Tbilisi street children project finds new home just in time

For over ten years Mkurnali has offered a safe haven to street children in the Georgian capital, Tbilisi.  Each year they have saved 45-50 street children from prison, where they would receive no education, and are taken in by Mkurnali to be taught a trade.  In April 2011 they were faced with eviction.  If they didn't find a new home the 16 former street children and 4 babies who lived there would be homeless once again.

The story of what happened next is nothing short of a miracle.

For the first time in its history, St Gregory’s Foundation received a substantial legacy this year and so we were in a position to pledge £69,000, half the cost of a house of suitable size in Tbilisi. This sum was increased to £78,000 thanks to contributions from generous donors.  The bank promised a mortgage for the other 50% of the house price, so the house hunt began.

Just like visitors from St Gregory’s, the estate agent was very impressed with Mkurnali and its work. So impressed that when a new building came on the market at the incredibly low price of £106,000 she told Mkurnali before any of her other clients.  The house was originally valued at £190,000 and would never have sold for less than £170,000 had it not been a repossession. This difference is well over £60,000; another miracle.

All the searches and the survey were returned without any problems and the purchase went ahead.  It is built with red brick which in Tbilisi is called “English” and that has pleased Mkurnali greatly, as they are convinced that it will please us British directors of SGF.

The house has a number of outbuildings and a garage attached.  Originally the garage was not included in the sale price.  While Father George wanted to pay the market price, the owner insisted on charging a huge, unaffordable amount for it.  Mkurnali were all set to buy the house without the garage when lawyers discovered that the garage had never been registered with the local authorities, so was included in the sale for a minimal registration fee.  However, Father George insists on negotiating further, since he does not want the original owner to spread scandal about the ‘grabbing conduct’ of a priest! “We are not bandits,” as he puts it.

So, they have a solidly built new house, far more suitable than anything else on the market within their price range, and with some outbuildings in addition to the garage. Some building work will have to be done: one upstairs room divided into two smaller bedrooms, so that children don’t have to sleep in large dormitories (Mkurnali policy being to have them in small groups); a room built over the garage; the outbuildings and hopefully the garage converted into workshops. The large downstairs room with a fireplace will be the general purpose common room, and in winter will serve as a dormitory. They are bringing in a volunteer architect to quote on the cost of building three extra bedrooms by raising part of the roof.

Meanwhile, Mkurnali was also fundraising locally.  Their efforts inspired a successful local artist, who was so impressed by Mkurnali’s work that he decided to sell a painting specifically for them. The result is a donation of $38,000 - or nearly £24,000!

Because of these two pieces of good fortune - the drop in price and the donation from the artist - Father George has decided that rather than take out a bank loan at 11% for the remainder of the price, he will raise small private loans, interest-free, from friends and associates. They have already paid the £567 conveyancing costs. The sums which up till now have gone on rent, and would have gone to repay the bank loan, will be used first of all to repay these smaller loans and then to restructure the training programmes: on better salaries to attract good teaching staff, and on the general running of the workshops, including the enamel jewellery.

Mkurnali’s landlord insists that they must leave their current home by the end of the month.  The Mkurnali team are working very hard to get the upstairs partitions in place in time.  Fortunately the house itself, being new, requires very little extra work.  Once the move has happened, getting the plans for the extension and converting the outhouses will be the priority.  Nino has given us an estimate for this work of £35,000 which would enable them to re-open all their training programmes.

Thank you very much to everyone who has already contributed.  As Nino herself wrote:

“We are all so happy!!!!
I do not know how Mkurnali will repay the kindness of St Gregory's Foundation. The children are happy and very much like that place. Please give thanks to everyone.”

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