Forever Angels : Amy's Diary

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Saturday, March 28, 2009- Bits and Bobs

Well it has been another busy week at the Baby Home.

We went from 50 children to 47 - it is unusual for numbers to go down! Jessica went home with her new Foster Mum - Carol, and Joseph and Mwita went to their new home - Tumaini Orphanage. It was very emotional saying goodbye to these boys and it was so hard after caring for them for 2 years....we wish them well in this new chapter of their lives....and miss them so much already.

INTERESTED VOLUNTEERS?

Due to a last minute cancellation - I have a volunteer opportunity from May through to the end of July if anyone is interested in volunteering?
Please email me on amy@foreverangels.org

ALL FUTURE VOLUNTEERS

We have now made a 'Volunteer Photo Board' at the Baby Home. We already have photos of all the children and staff on the walls - but we have never had any of the Volunteers. Please could all future volunteers bring a nice, close up 'face' photo of themselves to add to our 'Volunteer Wall' please?.......and if you don't - I will take one of you on your first day here and it may not be the snapshot you want glaring down at you for your entire volunteer experience!

CARDS

Please take a look at our 'Forever Angels' cards and place your orders soon from the link on our 'Support Us' section of our website.

THANK YOU

Thank you to everyone buying or donating goods to be shipped out to the Baby Home in a container in June - we are so greatful for your support. If anyone has got any unwanted children's toys or books or equipment - we would love to have them. Please contact amy@foreverangels.org

FAMILY SUPPORT

Thank you to those sponsors who are helping to fund our 'Family Support' Projects.
This week we have helped 3 families.....

Baba Haji is setting up his own 'Hair Salon'. Chloe is helping him to do this so that he can make some more money. He has a job at the Baby Home but he is paying for his 2 other sons to go to school so needs more income to support Haji in the future. He is now taking Haji home for day outings and next week he will start staying overnight at his Dad's house. In July Baba Haji plans to take Haji home permenantly which will be wonderful.

Baba Juma came to visit which his other daughter - Modesta - who is 13 and has severe Cerebal Palsy. Baba Juma was asking for help as Modesta is incontinent and so the matteress the family sleep on is now spoiled. We gave him some washable 'nappies' for Modesta, a new matteress for the family and a potty which she may be able to use. We also gave him soap, new clothes and washing powder as he is struggling to keep Modesta clean and smelling good due to a lack of toileting facilities for her. He was thrilled with this support and we hope that it will make life a little easier for Modesta and her Dad.
Just seeing this man care for his daughter makes me cry. He is doing such a wonderful job with her - with no money and no help whatsoever. And now he has to come to terms with the fact that Juma also has severe special needs and will probably never be able to 'function' in soceity alone.
I want all of our children to one day return to their families - but I honestly have NO idea how this family will cope with two such needy children?

Baba Mathias wants to take Mathias home but he has no work and is not educated enough to cope with most jobs. He already has 4 children at home and they do not have enough to eat. Baba Mathias lives in a very remote village with no shops or facilities for many miles. We have bought him a bicycle and given him some money so that he is able to buy charcoal and vegetables from town and bring them back to his village to sell. He was VERY happy about this and if all goes to plan - and he makes anough regular income - he will take Mathias home in June.

Helping these families does not cost very much - sometimes as little as £10, sometimes up to £200 - but if it means that they can start a business and improve the quality of their lives so they can take home their children in the future - it is a GREAT investment for Forever Angels. If you woudl like to contribute to the 'Familky Support' Programme - please email:
family@foreverangels.org

Posted @ 7:56 PM

Wednesday, March 25, 2009- Another Angel Finds a Family...

Today was a very happy day at Forever Angels as another one of our wonderful children has gone home to a loving family.

Jessica arrived at Forever Angels last year as a very malnourished little girl. From the very beginning she was a happy little thing though - always full of smiles and laughter.....

....and today she REALLY has something to smile about. This afternoon Jessica went home to her new Foster Mum - Carol Newman. We wish them all the happiness in the world and know that Jessica will be extremely happy and well loved. Congratulations!

Jessica with her new Mummy - Carol

Posted @ 6:52 PM

Saturday, March 21, 2009- Growing big.....too fast.

This week we have had to make some important decisions about the children at Forever Angels. As I mentioned recently - we are now full. We have 50 children in our care.

