Portonovi, Montenegro :: A summary of different programmes undertaken by Logos Hope crewmembers in Montenegro.
During Logos Hope’s time in Montenegro, crewmembers engaged in many programmes to share knowledge, help and hope throughout the country and abroad, the most important of these being hope.
Ayesha (Trinidad and Tobago) engaged in music therapy with children who have special needs and abilities. “[The children] were so happy and wanted to join in. [The volunteers] gave them instruments to hold and shake while we sang, so they could be part of it,” she said. “God uses music to connect people. He gave us the gifts and talents, but it is not just for people who can play or sing, it is for everybody.”
Additionally, a team was sent to a nearby country to assist workers in a refugee camp. Some crewmembers valued and loved women in the camp through the beauty salon they set up. Jan (UK) said, “A lady came [into the salon] and they gave her a makeover. I felt that it really brought her hope. She was in the camp because she had escaped her country, but she did not know where she was going next. Just to see the look on her face, she was so happy.”
Sports are another way crewmembers could connect with people. Kilian (Hungary) played football with a group of children. “The children were very interested in people. We come from all around the world and to play together was fun. We were just hanging out and shining God’s light. I think that is something that impacted them, to see different people working together and just having fun, even though we never grew up in the same place.”
Meanwhile, Gwen (Netherlands) was part of a hiking team. “There were local people, but also refugees. In the end they were on the top [of this mountain] and thinking that if they can climb this mountain, then they can do anything. There was one girl, about my age, who I talked to. She felt so encouraged by that and inspired by what we are doing in Montenegro. Now she is looking at what she can do inside the country.”
Though Logos Hope’s stay in each port might be short, her crewmembers believe that these seeds of hope will continue to grow.