Ministering to the needy: Forgotten teens living as outcasts and troubled youth without positive role models

Tatyana Potynga

Much prejudice exists toward gypsies in Moldova, as in many other countries, where the forgotten group lives as outcasts and faces social rejection and discrimination. Being of gypsy heritage, graduate Tatyana Potynga “combines that with her [social work] training to understand and address problems of gypsy teenagers,” says her alma mater, the College of Theology and Education (CTE) in Moldova. She leads a Bible study among gypsy teenagers and also ministers to gypsy children.

Marek Sikora also has a heart for youth coming from troubled families, as he is the Coordinator of Rock Solid, a ministry of Youth for Christ in Poland that supports churches and youth leaders who are sharing Kingdom values with teenagers. He trains volunteers, prepares material and leads meetings for teenage boys in his church in order to help them develop Christian values, masculine identities and maturity. The meetings are creative and adapted to contemporary youth culture while saturated with the Gospel. “This interesting new initiative is very needed in Polish culture where mixed messages about what constitutes masculinity cause young men who have few positive role models to feel confused,” says the Evangelical School of Theology (EST) in Poland, from where Marek graduated in 2004.


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