Many cancer patients from all over Romania come to the city of Cluj-Napoca for long treatments, not always having a place to stay for them and their families.

That is why Violeta Goron founded Casa Filip (Philip House) in 2016, a place that aims to be “accessible and beautiful”, where people with cancer “would be surrounded by help, support, love and care”, she told Romanian TV broadcaster Alfa Omega.

Everything started in 2015, when Goron was in the hospital with his husband Filip, who had cancer and died at 36, after an intense period of suffering. She met families who, in order to stay with their sick relatives, had to pay very much just for accommodation.

“We were thinking that if we helped 10 people in a year, let's rent an apartment and have them come and stay as long as they need. Somehow God surprised us and far exceeded what we were saying at the time and we were able to have one house”, recalled Goron.

From May 2018 to the present, 1,100 people have found in Casa Filip not only rest for their bodies, but also “a hand that God extends to you”, “a place where you can rest your thoughts, fears and soul”, and “people who surround you from the start with warmth and understanding”, former residents told Alfa Omega.

A new ‘Casa Filip’

After a long journey, a new Casa Filip was recently inaugurated. It has been a total investment of 1.2 million euros: 500,000 euros for buying the property and 700,000 for renovation and construction, “only from donations and sponsorships”, pointed out Goron.

“We made dozens of phone calls until we found the right people and companies who understood the project and wanted to support us”, she added.

The new building has 14 double rooms, so that the number of accommodation places has increased considerably, from 12 to 40 daily.

Filip's father, pastor Beniamin Farăgău, attended the inauguration and said a prayer of blessing for those who will benefit from the hospitality of the new Filip House.

“God has done so many miracles for us to be here today. All that Philip House stands for is a great miracle”, stressed Goron.