My home is my castle", says the English proverb. "The home is where the heart is". This American saying comes home to our hearts. How do we turn our own home to the place where love, peace and joy reign? Is it a castle where we can find a hiding place behind its walls during life’s storms? What brings peace to our home? How do we preserve and pass family values to the next generation? How do we build homes on firm foundations and have a strong and a happy family?

A conference under the name "Strong family" was held by the Life Care Center together with the Youth City Council on the 11-12th of April. There were various workshops on different topics.
Arthur Scott, a pastor from South Carolina, USA, a father of four successful children and his wife Sharon shared the major principles on which a happy family is built. Chief among these was: The home should be built on a strong foundation otherwise it won't overcome the hardships of life. And this foundation is love of the Heavenly Father that helps us to truly love each other and express it. Sharon Scott highlighted the main emotional needs that we have and that shouldn't be neglected when raising children: Healthy self-esteem, personal worth should be cultivated beginning at childhood.

Bob Burnham shared his experience in raising three daughters. He also shared the goals that he has as a father.

Alex Rayu, who is raising 2 sons of preschool age, told about the role of a father and the importance of being a role model as a father and taking an active part in raising sons.

Angela Berezinskaya, who is a social worker in the area of adoption and foster care, shared her joys and the difficulties that foster parents face. She is the mother of a foster child herself and she emphasized the importance of setting boundaries and loving children unconditionally, which is essential to healthy childhood development. She also discussed the role of discipline and consistency in child rearing. The director of the Life Care Center and family and marriage consultant Snezhana Popova spoke about main mistakes that parents make in the area of educating children and teenagers about sexual matters.

Many teenagers are going through emotional and physiological struggles that's why the wisdom and tactfulness of a loving parent can help a teenager to understand themselves and those changes that are happening in their lives.
There was also information on child addictions and raising grandchildren. We hope that such conferences will help young and experienced parents to build strong families who are ready to overcome the difficulties of parenting.