But the need for a Baby Home in Mwanza does not stop.

There are still mothers dying in childbirth and there are still babies being abandoned on the roadside every month.

These babies usually end up at the main Government Hospital and unless I go to take them food....they inevitably starve, get sick and die. This has not happened since Forever Angels opened as we have taken all these needy children into our care.

But now we are full we are going to start having dilemas..... We can't keep taking these babies in - we just do not have the funds to care for them all. And yet I can't knowingly not take them in and leave them to die.

Our only option right now - is to try to find alternative homes for the older children in our care to make space for more needy, younger children.

For the 2 year olds who have family alive - we need to start making plans for them to return home to their relatives. Mariam, Davey, Haji, Seba and Omari are all in this category of children who should soon be going home to their families.

And for the abandoned children who will not be adopted in the next couple of months (or adopted at all which is the sad case for most of our older children) then we have to find more permenant Children's Homes for them to be transferred to. Our ideal situation is to find a foster/adoptive family - but the process is just SO long that most people who apply to adopt get disheartened. So - we have to place our oldest children in another orphanage. Somewhere where they can grow up, go to school, have friends their own age and not live amongst babies.

Mwita Joseph

That said - next week, Joseph and Mwita, our 2 oldest children will be transferred to Tumaini an Oprhanage for older children on the edge of Lake Victoria. They currenlty have 47 children in their care ranging from 2 to 13 years of age. But they do have the facilities to care for children up to 18 years and are in the process of making plans about what happens when their children get older.

I have tried to think of different solutions, and even contemplated fostering these two boys myself....but that is also not a workable solution every time a child at Forever Angels reaches 5 years! (as my husband keeps pointing out to me!)

Apart from Joseph and Mwita - our next oldest children are all only 3 years old so we DO have two more years to try to make a plan for them. We will try our hardest to find adoptive families for them, but I am also in the process of writing a proposal to open 'Forever Angels Foster Homes'.....a small scale project involving one of our Carers at the Baby Home living with a few of our older children in a local house and bringing them up as if they are her own children. We will pay her salary and provide food and schooling for the children - but the children will grow up in a 'family' and not in an orphanage setting. This is still in its 'idea stage' and will not happen for some time - so it is too late for this to work with Joseph and Mwita.

Mwita and Joseph busy at the Baby Home

People (Volunteers, Visitors, Sponsors...even strangers) keep telling me how sad they are that boys like Joseph and Mwita have to leave. People keep asking me if they can take them, adopt them, fly them to far off countries so they can have a family. If this was possible - we would be doing it. The adoption / fostering laws are so strict here that it just isn't a possibility....any decision which is made takes at least 6 months - usually more like 2 years.

Being transferred to another Orphanage is their only option right now and I seem to always be the one who rationalises why it is a good idea. Of course it is sad. I have cared for these boys for 2 years! We have literally saved Mwita's life. I am devestated to say goodbye to them and see them leave. But I am also not a miracle worker. We can not pave out a perfect life for every child in our care. We can simply do our best and that is what we are doing at Forever Angels. We have literally saved Mwita's life and made him into a loving, kind and happy little boy. When he came to us - we were bringing him home to die.

Mwita on arrival at Forever Angels

Mwita is now the healthiest, most loving and caring boy I know.

And we have helped Joseph to develop intellectually and personally and is now one of the cleverest, most lovable and confident 5 year olds I have ever met! EVERYONE who comes to Forever Angels falls in love with Joseph.

What I am starting to learn is that we can not predict these children's futures - we can not even do any more to make sure these boys are going to be ok.....but we have done our best for them and we have helped to mould two wonderful little boys.

If I had my way - Joseph woud be the next Prime Minister of Tanznaia.....and Mwita would be a pioneering Doctor. But I don't think I will get my way somehow?

We took Joseph and Mwita to visit Tumaini last week so they know what their new house will be like and they get used to the idea of leaving Forever Angels. They are both extremely excited! They will be sleeping in bunk beds, there is a huge slide and climbing frame for them to play on, they have a whole heap of farm animals to look at, and lots of new friends to play with as well as the chance to go to school.

For 5 year old boys - these things are exciting and so they are both very happy about leaving Forever Angels. Joseph asks me every day when he is going and when his 'Happy Birthday' will be. (He means - when will he have his 'Leaving party'! We have a party for the children when they leave and they get cake - so this is now associated with a Birthday Party!)

