When Pavel Sokolov received the unexpected call that his sister had passed away, not only was he inconsolably saddened by his loss, but immediately thought of his niece who had just lost her mother. Pavel, a driver at TRANSREMWAGON LLP, decided there and then, to rise to the occasion and adopt his then seven-year-old niece, Nadezhda. As time healed the wounds of that dreadful accident, Nadezhda now a dedicated mother and wife is only days away from getting her certified speech therapist degree. It’s hard to imagine what her life would have looked like if Pavel had not stepped in and taken her as his own child.

Pavel recalls that taking that decision, whilst not the easiest one, was the only one he could take. Together with his wife Marina, who at that time already had two children, found it difficult to clothe, feed and take care of an additional child. They lived a modest life, not poor of course, but certainly not rich.

Pavel recounts the moment him and his wife told the kids that they had adopted Nadezhda: "This is the situation we are in – your cousin needs our help. Do you mind if she becomes part of our family?". At the time, both their children were 13 and 17 years old. “We have to praise their willingness and understanding, our children were very sympathetic to the situation, and even became hugely involved in taking care of their new little sister,” says Pavel.

The adoption paperwork proved to be harder than expected. They tried to find Nadezhda’s biological father in Russia, but with little success. They wrote numerous requests and collected piles of documentation. Officials were already trying to convince the Sokolovs that it would be simpler to just give the child to an orphanage. Fortunately, with the help of some very caring people, the Sokolovs managed to sign the papers and have full custody of Nadezhda.

When Nadezhda started school after the tragic accident, both her older brother and sister took her under their wings, helping her with her studies and making sure she was always safe. They became closer and closer as a family, always watching out for each other.

Nadezhda is forever grateful for what her adoptive family did for her, and calls the Pavel and Marina, and ‘dad’ and ‘mom’. Pavel, like any proud parent, praises Nadezhda , as an incredible and dedicated professional. She graduated from a specialised college, worked in a kindergarten, and now takes care of her one-year-old daughter whilst studying at the University of Chelyabinsk for a speech therapist degree.

“It seems that I was destined to raise a big family, and I don’t see that as a curse, but as a gift. - shares our incredible employee Pavel. “Regretfully, we were recently struck by grief again, as our own daughter passed away. Our family was devasted by another loss and found it difficult to come to terms with it, especially since one of our granddaughters was now motherless. We rose to the occasion yet again and decided to take full custody of our beloved granddaughter, since the father was nowhere to be found.”