Feeling generous?

You know who are super sweet and adorable?

The 25 kids I work with at Drumul Spre Casa.


So, yeah, I've become completely enamored with them these past few months, and now I'm looking for your assistance in spoiling them a bit before I have to say goodbye in July. The kids of Drumul Spre Casa (The Road Home) range in age from about 7 to 14, with one 18 year old boy, and live at the home due to varying circumstances -- parents who left to work abroad, parents who died or were unable to care for them (due to illness, addiction, or something else) and those whose families simply can't afford them. The kids live in three separate "families" at the center, each assigned its own "mom" and occupying a different part of the building.


The kids are all well-fed, groomed and clothed, which can't be said for children at all Moldovan orphanages. But as you can imagine, having a household of 25 kids is very tough on toys, and they don't seem to have many playthings. I got lucky and found a Junior Monopoly game in the Peace Corps office's "loot me" bin, and then Amy was nice enough to give me a new Chutes and Ladders game -- they don't have board games in Moldova, unless you count chess/checkers, so the kids were incredibly excited to receive these two games and continue to play with them months later.

Long story short, the kids (and I!) would be absolutely delighted if you picked out a game at the toy store and dropped it in the mail.

Why, I'll even send you a photo of the kids posing with your gift so you can get a nice warm fuzzy feeling!

I looked on Amazon and was really surprised at how cheap a lot of the kids' games are -- around $12 or so. If you send it using one of the cheaper mailing options, this could be a very affordable way to share your American prosperity with children who have little going for them in life and who will genuinely appreciate it, unlike your nephew Billy who only played with that new truck you got him for five minutes before saying he was bored.**


Note: Please try to look for games that do not rely on speaking English or complicated rules, as most of the kids don't speak any English. (The kids are very quick, however, and despite this they promptly memorized that cards reading "go" involved them getting paid and so on.) Games that involve math/counting are great. Also, try to find games that don't require batteries and are geared toward the 9 to 12 age group, as the majority of kids are within that range and some games are too simple to hold their interest.

Suggestions:

• Card games (Go Fish, Old Maid, UNO, Racko,
  
• Yahtzee
  
• Guess Who? (god I loved this one as a kid!)
  
• Trouble
• Aggravation
• Twister
• Battleship (if the instructions aren't too complicated -- I can't remember)
• Dominoes
• Jenga

And thank you if you read this far, and a HUGE thank you if you're thinking of sending something! If so, email me and we can talk mailing logistics (I might ask that you send it to a friend, in case the package doesn't arrive until after my departure.)

**Note: my apologies if you actually have a nephew named Billy, I'm sure he's very sweet and grateful.