I encourage Joseph and Mwita daily and make their move sound as exciting as I possibly can...whilst inside crying silent tears that we have not managed to find families for these little boys and have to live with the fear that they will be in institutions for their entire lives. (On a happy note - there are adoptive families hoping to adopt both Mwita and Joseph - but this will not happen for many months and so for now, we have no option but to move them and hope that the adoptions will go ahead from Tumaini Orphanage.

Now we are full with 50 babies - I have to keep telling myself - Forever Angels is a INTERIM care home. Our goal is to care for babies and toddlers who have no one else to care for them....'until a more permenant home can be found'. Somedays I have to remind myself of this 'mission statement' and tell myself that we HAVE done good things with these boys.

I know they will be happy at Tumaini - it is a lovely place with wonderful Management .... but after seeing Mwita and Joseph grow into two amazing little boys over the last few years - I WILL be heartbroken to be saying goodbye.

When people ask me how many children I have - I say 54. I have 4 who live with me as my own children - but I have 50 others who I adore and love and care about so much. When they are sick, I worry and do not sleep. When they are scared, I try to soothe them. When they are happy - I laugh with them. They are my responsibility and I think of each and every one as my child.

So saying goodbye to Mwita and Joseph is not a 'happy thing' and I am not heartless to be making it happen. I simply have to run Forever Angels as it was intended. We care for babies and toddlers - we make them healthy and happy and then we pass them on. It isn't as heartless as it sounds....if Forever Angels was not here - for sure, neither would Mwita be!

So - on Thursday next week, Joseph and Mwita will pack their bags for the start of their new life. As I drive them to Tumaini and answer all their inquisitive questions with a big smile and excitement - a tear will be rolling down my cheek.

And then we will return home to Forever Angels and life goes on....waiting for a phone call to collect another desperately needy baby from the hospital in an attempt to also save their life.

Posted @ 8:02 PM

Friday, March 13, 2009- VERY CUTE Blank Greetings Cards FOR SALE

After the success of our Forever Angels Calenders and Christmas cards - we have decided to sell some Greetings Cards.

These cards are VERY cute and come in packs of 12 cards each with a different design on the front. All cards feature our Forever Angels children.

The cards are all blank inside so they can be used for all occasions.

They cost £5 for a pack of 12 cards and envelopes - plus £1 postage and packing per pack, (or £2 postage and packing if you live outside of England.)

Please buy these cards to help support Forever Angels and tell all your friends and family about them.

Email us at cards@foreverangels.org with your order, or use the online order form.

Posted @ 8:40 AM

Thursday, March 12, 2009- Volunteer Spaces....Assistant Managers, Sore legs and Containers...

Due to a cancellation - we have 2 volunteer spaces coming up very soon.

One is from May 2nd to June 3oth and the other is from May 1st to May 23rd.....if anyone is interested in volunteering with us during these dates - please email me at amy@foreverangels.org.

The Baby Home is running smoothly - despite having 50 children!

We had a mass immunisation day on Monday where a nurse came to the Baby Home to give the children their required rountine childhood vaccinations rather than us having to take them 3 or 4 at a time into town to the clinic....so we did have 21 grumpy children on Tuesday with sore legs!

I am thrilled to announce that we have just interviewed 8 staff members for the position of 'Assistant Manager Trainee' and yesterday we appointed 2 wonderful staff members - Josephine and Lilian who will begin the Assiatant Manager Training Programme in April.

We were initially going to appoint 4 staff members for this programme - but Josephine and Lilian stood out SO much above all the other candidates that we have decided to start training just these 2 now - and we will advertise the position again in 6 months or so.
We are all very excited to have these two dedicated and loving staff members as part of our Management Team.

Tumaini has been sick with pneumonia this week, as has my own little girl, Leila. Leila is now back to her normal happy sef, and Tumaini is slowly getting there.

We took one of our new children - Ernest - to the hospital last week as he has severe malnutrition and his posture is very strange. He can not sit straight and he is not able to straighten his legs. It appears that he has severe scholosis of the spine - the worst case our Doctor had ever seen in a child so young. It is so sad that such an illness has virtually no treatment plan here in Mwanza due to a lack of facilites.
We also discovered that Ernest is not 2 years old like we initially thought - but 3 and a half! This makes him one of the most malnourished children I have ever seen...he weighs only 5.6kg and is such a sad little thing....though he has started giving 'high fives'!

