Our Mission:
To support families in the Republic of Georgia affected by the August 2008 Russia-Georgia War by providing scholarships and other valuable educational opportunities to students and youth from the Gori Region.
Gori is a regional city in eastern Georgia with an estimated population of 60,000, and is the administrative center of the Shida Kartli region. During Soviet times, Gori was an important industrial center. However, in the post-Soviet era, Gori suffered an economic collapse, with the effects felt across the region. The Gori region has been slow to recover, and as a result the region still suffers from high unemployment and poverty.
Gori is probably most well-known as the birthplace of Joseph Stalin, and is home to his birthplace and the Stalin Museum, both popular tourist destinations. The town is overlooked by an ancient fortress on the hill in the center of town, Goris Tsikhe. On a hill outside of town sits Gori Jvari, one of the most sacred churches in Georgia. Also nearby is the ancient cave-town of Uplistsikhe, located along the ancient Silk Road.
Gori and the region have been in the news recently due to heavy bombardment of the town and surrounding villages by Russian military forces during the August 2008 South Ossetia conflict. Residential areas of Gori were hit by Russian airstrikes resulting in many civilian deaths and the destruction of several large apartment blocks, leaving thousands homeless. Between August 9th and 12th, most of Gori's residents were forced to flee. Many left for mountain villages or the capital, Tbilisi, sleeping in schools or in homes crowded with other internally-displaced persons (IDPs). During this period, the city and surrounding villages were occupied by the Russian army and South Ossetian militia. According to Human Rights Watch, occupying forces conducted a campaign of looting, arson and other acts of violence in the region. In ethnic Georgian villages within South Ossetia or along the border, many homes were burnt to the ground and some villages have disappeared completely. Some of the most effected villages include Tamarasheni, Kvemo Achabeti, Kurta, Kekhvi, Kemerti, and Dzartsemi. People from these villages remain IDPs, displaced from their homes and unlikely to ever return. After the Russian occupation ended on August 22nd, many citizens did return, but now face an uncertain future due to the trauma of the attacks, lost loved ones, and new economic hardships.
