Jelayko was born in 1938 in Bulgaria, close to the Turkish border. After being passed from pillar to post during his childhood, he is now completely alone with no relatives to count on.
In the beginning of the 1990s Jelayko started having eyesight problems and now he only has 4% vision on his right eye and is completely blind in his left eye. He rents an apartment and finds it impossible to survive on his monthly pension £35. He used to prepare a pan of beans which would last him almost the whole week.
And then, one day he was noticed by a complete stranger. The stranger turned out to be Pastor Minko who ran a “soup kitchen” in his church building with support from Mission Without Borders. The Pastor invited Jelayko to come and eat with them and enjoy their company. Despite his handicap and his poor health, Jelayko is always neatly dressed with a tie on. He is well shaven though it takes him an hour and a half each morning. He makes his own way every day to our “Soup kitchen”, where he enjoys fine food, lovingly prepared and served. Jelayko is now motivated to take care of himself and enjoy the company of others.
There are many other people with similar stories to Jelayko right across Eastern Europe whose life has been dignified and changed by a stranger showing them love.