About 2 million children live in a detsky dom or children's home. Some are orphans, some are disabled, some are simply the offspring of alcoholic or neglectful parents. Many go on to live in special homes for adults, effectively living their whole life within the walls of an institution.

In 2008, President Putin spoke about the problem of "social orphans", noting that 90% of children living in such institutions had living parents, a sign of "an unhealthy society".

Unfortunately, the state refuses to provide adequate services or hire a professionally trained staff to care for them. Therefore, much of their care is provided by young volunteers out of the goodness of their hearts. I visited two such homes in 2006 and 2007 on the outskirts of St. Petersburg, Russia - one for children and one for adults.