We are going to ship a container out to Mwanza from the UK in the next couple of months which is very exciting.
We are needing a whole range of items - but highest on our list is the following items. If you have any of these at home which are not being used - or you would like to support us by purchasing any of these items we would be MOST greatful.
The goods will all be stored in my Mum's house in Cheshire until the container is ready to be shipped....sorry Mum!

Our wishlist:

* Outdoor plastic toys - slides, swings, seasaws, ride on cars, play houses etc
* Indoor toys - duplo, stickle bricks, large plastic animals, dressing up clothes, tea sets, cars, wooden train set
* Baby care goods - wetwipes, changing mats, nappies, nappy sacks, cotton wool, nappy liners, baby oil, shampoo,
* Fitted cot sheets
* Moses baskets
* Books - bath books, soft material books or board books (not really paper books)
* Art and Craft material - paper, construction paper, crepe paper, glue, power paint, glitter, body paint, sequins, feathers etc

....and I am SURE the list will keep growing.

Any support you can give will be MOST welcome.
Please email me for more details.

Posted @ 8:48 AM

Saturday, March 07, 2009- Multiples of 10.....

Yesterday we had a 'Multiples of 10' day.

It was my 30th birthday (though I have to admit most days I do feel SO much older!!)

And we received a new baby making 50 babies currently being cared for at the Baby Home!!

This is the most children we have ever had - and to be honest - the most we ever hope to have! We have about 4 children who could be returned home to their extended families very soon, so I am going to chase this up with Social Welfare next week.
And we DO have a few adoptions in the pipeline....but even so - the speed at which children come IN to the Baby Home is MUCH faster than the speed they go OUT and this is a problem which is hard to address.

I am going to try to get my staff to go to their churches and talk about adoption as this could encourage some more Tanzanian families to adopt our children.

And I am planning a 'Stage 2' right now which I need to speak to Social Welfare about. Mwita and Joseph are both too old for the Baby Home and should be transferred to another Orphanage very soon. But the Orphanages in Mwanza are either not nice - or way too full.
We are thinking of maybe starting a 'Foster Family' project, where we rent a local house in the village and pay a 'Foster Mum' to live there and care for a few of our older children. We will still pay for their care and schooling - but they will become part of a community. This is very important as the children get older.

Anyhow - it is just an idea right now - but something we need to investigate.

We are noticing that MANY sponsors are stopping their monthly payments to the Baby Home and we are getting quite worried. We always hoped to have at least one years running costs in the bank - but we currently have less than 6 months. I know there is worldwide money struggles - but it hits no one harder than those who are already living in poverty - the people in Developing Countries like Tanzania.

If everyone who reads this can persuade just one friend or family member to set up a Standing Order to Sponsor a Child at Forever Angels - even for as little as £5 a month - we would get the reassurance that we can continue to run Forever Angels as the beautiful home it currently is.
If we do not start to get more sponsors and income....we will have to make many cutbacks and the children at Forever Angels will suffer.
Please - ask around and convince as many people as you can to set up a Monthly Sponsorship.

Thank you.

Posted @ 7:54 PM

Thursday, March 05, 2009- Goodbye Chloe and Thank you....

Yesterday morning - 3 years to the day that she first arrived - Chloe Grant, our Assistant Manager returned home to live in England.

Chloe is a HUGE PART of Forever Angels and she always will be. Without Chloe's hard work, dedication, passion and love for our babies - Forever Angels would not be the wonderful place it is today.

Chloe joined Forever Angels in March 2006 - before we even had any children! She has been an amazing Assistant Manager - and without her I could not have acheived all we have achieved in the last 3 years.

Chloe has been a MAJOR part of 81 children's lives at Forever Angels. ALL the children adore her and she knows everything there is to know about each child in our care (WAY more than I do!)

Chloe has seen 17 children return home to their families; 7 children adopted into new families; 3 children transferred to Older Children's Orphanages and sadly, watched 5 tiny babies die.

Chloe has slept in hospital to cradle sick babies, ventured to far off villages to find children's families, sat in Police Stations and Social Welfare for hours and hours on end, managed the Baby Home while I have been away...and every other task imaginable when it comes to running a Baby Home.

