A couple with many children under their care live in a cramped two-room house in Sacramento. Tatyana and Sergey Mironyuk, who lived in Ukraine’s Volyn region before moving to the United States, have adopted six children, including three youngsters from Ukraine and a girl from Bulgaria. Four more children came to the Mironyuks from American foster families who found the burden of adoption too heavy.
For instance, 15-year-old Illiana had been with another Ukrainian family in America, but the foster parents were unable to handle her.
The same story happened to two brothers from Bulgaria, Dimchi and Yelisey. Their American foster parents abandoned them, and they were nearly sent back to Bulgaria before the Mironyuks offered them shelter and later adopted them.
15-year-old Alina was brought in from yet another foster family.
Two more children are Sergey and Tatyana’s own — making a total of 12 people in the Mironyuk family.
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Rosa, 13, who suffers from hepatitis, told Slavic Sacramento that she really enjoys living in America and that her parents are “just cool!”
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Sergey and Tatyana’s foster children come from different backgrounds, but they have one thing in common – difficulties with upbringing and education. Some of them cannot attend regular schools, so they have to be homeschooled. Their “classes” are held in the outbuilding that looks more like a garage than a living room.
Calling for help from the community, the family needs to raise $70†000 to buy building supplies. With the help of volunteers, Sergey and Tatyana hope to add a second story to their house.
The first stage of the fundraising effort has started with a YouCaring page where people can donate. The current goal is $30,000.
