Can I tell you about someone I met in a small Romanian village?
Her name was Domnica. Whenever our volunteers gathered with the kids, she was almost always nearby. Not in the middle of things—just quietly watching from the edges. You could tell life hadn’t been easy for her. Poverty had left its marks. But she always had this warm, steady smile.
One day we decided to stop and talk with her...
As we celebrate thirty years of Remember the Children in Romania, I’ve been thinking about how this journey has shaped both the ministry — and me.
My earliest memories there are not easy ones. They’re marked by the lingering weight of communism, by hardship, and by the quiet tragedy so many children endured. For many Romanians, those scars are still close to the surface.
What I remember most clearly, though, are the children on the streets — and sometimes beneath them, living in the sewers.
One of them was a boy named Florin.
Then his wife passed away. The group ended soon after, and life moved forward. My own wife is still here—a gift I don’t take lightly. I often wondered how he was doing, but we had kept our lives fairly private, and time passed.
Until the letter arrived.
The envelope was simple, but the return address stopped me. As I read his words, I felt that familiar connection return. He wrote to say thank you—for the conversations, for the honesty, for being known in a season when everything felt uncertain. Then he shared something I hadn’t known.
Four years after war forced families from their homes, the effects of displacement are still deeply personal. I felt that reality most clearly through the story of one young Ukrainian man I met shortly after he arrived in Romania. He came with little more than a backpack, carrying the weight of leaving home, loved ones, and everything familiar behind. The loss was heavy, but even in those early days, there was a quiet resilience in him—rooted in faith and a longing to belong again.
One of the most powerful ways the Gospel reaches people is through new churches—places rooted right in the community where real life happens. Agape Church is one of those places. Supported by Remember the Children, this church plant exists to bring hope, faith, and belonging to people who need it most.
This February, Agape Church steps into its fourth year of ministry. Like many young churches, the journey hasn’t been easy—especially because Agape intentionally serves individuals and families who are…
It was about seven years ago that I stopped by Daniel Bagosi’s new home to have coffee with him. During our conversation that morning, he told me about some of the children in the community that had been knocking on his door asking for food. He was deeply troubled by this as it was all too frequent, and he asked me if I would go with him to visit the community where these children lived.
This week, Andy had a Zoom call with Natalie Barentson. She oversees online communications, such as our website and Sunday Stories emails! She first became involved with RtC in 2014 when she was a student at William Jessup University. She is especially passionate about child sponsorship, as she has been a sponsor herself!
Every year, we have the privilege to create and release an Impact Report for you! The 2019 Impact Report reflects the last 10 years of ministry and all that’s happened. It’s filled with stories from people impacted by Remember the Children, a timeline outlining the last 10 years, information on financial stewardship, and so much more. Click on the link below to read the report!
