our Mentors

Our Mentors are the foot soldiers on the front lines of our ministry. Working in 24 hour shifts they live on-site with the teens as a family unit. Each one is committed to helping the teens navigate a very different life from their orphanage experience. Their time is spent as father, mother, sister, brother, friend, counselor, encourager, job coach, educational and financial advisor. Not only do they teach life skills, they guide our residents in morality, social skills, and communication skills. Our Mentors model God’s love to the teens, waiting for God to open a door when they can verbally share about His love with them. They love them until they ask them, “Why?”

SERGEY served in orphanage ministry with his church for 8 years prior to joining The Harbor team in 2013. The teens look to him as a father figure and he loves them all like his own. Sergey is very caring and at every turn purposes to show the teens that God loves them and has a good plan for their life. YURA also joined the team in 2013. He served for over 15 years in the Zolina orphanage. He and his wife have adopted two children and also volunteer for the official Nizhny Foster Parent Support Group. With a deep love for the teens, Yura’s passion is teaching the teens the best way to live and how to redeem their lives. Many teens respond, “Yes” to his invitation to visit church. ARTEM served with his church in Nizhny’s Special Needs Orphanage for three years before joining our team in 2016. He is like an older brother to the teens. God has gifted Artem with great instincts on how to motivate the teens to learn and accomplish what they need to know in order to move forward with their lives. The teens do well under Artem’s mentoring style. NATASHA K. jumped at the opportunity to become apart of The Harbor team in April. 2020. She had no prior orphanage experience, but became familiar with The Harbor ministry through her church where many of our staff and teens attend. Natasha is very empathetic towards the teens and the trauma they have experienced. Her heart is to help the teens with whatever their need is, always willing to go above and beyond. She cultivates relationships and continues to invest in the teen’s lives after they leave our program. NATASHA E. is a hair stylist and has been volunteering her hair and nail skills at The Harbor since 2013. She not only cuts the teens hair, but also holds grooming classes for them, emphasizing the importance of physically caring for themselves and how that reflects to others. Natasha “officially” joined The Harbor team in 2020. She is a great friend and support for the girls. INNA taught pre-school for 15 years before coming to The Harbor. She is loving, accepting, and non-judgmental. The girls respond openly and honestly with her because she respects their boundaries. She allows the girls the freedom to make mistakes and guides them through the process of how to correct their mistakes. Inna is very instrumental to our teen girls having successful futures.

our Administrative Staff

Dr. Olga, National Director holds a Masters in Medicine Pediatrics and is a Certified Specialist in Neonatology. She is highly respected in her field and works full time in a hospital. Dr. Olga had been serving in orphanage ministry at her church for many years and began helping teens who were aging out of the system. Laura was invited to speak at Dr. Olga’s church about a potential ministry that focused on orphaned teens. Dr. Olga was in attendance and immediately knew this was a ministry she wanted to be involved in. Dr. Olga’s love for the orphans, her education, and position at the hospital (which immediately commands respect with orphanage directors and social workers) along with her godly wisdom made her an excellent candidate for The Harbor Nizhny. Laura appointed her National Director in 2013.

OLGA S. our Accountant holds a Masters in Hotel Management and is a Certified CPA. Since 1998 she has been the accountant for the church her husband pastors, as well as handling the accounting for three local apartment complexes. Her vast knowledge and experience working with NGO’s made her a perfect fit as The Harbor Nizhny’s accountant. Olga joined our Staff in 2018.

On-going Challenges

Please pray for us. Thank you.

• Living with emotionally underdeveloped and severely traumatized teens takes a heavy toll on our Staff.

• Continually educating ourselves with additional knowledge, greater insight and understanding of the depth of brokenness our teens come to us with, and seeking God’s wisdom on how to best minister to their individual needs.

• Our lawyer engages with the Nizhny government to legally claim Orphan Benefits, obtain documentation that enables the teens to work and go to school, as well as fight their complex legal cases often caused by others taking advantage of them.

• Balancing family, second jobs, and ministry.

• Seeking open doors to legally share the gospel with the teens and lead them to Christ.

URGENT PRAYER REQUEST: Several of our Staff have lost their second and third jobs. Please pray for God’s financial provision. Thank you.

Paramonov Family

Missionary and Founder Laura (Ward) Paramonov, currently serving as executive director of The Harbor, has been living in Russia and ministering to Russian orphans for over 20 years.

“Orphans are a separate people group that have been totally abandoned by everyone in their world. Their hardship is heartbreaking, yet we know from Acts 17:26-27 that God has allowed this. He has not abandoned them.” Laura

The desire to share the love of Jesus Christ with orphaned teens in a more effective and influential way led Laurah in 2013 to step out in faith and established The Harbor Nizhny. Beginning with one apartment and one male resident, adding a girls apartment in 2016, successfully graduating over 40 orphaned teens through the residential program, while helping countless others, Laurah continues to be amazed as she watches her loving Heavenly Father, by His grace, rescue, redeem, and restore Russian orphans, giving them a hope and a future through The Harbor Nizhny ministry.

Laurah and Andre met in Russia at Calvary Chapel Nizhny. While serving the LORD together their friendship blossomed and they soon realized that God had brought them together. Married in 2016 they are now blessed with two sons, Zack and Nathan. Andre and Laurah truly are partners in the ministry of The Harbor Nizhny.

“Religion that is pure and undefiled before God the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.” James 1:27 ESV