Orphans

Yesterday I went to an orphanage with Funmi, my colleague at ESSPIN. They were having their Christmas party. The orphanage is on the same site as the school and children from the school were there too. There are 13 orphans who have been rescued from rubbish dumps and the streets. The youngest is about 5 months. They are cared for and now thriving better but sleep in two rooms and have very few toys to play with. The toys they received from Father Christmas were of the cheap plasic kind and not suitable for toddlers but they held onto them with grim desperation. They play with bits of metal and tyres and have no possessions of their own. The staff are quite poorly paid themselves. While I was there a baby called Peace was crying. He stopped when I picked him up but later it was clear he was hungry. He was born in May so is 7 months. He was fed by a woman who put the milky cereal they have in her hand and then tipped it into his mouth. When I questioned this technique I was told it was the most hygenic way as they had no facilities for cleaning bottle teats or feeding cups. They also seemed short of bibs. The children were dressed up for the party but had to give all the clothes back at the end and they were put in a big bag to keep them clean. The owner has done a lot for these children but said they desperately need clothes for when it gets colder and I think it would be great if they all had one cuddly toy each that was theirs to keep. If someone is reading this and wants to help me collect some new cuddly toys and clothes 6 months to about 8 years please let me know. I just can't walk away from this. In the room they share with 6 other babies and children there are two beds which they share. They have so little and when I think of the number of toys children have in England and they are making do with plastic sunglasses that snap, balloons and pencils that they are either too young for or can't use because they have no sharpener..........