New Thing

Hello from the Rotary Club of Ipswich/Rowley, Mass., where I’m a member. They’ve urged me to visit and speak to other Rotaries because the work of my humanitarian group (online at www.NewThing.net) lines up so well with Rotary’s values: providing humanitarian aid to people in need in Belarus, in the former Soviet Union. (Things have gotten way more “interesting” due to the Ukraine conflict.) I’ve spoken to 125 Rotary Clubs in 10 states, and feedback has been overwhelmingly positive. My presentation will be brief, humorous, uplifting — and I’ll bring a fun gift for each member attending. (Also, I never ask for money from a Rotary Club.)

New Thing is a 501c3 non-profit organization established by Doug and Kristina Brendel in 2002 to help people in need in the Republic of Belarus, in the former USSR.

The passion of New Thing began in 1992 when Kristina Brendel visited Belarus, in the former Soviet Union, as a volunteer photographer.

She was documenting the West’s response to the medical needs of children in the aftermath of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster.

Kristina fell in love with the people there and kept going back!

Eventually, Kristina and her husband Doug established New Thing to help all kinds of children and adults in need in Belarus.