Living Hope Romania

Building a Community by Reaching the Community 

Planted in 1998, Living Hope Church desires to be a lighthouse of hope for the people in Pitesti, Romania and around the world, sharing the Gospel, gathering together to grow in Christ, and showing the world lives that are completely transformed through the living hope in Jesus Christ.

Within a few years, Cristi & Cami Golas had joined the church and quickly got involved in leading praise & worship.  It was their involvement in the church that shaped their vision and fueled their passion to reach their community for Christ.

The Golas family have now been a part of the Living Hope Church for over 15 years.  Their heart remains the same…. to reach out and build a community where God is glorified, lives are being transformed, and hope is shaping the future.

Golas family

Reaching Neighborhoods

There are 12 main neighbourhoods in Pitesti, Romania.  Cristi has a vision of reaching each of these neighbourhoods with a unique ministry serving the specific needs of that community.  

The church decided to focus their efforts on the Razboieni and Coremi neighbourhoods which are considered to be the poorest in the city.

Our vision for these neighbourhoods is to be a bright light of hope.   We will love the unlovable.  We will be friends to the lonely.  We will show people that there is only One Perfect Friend; who will never leave them, nor forsake them, even if the world rejects them.    - Cristi Golas

There are many issues facing the families in these at-risk neighbourhoods:

• Lack of Education
• Few Opportunities for Employment
• Racism & Prejudices 
• Alcohol & Drug Abuse
• Domestic Violence
• Sexual Abuse 
• Demonic & Witchcraft Practices

Razboieni Neighbourhood

12 years ago we have started reaching out to the the kids in this neighbourhood, but slowly our meetings have turned into a growing family with parents and other people from all ages joining in.

 Our volunteers organise weekly meetings within the neighbourhood poor areas, working with passion and dedication to extend God’s Kingdom here.  

Coremi - Prundu Neighbourhood

We started our outreach and discipleship program into the ghetto area of these neighbourhoods 2 years ago. We have a team that is fully dedicated to this ministry investing their time, energy and all resources to share God’s Word to all the people living here. 

The team is focused on organising weekly meetings for kids throughout the school year and summer camps.

The Living Hope teams host a weekly Awana program for the kids from all these communities.  The kids worship God through songs and pray out loud. They teach Bible stories and encourage the kids to memorise scripture verses.

Throughout the year, there are many other fun activities for the kids: watching movies, ice-skating, weekly one-on-one meetings, and English classes.

One of the highlights of the year is the annual summer camp.  With over 100 kids in attendance, it’s a unique opportunity for kids to get outside of their neighbourhood and enjoy the beautiful Romanian mountains during an extended time with the church community.

Reaching  Homeless People

22 years ago, during our outreach events at the park, we started noticing a lot of kids and teens who would sit around the fire singing or yelling at each other. Most of them were street orphans either drunk or on drugs.

We felt God was calling our church to reach out and help these young souls. Most of them were staying on the streets or at the orphanage, earning a living through prostitution, begging or stealing from stores.

As we started praying for opportunities a team of 20 people from different churches in the city began to do street outreach and give out hot tea, sandwiches and spending time with them every day.

Soon enough, they started calling us friends and our relationships grew closer and closer!

We discovered that underneath a facade of toughness, power and domination over others, these people live in constant fear...deep down in their heart they are desperate, scared and hopeless. 

Through the program we run every week, we want to create opportunities to build relationships based on trust and acceptance. They come to church to wash their clothes, get a hot meal and attend the special service we provide for them in one of the downstairs rooms of our church. Here, they feel at home, they feel this is THEIR church...they even call it: The Church of The Street !

WE are so grateful for our volunteering staff and their strong desire to be a good testimony of God’s boundless love to these people. We are already seeing the fruit of this ministry and ask you to join in our prayers so that these people would taste the love of our God and their wounds would be healed!

Staff ministering the Church of the Street

Good Bureau, as listed below, is a 501(c)3 organisation supporting Living Hope Foundation and many other Romanian NGOs. The funds raised on this page will be used solely in support of Living Hope Foundation's activity.