian capital of Sofia. This is an open counselling centre with group flats for 87 children and young adults in need.
A hair dressing salon was opened in the city centre in which young people from the CONCORDIA social centre and other city run social institutions can receive training which concludes with a state recognized diploma.
CONCORDIA today
In the framework of street work, social centres and the club CONCORDIA we care for 300 street children, those searching for help, and former charges. Through our soup kitchens and social centres 5000 people in Moldova receive a warm meal every day. Today approximately 1000 children live in the homes and group flats from CONCORDIA in Romania, Moldova and Bulgaria.
