What happens to those young people who attend the discipleship camps? Is there fruit? Do their lives really change? Are they the ‘leaders of tomorrow” affecting every fabric of society as we had hoped and prayed?

Here are some ‘snapshots’ of a few of our alums, spread across the world:

Alina Cajacaru is from Bucharest, Romania, but participated in our Great Exchange discipleship program while a ballet student at the Kiev College of Choreography. Alina was a tremendous student, accepted Christ during that time, and grew in the Lord in a tremendous way. She was so warm and sensitive, and took everything in that she could like a sponge. 

When she finished her program of studies in Kiev, she took part in the International Ballet Competition in Switzerland, earning first place honors and one year of study in London. She returned to Kiev for a short while, before joining the Royal Ballet of London where today is she a principal soloist.
 

Anton Zelenko was twelve years old when he attended one of our outreaches at a children’s hospital in Sloka, Latvia back in 1991. Anton came to Christ that December, and later began attending our summer discipleships camps beginning in 1994. Since that time, Anton grew in the Lord steadily, eventually becoming a part of our leadership team.

After high school graduation, we sponsored Antun through two years of Bible college in Yelgeva, Latvia. Today, Anton is married with one child, has finished his bachelor’s degree in psychology, serves as pastor of a small church in a Latvia village, and works as the social worker at an orphanage in Kemeri.

Katya Galkina first came to our summer discipleship camp in 1996 in Yevpatoria, Ukraine . At the time, she was 14 years old, and she not only took in the things she was learning, but she also latched onto the tools that were used to teach her those things --- especially pantomime. You see, in addition to the discipleship lessons, small group interaction and discussions, times of worship and prayer, we also teach the campers pantomimes that they can use as outreach tools once home.

When Katya returned to her hometown of Kharkov, Ukraine , she asked her pastor if she could start a youth outreach team that would use mime. Soon it grew to 18 members as they spent weekends ministering in public parks throughout the city (second largest city in Ukraine , two and a half million people). Katya has since graduated from the top university in Kharkov with a degree in mathematics, and teaches public school. Upon another visit to Kharkov , Katya showed me a picture of her team rehearsing, and then she told me they were planning a summer missions trip. “Where?” I asked. “To the summer Olympics in Greece!”

Akeem Tishko is one of the first people we ever met from Belarus . It was the summer of 1990 and he came to Christ at our outreach at a communist youth camp in Yurmala, Latvia . Later, he would participate in both our Great Exchange discipleship ministry, and in our summer discipleship camps beginning with the first summer program in 1994, and for many years after that.

Now he is a graduate of the music conservatory in Minsk , and is a star singer in the famous Belarussian singing group called “Clear Voice.” Akeem recently married, and also lent his talents singing the Russian version of a song by Matt and Sherry McPherson entitled “Salvation Prayer,” to be used on our Russian web site.

In 1996, Vera Komisheva traveled 104 hours one way by train from her Siberian home in order to attend our summer discipleship camp in the Crimea. She then returned to Krasnoyarsk , led her friend Natasha out of the Jehovah Witness’ cult, and brought her along to the following summer discipleship camp.

Vera is now married, has finished her studies in law school, and is a lawyer practicing in Siberia .

Vika Trigubko has attended summer discipleship camp for several years, traveling from her native Minsk, Belarus . As a student at the prestigious Belarussian Academy of Ballet, Vika has been training nine years to join the Bolshoi Ballet in Minsk , and has realized that dream.

Today, Vika is married and she and her husband have a young son. She dreams of the day we will be able to sponsor a family/marriage discipleship camp in which the whole family can participate. Vika shared with me recently that, “the discipleship camps definitely laid the foundation for my life, and I want these Christian principles that I have learned to set the foundation for my family!”

Oleg Naskalov is from a village outside of Kiev, Ukraine . He was a part of our first summer discipleship camp in 1994, and later became a member of our leadership team and for several years served on the Russian evangelism team. He since has graduated from the Ministry of Internal Affairs Academy, and is now a criminal investigator and lawyer serving in the Ukrainian government. He is married, his wife is a doctor, and they live in Kiev .