Dear Friends!
It’s a great honor for me to present you this book. It’s not just a collection of stories and descriptions of some life situations. This is truly the Big Book of Hopes!
Hopes for a better life for adolescents affected by HIV/AIDS in Eastern Europe and Central Asia region, the only region in the world, where the epidemic has not stopped its growth.
There is someone’s life behind each of these stories. Noone can be indifferent to circumstances these children have found themselves in and to injustice they have faced. But there’s something else that connects all those lives with invisible, yet strong thread – hope shared by everyone.
Hope that their life and life of their loved ones will be changed for better. Hope that they will manage to fulfill their potential and change the world for better one. Hope that we, adults, will start to better understand our children, their feelings, their aspirations, their dreams.
I take my hat off to courage of these young people. They made a leap towards peace and presented us the great Gift by sharing their life on the pages of this book. Now it’s our turn: to hear, to feel, to understand and to support.
Sincerely,
Vladimir Zhovtiak
President
ICO «East Europe and Central Asia Union of PLWH»
02.11.2011