Greetings, dear friends!

          During the period when we haven’t heard from each, respectively the months of January, February and March, we had to face some challenges, but with God's help, this time we are well and working in normal parameters.

          The first challenge was to deal with a small staff and to quickly find replacements to take over the tasks. Mrs. Lica from the laundry got sick with covid, and after overcoming this disease she started to fight with a strong depression that she has not overcome yet, no longer being active in the Ray House. Mrs. Aurica from the kitchen turned 66 and wanted to retire because the 70 km commute she made to get to Ray House was too exhausting for her. Also, the sudden departure of my mother, who was involved in many aspects of the Ray House, left many gaps.

          With God's help we managed to find 3 sources to support 3 employees for a year. Thank God, this is a breath of fresh air for us. Mrs. Veronica, Mrs. Mihaela and Mr. Mihai Ilie are the 3 people who help us in the kitchen, laundry, gardening and farm. (pictures 1-3)

          After overcoming this challenge, we had one of the cooks infected with Covid and we stayed with emotions until the negative results came to all of us. With God's help the cook is well back to work.

          The children enjoyed the snow we had this year, much more than in previous years. They went sledding, made snow sculptures, admired the loaded trees and so on. (pictures 4,5). Because the winter lasted quite a long time, we also bought a car with wood.(picture 6). One of the habits of winter is the cutting of the pig, but not because of the habit, but because of the necessity, we also cut one, from which we made all kinds of dishes. (pictures 7,8)

          We would like to thank in this way all those who supported us during this period through various donations, which complement our budget incredibly well. May God reward you all and keep your good habits! :)  (pictures 9-12)

          The anniversaries of this period were 5 in number. Doinita, turned 18 on January 8, she has already done driving school and passed the theory exam, and will take the practical test. We wish her good luck! (picture 13). Ciprin turned 18 on January 14 (picture 14), Denisa turned 12 on January 24 (picture 15), Ionut turned 20 on February 12 (picture 16), and Cristina turned 16 on March 18 (pictures 17-18)

          Other activities that our children and young people engaged in during this period were mainly household activities, cooking, gardening, laundry, cleaning, etc., but also some activities outside the Ray House. (pictures 19-28)

          March 8th was a pretty hard day for us and the kids at Ray House. One of our 12-year-old daughters, Denisa, asked us a few days before “Mother’s Day”: “And who are we going to give flowers to on March 8?”….. so on March 8, little by little, I went with a flower to MOTHER'S grave. We hope that these children, who have been so badly hit by life, who have lost their second mother, will soon find other people to take their place as mothers in their hearts. (pictures 29-33)

          At the end of the report, we want to expose a great need of the House of Ray.

          Starting in October and even until April, at Casa Ray, the chimneys smoke without interruption. This leaves quite visible consequences in our budget. At least 2,500 euros go to heat the home.

          We believe that if the cold, bare and hard to heat walls were covered with a 10 cm polystyrene, in addition to the pleasant appearance that Casa Ray will get, the walls would be easier to heat, the heat would keep better during the winter (during the summer an optimal temperature would be kept in the house) and consequently, the cost of fuel consumption would be reduced.

          In addition to the aspect of energy loss, for about a few years we have had problems with ventilation in some rooms due to temperature differences between outside and inside. The outer wall of the kitchen also started to "tell us" that it has problems, the tiles have actually started to come off the wall.

          We know that it is a large project, but we also know that God has resources for these problems we face, so we pray with a heart full of hope. (pictures 34-41)

         Thank you and we hope to hear from you soon!