How our winter support brings warmth and hope to a family in poverty
A family facing Moldova’s harsh winter are delighted by gifts.7th January 2026
A family’s struggles as winter closes in
Larisa, 49, had been without work for three months when winter set in. Recently separated from her husband, whose drinking had frightened their four children, she was now raising them alone, with almost no income and few job opportunities.
Moldova’s winters are harsh, with temperatures far below freezing. The family lives in a damaged house, but Larisa has done everything she can to make it liveable, repairing the stove and fixing a collapsing ceiling herself.
With no money for fuel, she gathers branches wherever she can. When that wasn’t enough, she made a painful decision. “I had no other solution than to cut down the walnut tree in our yard so we could heat the house,” she said.
Gifts to warm a family home
Laura, Taisia, and David, Larisa’s three youngest children, are bright, energetic, and love going to kindergarten. But despite the freezing winter, they often had little more than thin jackets and worn sports shoes, better suited to spring than snow.
Everything changed when Oleg from Mission Without Borders arrived at their home. He brought warm winter clothing and shoes for each child – in their favourite colours – and 500kg of heating briquettes to help the family survive the winter.
“We couldn’t have afforded these briquettes ourselves,” Larisa said. “The cost of firewood in Moldova is around 1300 MDL (70 USD) per cubic metre. To keep our house warm we would need three or four cubic metres.”
Join us in sharing God’s love this winter
The children’s reaction said it all. They squealed with excitement as they tried on their new clothes.
“Thank you so much for these clothes and shoes,” Larisa said. “At last, the kids have what they need for school, to play in the snow, and to feel like other children.
“The girls are especially delighted to have matching pink jackets. They keep saying, ‘Yay! Now we feel like princesses!’”
For families like Larisa’s, Mission Without Borders’ winter survival support is life changing. Last winter alone, the Mission provided heating briquettes to more than 300 children and families living in poverty in remote villages.
With your help, we can reach even more families this winter—keeping children warm, safe, and able to thrive, even in the hardest conditions. Donate today and help change lives.
