We were lucky to catch up with Kelly Stark recently and have shared our conversation below.
Alright, Kelly thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Can you talk to us about a risk you’ve taken – walk us through the story?
I moved to Romania in 1999 to take in older orphan girls who were ageing 0ut of the state orphanages. I had met some of them for the first time in 1991, not long after the fall of communism in 1989. I wanted to help them get a good start in life as young adults. When I began my home for orphans I started with 5 girls, the first one became a doctor and the others found their careers and new lives. Soon younger children were being left at my gate. With the older girls moving on, I had room and began taking younger ones in foster care. One very snowy, cold day a group of gypsy children came to the gate with a plastic bag. I opened it and inside was a tiny naked baby girl. “Take her,” they pleaded, “we don’t know what to do with her”. I asked if they knew the mother, they said yes. “Go and tell her she can come live in my house and raise her baby.” They left the baby with me, she didn’t cry, I clothed her and fed her before they came back. When they did, they said, “The mother said if you don’t take her to throw her back in the trash”. That baby became mine in that instant. Children’s protection was closed for the Christmas season. I was showing off my new baby to my friends and when they looked at her they warned me that she looked so frail and sick that she could die, and if she dies that it would be really bad for me being a foreigner in Romania. I looked at the baby and couldn’t see what they saw. I saw a beautiful baby girl. I was told to take her to the hospital, but I had been to hospital before to take care of abandoned babies, they were given bottles, propped up agains’t the cribs, if the bottle fell, no one would come in and give it back to them, no one changed their diapers except maybe once a day if they were lucky.. So I decided to take her to the police to let them know I have her…it was a big risk…would they arrest me? I explained to them everything. The captain said take her home, if anyone gives you problems for taking her, I will take care of it. She didn’t cry for the first 3 months, not for a bottle, not for a diaper change, not for attention. I would set my alarm to wake up at night to feed her. Thankfully, she began to thrive. I was no longer worried about the risk I had taken…a risk that meant life or death to an innocent baby. Eventually I adopted her and the other young ones. She is now 19 years old, in college, working at a coffee shop with a dream of owning her own coffee shop some day. Would I do it again? Even if things did not turn out as well as they did? Absolutely, she was worth fighting for.
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.
I started a non-profit for Romanian orphans In 2014. I lived in Romania from 1999 to 2014, where I started a home for orphans, I adopted my younger children and brought them to the US to be closer to family and to get to know their extended family.. My heart is still for the Romanian orphans. Human trafficking is a major problem in Eastern Europe. Many of orphans aging out of the system end up as easy targets for traffickers. My non profit works with children’s protection by visiting the orphans, taking them to camps, and out in the community so that they are known. We have a house ready to be used to help more children, which is one reason I hope to go back soon, finding reliable workers is not easy.
We have had over 30 children come through. We are small but that’s what makes us different, each life becomes our most important focus. The first girl became a doctor and now works in Germany, another one learned 4 different languages to fulfill her dream to work on a cruise ship, most started their own families). What I am most proud of the children, every one that has come through my house has found their new lives, are successful in what ever they chose, and are happy, healthy, and safe.
How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?
What has helped build our reputation is the people who know me and have heard my story and met my children.
Has your business ever had a near-death moment? Would you mind sharing the story?
Though I still travel to Romania it has been difficult with 4 young children in school, and now taking care of my elderly mother who’s health has declined, and also working. I miss life in Romania and can’t wait for the opportunity to back. But with everything going on, including the lockdowns I’ve wondered if I should just quit. Then I think of what my life would look like without it, without my passion and my love for helping orphans, and then I can’t. It motivates me knowing that there is just one more child…one more who’s life we could impact and who in turn would grow up to impact our world. I can’t quit.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.CoradoHopeForTheFuture.org