Chabad's Children of Chernobyl

I've mentioned before that I have a love for children in Eastern Europe.  Everyone has different passions in their lives and the desire to help children in Eastern Europe is a passion that I hope to be able to fulfill one day.  One huge group of children that I have been praying for and have made others aware of the problems they are facing has to deal with the children of Chernobyl.  There are thousands of children living with cancer and/or weakened immune systems due to what happened on that fateful day in April of 1986.

One 'Rescue Mission' group// ccoc.net

On April 26, 1986, the Chernobyl disaster occurred when a nuclear reactor exploded in Soviet Ukraine--I wasn't even alive yet. The effects of this catastrophic event have caught my attention and more than 25 years later, I am able to help and spread awareness of this event.  Many people have forgotten about Chernobyl or they just look at it as something that happened a long time ago and beg the question as to why they should care now.  Little people know about the profound effect that this radiation has had on the children in the areas of Belarus and Ukraine today.  

Since the Chernobyl disaster, there has been over a 100% increase in cases of Thyroid cancer in these children. **This disease is rarely found in children anywhere else in the world.**  Not only has the radiation caused this increase in cancer cases, but it also contaminated soil and waterways, thus causing poor nutrition.  Add this contamination in with the depression from this event, a corrupt political regime, a struggling economy, bad medical and dental facilities and many other issues and you find the reason why many of these children and families are unable to relocate out of these areas of endangerment.

Chabad's Children of Chernobyl// ccoc.net

Chabad's Children of Chernobyl (CCOC) seeks to permanently remove children from these contaminated area--they are the only organization in the world focused on the children of the Chernobyl disaster that have successfully been able to remove these children from the area.  Some children are physically unable to leave the area for a variety of reasons, and Chabad's Children of Chernobyl sends medicine, therapeutic aids, medical supplies and other supplies to these areas.  CCOC has also been able to personally train local physicians to be able to administer treatment for radiation-related illnesses.  They have also built a mammography clinic which has been able to combat breast cancer--another form of cancer which has increased in the area and is highly correlated with the Chernobyl disaster.

Chabad's Children of Chernobyl// ccoc.net

CCOC takes these children out of the contaminated areas on helicopters on what they call 'rescue missions.'  Many of these childen have never set foot on a helicopter before or ever dreamed that they would be able to.  These kids are taken to Israel and given a home in dormitories, given a good education, given medical care, summer camp and allowed to participate in extracurricular activities.   The organization also works closely with the families of these children and encourages them to go to Israel and reunite with their children and take an active part in their lives.  Last but not least, CCOC provides aid to those living in the contaminated areas by providing food, clothing and medical attention to those who remain in those areas.  Please check out their web site and donate today!

Chabad's Children of Chernobyl// ccoc.net