Marina's Kids
Dima's Story: Helping with Documentation
2013
1
The Need
Dima was 16, when the orphanage he was in was about to close. Marina was approached by a boy she knew well, Pasha, asking for help for his very shy friend. The story was that Dima had no documents and upon leaving the orphanage in just a few months he would have no place to live. After looking into this situation, the problem was this: Dima was dropped off at the orphanage by his father about 8 years prior, with a copy of a birth certificate from a neighboring country. The father promised to come back for Dima in 2 years, after getting a job and earning some money. The father never came back. With just a copy of the birth certificate from Moldova he would have no chance of getting any government help for continuing school, medical benefits, or be able to be legally employed. Even though he had lived in Ukraine most of his life, he would be considered illegal and would be deported to Moldova. In Moldova, he also would have no government support, because he had no original documents. He also had no family or friends there and if deported, would be with absolutely no support. He was nasicly a "ghost" with no proff of where he belonged!
Solution
Marina’s Kids was committed to help with Dima’s problem. We eventually decided to hire a lawyer to make the process go faster. Our goal was to make sure that Dima would not end up on the street, and would get a chance for continuing education. We conducted a search for Dima’s father, and after not being able to find him, we brought the problem to court. We were able to have Dima declared a full orphan. Because we had his school records we were able to prove that he has lived in Ukraine for over 5 years, which meant he could apply for Ukrainian citizenship. The process took about 9 month. Our volunteers were able to get Dima into a local technical school while we still were in the process of getting his documents done. The school director agreed to work with us and let Dima be enrolled in classes, as well as live in the dorm. Our volunteers have also found someone to mentor him.
The Resuts
Dima has been able to stay in school and continue his education. Last summer (2014) he got an internship job, and was able to earn money for his clothing and other expenses. Dima is 18 years old now (2014), he has proper documentation to work, have medical care, and government sponsored schooling. Because of the work of Marina’s Kids, Dima has a good chance at a bright future.
Dima is just one of many kids who do not have proper documentation. With your support, we can help many more kids like him. Please consider supporting some of the many life changing projects of Marina’s Kids. Thank you.