Many are alcoholics, and some are physically or sexually abusive, but others just cannot afford to feed their children. Andrei's parents, from the poverty-stricken former Soviet republic of Moldova, fit that description. They travel across Russia's 11 time zones looking for work, and they send money when they can. He is staying at the Oryol temporary shelter while she is in the hospital. Most children in Russia's temporary shelters are in limbo.
Parents retain custody and can return for their children at any time.
About 70 percent of the children at such centers go home after a few months. Many will return in the future as parents continually wrestle with their problems. In the United States, most of these children would be placed with foster families or in group homes with small, family-like settings. In Russia, the Soviet mentality of addressing problems collectively instead of individually lives on in hundreds of state-run institutions. Sometimes parents conquer their problems and return for their children.