Ukraine is a country suffering from a crisis of care for her indigent children. Children in orphanages, children on the streets, children living in and leaving broken homes suffer tragically. In the PBS documentary, "The Road to Matveevka" statistics are given that after leaving the government facilities of Ukraine, one in ten children commit suicide; the percentages of those who turn to drugs and prostitution are much higher.
At the heart of the problem is abuse. Almost every child choosing to live on the streets has been abused. Children have been left alone in the crib, ignored, beaten, molested, fondled, raped. There is a laundry list of ways to abuse. This can happen in an orphanage, shelter or home. By twelve, a child is boy or girl enough to run away. If they grew up in a home, they are sometimes thrown out or given away to an orphanage because abuse makes them so difficult to manage.
The concomitant issue is: Any child on the streets can walk into a government orphanage. But they don't. These massive concrete buildings built by the government house 200-300 children, have little heat in winter and a minimal staff that run them. Teens and adolescents in those facilities can be cruel. If you went to middle school; you know what I mean. Each child has a bed, some clothes, meals and school to attend. There is not enough to motivate and inspire them. There is even less to prepare them for success in relationships or life. This is the picture of life for the neglected children of Ukraine.
