Ioana Testimony

Ioana is 7 years old and lives at the Deva orphanage.  Pastor Viorel asked a few of the orphans to testify at the dedication of the orphanage in Hunedoara.   

This little girl is the youngest of three gypsy sisters who came from the state orphanage shortly after they were taken into custody.  The girls were begging with their mother on the streets.  They woke up one morning after sleeping on the street all night to nudge their mom and find her dead.  Their father is an alcoholic and could not take care of them.  Beautiful young children are more successful beggars than older drunks, so he took them from city to city begging.

As young gypsy girls, these children had one career path.  As soon as they were of age, they would be prostitutes.  Most Romanians are unashamedly prejudice against the gypsies.  The few jobs that exists for young people in Romania are not open to the general gypsy population.  These girls will be raised in a loving Christian family.  They will be given an education.  They will have every opportunity to defy the odds.