JANUARY 2025:
Year by year, Alina Daniliuc (31) worries about how her family will cope with the cold weather. In Moldova, poverty is concentrated mainly in rural areas, where infrastructure is poor and unemployment is high. Many people lack access to clean water, heat and electricity. Winter is the hardest time of year: temperatures drop below zero, many seasonal jobs dry up, and staying warm is costly.
“For us, winter is a huge challenge. We are a family with four children and expenses are high. We must buy winter clothes and shoes, firewood and other essentials.”
When the first snow falls, the Daniliuc children are excited to run outside and play – but appropriate winter clothes are impossible for many families to afford.
This family’s only source of income is when father Marian (37) gets the occasional job in construction; irregular wages barely cover the rent and bills.
Every winter, MWB provides families and elderly people living in poverty in Eastern Europe with the supplies they need for winter. This year, the Daniliucs were given briquettes to heat their home, and the children, Petru (12), Ionela (11), Marina (9), and Eric (7) are given winter jackets, shoes, warm socks and blankets. The warm clothing makes going outside a pleasure – and equips them with everything they need for walking to school in the snow.
Alina said, “You have taken a big burden off our shoulders. Thanks to you, my children are cheerful and well dressed. They have the right clothes for going to school now.”
Our Operation Winter Rescue project is a lifeline for families living in desperate poverty in remote, often forgotten villages in Eastern Europe.
