Their four faces could jump off any poster and immediately tug at your heart.

They are 5-year-old Sasha and 3-year-old Misha; they're brothers.

Then there are 18-month-old Tanya and 5-year-old Katya; they're sisters.

They're from Kiev, Ukraine, and I learned about them through Bill and Marie Mason of Wingate. The Masons are retirees who've dedicated much of their lives to helping thousands of poor children in Kiev and around Ukraine. So far, these four are examples of the help the Masons are working to offer.

Here's what Bill told me about the boys:

The mother of Sasha and Misha is an alcoholic. She and her live-in boyfriend started the new year (2006) by partying for several days. They left the two boys home in the frigid winter cold with no heat, no food and no water. A stranger found the boys rolled up in a rug to keep each other warm. The boys were taken to the hospital for treatment. Their mother has been placed in prison for child abandonment. Missionaries took the boys to Village of Hope.

And this about the girls:

They lived in a home where their mother was abused by her husband. The girls' mother was beaten to death earlier this year. Tanya and Katya were taken to different orphanages. There was no documentation that Tanya was ever born. Katya kept telling people at the orphanage she had a sister. After some searching, orphanage officials found Tanya and the sisters were reunited. Now they live at Village of Hope.

You can't talk about Bill and Marie Mason without talking about Village of Hope. It's seven buildings on 16 acres (an old Communist youth camp) that's being developed to help abandoned, destitute children. Only two of the homes are functioning.

Much of the work there is paid for by churches associated with the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship of North Carolina and the Ukranian Center for Christian Cooperation, which is part of the Baptist Union of Ukraine.

Village of Hope also gets support from groups in Sweden, Germany, The Netherlands, a church in Michigan and Samaritan's Purse (the group Franklin Graham leads).

But there are thousands of children in need and much work to be done.

Bill is a retired engineer and one of the site coordinators for groups working to make the buildings liveable. He's made eight trips to the Ukraine since he started in 2002. Marie, who has made three trips, says she serves as a "kind of hostess" when she goes.

Bill was there from early May until July 22; Marie was there June 11 until July 22. "I've always been active in church; Marie has been really active, but I never thought we would be called to a mission project," Bill says.

They go to Kiev, then they come back to the U.S. and tell others about the work they're doing. They want people to support Village of Hope.

Bill has been to Kiev more than anyone else on the mission. With some prodding, he'll admit he's one of the leaders.

Village of Hope is in Bucha, about 30 miles from Kiev.

A 2005 UNICEF report described Ukraine as having a high rate of poverty. Some statistics say as much as 30 percent of the population live below the poverty level, and children suffer most. The UNICEF reports said thousands of children are abandoned or placed in orphanages. Sasha, Misha, Tanya and Katya appear to support that report.

Marie recalls that Misha had some frostbite on his toes and was a little bowlegged. "That could be from malnutrition," she said.

Bill talks about how Sasha wets the bed. But he says Sasha would talk in his native language. "He'd talk to me, and then look at me like, `Why do you not understand?' "

Because Tanya had no birth certificate or other identity, she could have been sold for adoption, or slavery, he says.

But these four are safe.

"We can't deal with the whole problem," Bill Mason says. "All we can do is help some. Eventually we may help as many as 300."

But that will take more money and volunteers. And more hearts being tugged by Sasha, Misha, Tanya and Katya.

How to Help

If you would like to volunteer or make a donation, contact Linda Jones, mission coordinator for Cooperative Baptist Fellowship of N.C., at 888-822-1944. You also can e-mail ljones@cbfnc.org. Cliff

Harrington