Nadija's Letter, 20th November 2016

9/12/2016

Nadija Pinjo, HHN Manager and Co-ordinator in Sarajevo (renouned for wearing two, or even three pairs of glasses at once), was unable to attend the 20th Aniversary Celebrations in November.
Her letter was read out to us in her absence...

"It is the quality of work that HHN does
that keeps our clients and their families alive and happy,
despite their terrible past experiences."

On 20th November 2016, Healing Hands Network celebrated its 20th Aniversary. Two of its staff in Bosnia flew over for the occasion, but Nadija was unable to, due to her passport getting lost... gutted, she sent us this letter, to be read out to all wo were present at the AGM the following day...

Dear Healing Hands Network Members and Friends,

First and foremost, I cannot belive I am not able to be there with you to celebrate this important achievement that is twenty years of Healing Hands Network! I feel that I owe everyone an explanation for not being there, so I just wanted to say that my passport got lost in the process of getting a UK visa and that is the reason why I could not travel. I was very much looking forward to seeing everyone and spending some time with all of you.

It makes me very proud and happy to be part of the Healing Hands Network team. What started as a summer job for me fifteen years ago has turned into one of my life’s objectives, which is helping the people of Bosnia. Healing Hands Network treats those who survived the torture of concentration camps during the war and civil war victims. Bosnia has thousands and thousands of those people. Twenty years after the war we still get new clients every year. Our clients are poor, they live on minimum financial help from the government. Bosnia is one of the poorest countries in South-Eastern Europe, an economy in transition going through crises since the end of the war. Most of the people live on the edge of existence and the sad truth is that almost all of our clients belong to this social category. HHN has treated thousands of people and I have been following them for the past 15 years. Our clients are very fortunate to be able to come to our treatments. Every year in February and March I start receiving phone calls from them asking me when our season is starting. According to them, these treatments are the most generous help they receive, because it not only helps them enormously but it is also one of the rare treatments or aids they receive these days. I would just like to say that your generosity, helpfulness and kindness have proved to be very effective over the years and our loyal clients are the best proof for that.

Over the years I have connected deeply with our clients on the one hand and our therapists on the other. Many of our clients became my friends throughout the years and many of our therapists became my mentors and my friends throughout the seasons. One successful season after another, the effective work and our loyal clients and therapists are just a few things to mention that prove that this humanitarian organization continuously provides effective help to those people in Bosnia who suffered the most. It has been 21 years since the war and its consequences have become old news in Bosnia, therefore these people get very little attention these days from local and international institutions. There are very few organizations in Bosnia who are there to help and HHN is one of the very few.

In the last few years, HHN has gone a step further and introduced new treatments and workshops that enable our clients to learn how to help themselves and others. Through these workshops, our clients not only enjoy the time spent in treatment but also learn new techniques that enable them to spread the good and treat their family members and friends. For this, I believe, we can thank our Director Sue Stretton who deserves a big round of applause now! I welcome her in all her efforts to help my people in so many different ways, ranging from Reiki workshops, Breathing technique, various treatments as well as exercise classes that everyone enjoyed.

On behalf of each and every one of our clients from Sarajevo I would like to thank you all for your generosity and helpfulness. Your continuous commitment to helping treat those who truly need it is sincerely appreciated. Your assistance in Bosnia continues to make a huge difference in the lives of those who need it. It is the quality of work that HHN does that keeps our clients and their families alive and happy despite their terrible past experiences.

With all our heart, thank you!!
Sincerely, Nadija Pinjo
Sarajevo, November 20th, 2016.

Click HERE to help Julia fund
two weeks of voluntary working with HHN
in Bosnia next year.