Don was an elderly disabled man at church who was crippled for over 20 years after a serious fall on the ice. He was an only child, never married and his mother passed away several years ago, so he had no immediate family. In autumn 2014 he had an accident while driving his car and lost his driver's license. So for 3.5 years we were taking him to and from church, grocery shopping, to the doctor, getting haircuts and various other errands. In spring 2018, he fell twice in his apartment and lay on the floor a total of three days and nights. After a couple hospital stays, he was placed in a nursing home and we visited him there at least twice every week, bringing him what he needed: toiletries, lotion, haircuts, seat cushions, snacks, etc. Don passed away in October 2019. You can help us provide some of the items people in nursing homes need. And you can practice diakonia-ministry by serving the elderly in your church too!

We've volunteered as Career Counselors by appointment at FOCUS+Pittsburgh to help the inner-city poor set goals, write cover letters, lists of references, and resumes, then train them in how to apply for jobs online using our Homes and Jobs webpage. Neighborhood children can use the computer lab after school too!

Thirty-something Evan was just released from prison when he came into FOCUS+Pittsburgh looking for help to find a job. We assisted him in this, and he not only found a job, but also found a wife from among our other clients! We were thrilled to attend their wedding in Summer 2015, and now they've added Evan Jr. to their new family.

Anya, the young lady in the middle, had just finished law school when she learned that she had brain cancer. After brain surgery in 2006 we helped her with strengthening exercises so she could return to work.

Radik, the nine-year-old boy in the stroller, has muscular dystrophy. In 1998 we brought him this stroller for handicapped children, with a tray that he can draw on, play at and eat at. It was donated by a family living near Madison, WI, whose son has a similar disability. Radik's parents are Muslim.

Tanya K. is a lady who had a defect in her right leg since childhood. After several infections in that leg, it was amputated when she was a young woman. We provided her a new, lightweight prosthesis for her right leg, because she lives on the fourth floor of an apartment building without an elevator, and has difficulty climbing stairs. Tanya was trained as a bookkeeper but due to her handicap has been unemployed for several years, so we have helped to support her.

Three-year-old Timofei was born with cerebral palsy but is aquiring many skills because he has access to special treatment centers in Moscow. In this photo Karen, a physical therapist visiting us from China, helps his mother show him appropriate exercises. Karen had our "Social Ministry of the Church" courses (S.M.C. on the top menu bar) translated into Chinese, and now they are being taught in China.

Alexei, the young man who provided us with visa services, was driving along the highway in the spring of 2007 when the trailer of an oncoming truck detached and took off the left side of Alexei's car, the flesh on his left leg, broke his leg, pelvis and several ribs. He spent two months in hospital and three months at home in bed with rods protruding from his abdomen to keep the pelvis bones in place while they healed. We helped him with in-bed strengthening exercises so he would be able to walk and function normally again. He's happily married now!

Anna had a leg amputated, so Cheryl and Elena taught her how to walk using the walker and then a prosthesis we gave her. Here she is going home to live on her own again in 2005.

We brought Yuri this wheelchair in August, 2003. Yuri lost his right leg in an industrial accident in July, 2003. Many can't afford to buy a wheelchair, and the waiting list for government-sponsored wheelchairs is quite long.

Serafima had Multiple Sclerosis for over 30 years. On Easter Sunday 2003 we baptized her in the Moscow River. We brought Serafima this wheelchair, but it was damaged in shipment: a spoke in one wheel was broken, and the metal frame had to be welded. The young lady in the picture is Elena, one of our co-workers in Moscow. Serafima passed away in May 2012.

In 2004 Cheryl and Elena rehabilitated these foreign students at Patrice Lumumba Friendship University in Moscow. These students had compression fractures in their backs due to jumping out of windows to escape a dormitory fire the previous year.

In 2006 we volunteered at the Russian Children's Clinical Hospital where kids from all over the former Soviet Union come for treatment. The hospital has a chapel with icons on the walls showing how Christ healed the sick and raised the dead. We helped the hospital purchase equipment to treat rare diseases, and one of our summer interns did art therapy with the kids.

Fourteen-year-old Misha has cerebral palsy and has never learned to stand, feed himself, dress himself or go to the toilet, because his parents and grandmother have done everything for him. We provided him this toilet-wheelchair and a regular wheelchair, taught him to stand, and gave him exercises to strengthen his arms.

Natasha who has epilepsy was being neglected by her parents, so her aunt Tanya adopted her. We brought her this stroller from the U.S., and this walker from a relative of ours whose disabled son had died. After she outgrew the stroller we bought her a Russian-made wheelchair.

Robert and Cheryl Hosken established the initial fund for Agape Restoration Society. They live on their Social Security and small private annuities (but are not "retirees" who spend all day in their rocking chairs - they're up and off their rockers!), so they receive no personal financial support through Agape Restoration Society. To support the ministry of ARS, click here.