“Superhuman”

By contrast, the example of Rodion Baner, 24, whom The Day met as a civic observer in the last parliamentary elections (Rodion was a regional coordinator of the OPORA civic network), shows that it is not necessary to go abroad to honestly earn your living. Rodion is not only a self-employed person – he has created jobs for 10 people like him. And, for the information of skeptics, he did it without involving affluent and influential relatives.

So, when we were preparing The Day’s Topic of the Day, we turned to Rodion as a hero of our publication. On hearing that the publication is about the young people who have chosen to go abroad in search of work, the guy at first refused to comment. “And is it good that I have a school for 150-200 children and, apart from creating a job for myself, I give work to another 10 coaches?” he asked with indignation.

“What launched the history of our enterprise was not a business idea but youth enthusiasm,” the youth says to The Day. “Young boys and girls rallied around the idea of renting a gymnasium for trainings. The ‘cocktail’ of different arts laid the groundwork for the development of a variety and circus team in the future. Choreographs, artistic and rhythmic gymnasts, street acrobats, jugglers, trampolinists, and others harmoniously coexisted in the same milieu. Those who wished to join the group were doing so. In the course of time, it became necessary to enlarge the gymnasium, formalize our association, and organize trainings (schedule, number of people, etc.). Quite naturally, this brought about at first the ‘role’ and then the paid office of administrator.”

In Rodion’s words, the boys classified trainings by sport varieties and participants by the level of skills. They selected coaches and organizers and set fixed contributions for paying the gymnasium rent and purchasing the specialized equipment, (simulators, tatami, mirrors, etc.). “This brought into existence the NGO Jin-Roh (translated from various Oriental languages, ‘pack of wolves’ and ‘superhuman’). In our view, this title could well reveal what we are and what we do,” the guy says to The Day.

Rodion is convinced that the important component of their project’s success was the fact that there was more than one leader in the group. All decisions were made by a joint effort, and everybody had the right to display an initiative, choose a direction, improve himself in it, and teach others. So, in the course of time, this allowed everybody to show their worth, to display not only their talent, but also the ability to learn, develop, and organize.

The boys and girls grew up, and their art enthusiasm turned into professionalism and the ability to earn a living. The former informal group is now an association of private entrepreneurs with higher education in their field, unique skills, and licenses to teach children. Thanks to a comprehensive approach to the sporting and artistic education of children, the constant aspiration of coaches for self-improvement, and high-quality organization, the Jin-Roh Variety and Circus Studio is now the only one in Kherson and one of the best in Ukraine.

“Each of the coaches is an officially registered private entrepreneur who works in compliance with the current law and pays taxes,” Rodion emphasizes to The Day. “Besides, each of us is not only a coach, but also an artist – in our spare time we perform inside and outside Ukraine as part of 3- to 10-day guest tours, but we see our future exclusively in our state rather than out of its bounds.”