Chloe is one of the most dedicated people I know - generally working 12 hours a day, 6 days a week....and then nipping in on her day off for a quick cuddle!

Chloe will be severely missed at Forever Angels Baby Home. She has been an absolute marvel and has given me the opportunity to stay home at times with my own children - knowing that the Baby Home is in GREAT hands.

THANK YOU Chloe - thank you from the bottom of my heart for everything you have done. We will all miss you terribly and wish you well in your next venture.....whatever that may be.

Haji in particular misses you already ad sends you a big kiss.

Take care and DO keep in touch.

Thank you.....and Goodbye.

Posted @ 7:22 PM

Tuesday, March 03, 2009- Tiny Angels Opens!

On Sunday - Tiny Angels - our house for babies under 6 months of age - finally opened!

We have had a very busy few weeks building walls, making cupboards, painting murials and buying equipment....and finally, on Sunday - our 5 youngest babies moved in!

I'd like to say a HUGE 'Thank you' to some of the Isamilo School Teachers - Sian, Josie, Morgan and James for their AMAZING artwork in the new Tiny Angels House. And also to Jenny and Joey and to all my Volunteers.....thank you all so much - it really looks wonderful!

Here are a few pictures of Tiny Angels Baby Home....

Busy Painting....

The Playroom

The Kitchen

A Bedroom

The Living Area

A Bedroom

Imani in her new house - enjoying the peace and quiet!

Imani, Evie and Margaret chilling out in the Playroom!

On Sunday when we opened - there were 5 tiny babies in the new house....today there are 7 bringing our overall total to 49 children!

Welcome to our 2 newest angels - 3 week old Lilly and 6 month old Slivini.

Posted @ 8:04 PM

Monday, March 02, 2009- Maggie goes home!

Today was a wonderful day. Maggie (Magreth Nyanda) went home to her family to live with her Father and her 6 older sisters...and what a wonderful family they are!

Maggie came to the Baby Home exactly 2 years ago today, aged 2 weeks old. Magreth's Mum very sadly died in childbirth, leaving her Dad alone with 7 daughters and no job.

When Maggie first arrived - she was a tiny 1.6kg baby, she was sick and I wasn't hopeful she would survive.

But thankfully Maggie pulled through and grew into a beautiful, funny and exceptionally cute (if a tad naughty!) little girl.

We emplyed Maggie's Father at Forever Angels as an Askari over a year ago. He is a very dedicated and hardworking man and his work has meant that he can fully support his daughters and has managed to make improvements and extensions to his house in preparation for taking Maggie home.

Maggie's Father visits her every single day at the Baby Home during his work hours and some combination of her 6 sisters come to the Baby Home every single Saturday to spend the day with Maggie.

They are such wonderfully caring, polite and well behaved girls - it is clear that Maggie's Father is doing a great job with them all.

And today - Baba Maggie and 2 of Maggie's sisters came with me to Social Welfare where the Social Worker discharged Maggie back into their care. A VERY happy day for us all!

This is probably one of most positive and happy reunions we have at at the Baby Home.

Maggie situation is EXACTLY what Forever Angels was built for. Our initial goal was to support babies whose mothers had died in child birth until their families could care for them again. We estimated that this would be for about 2 years and during that time - we hoped that the family would come to visit their child at least once a month to maintain a relationship with them.

Maggie's family have shown us that our goal for Forever Angels DOES and CAN work. If Maggie had gone home with her father as a tiny 1.6kg baby - there is no doubt she would have died. If her Father had had to buy Baby Milk for her - there is no doubt that the rest of his daughters would have starved. Forever Angels has helped to save this little girl and, through giving her Father work, to help provide for an entire family.

So many people tell me I should be proud of what we have acheived here at Forever Angels Baby Home....but on a day to day basis, constantly solving problems and dealing with issues - it is difficult to feel proud.

But you know what - today I truly AM proud. THIS is what Forever Angels is about. We have given an entire family the ability to support themselves and we have given a little girl the best care, love and attention in her formative years that she could have received.

Maggie - I love you dearly and will miss your cheeky smile and clinging hugs - the Baby Home will NOT be the same without you. But I KNOW that you are SO dearly loved by your sisters and your father and I KNOW that you will have a wonderfully happy life.

Good luck to you all......(she can be a bit of a handful at time too!!)