The Daily Fight For Orphans

Randy Cohen, American writer and humorist once said, “There is a kind of virtue that lies not in extraordinary actions, not in saving poor orphans from burning buildings, but in steadfastly working for a world where orphans are not poor and buildings comply with decent fire codes.”, and it is that reason alone for which I sat down to speak with Mark A. Neidig Chief Development Officer and Lisa Vogt, Director, Internet Marketing at SOS Children's Villages – USA, who work to not only save the lives of orphans, but work to see that programs are established to prevent and lower the number of orphans worldwide.

All too often as an international community we seek to apply only a band-aid solution to a problem and while band aids are needed, they will not be enough to heal a gaping wound and if one never looks back to see that the wound is healing properly then we can never truly heal and recover from the situation. It is this same band-aid philosophy that is often applied to orphan children and the communities for which they live in, however we cannot just give them food and shelter and expect them to grow and prosper into successful adults, we must see that they are given more if we are to help brake this cycle.

SOS Children's Villages and their staff are working daily in the fight to see that the world's orphans receive the love and care that they deserve right now, but they look beyond today and towards tomorrow working to put programs into place that are more than a mere band-aid to growing population of world orphans.

“We don't just let them go, we sustain them…it's not just a quick fix…we meet the needs of the child and the community.”

SOS Children's Villages works in 132 countries around the world, aiding a quarter of a million children on a daily basis. 73,000 living in permanent SOS homes, of which SOS has set as a goal to increase to over 100,000 children in next 7 years. The children in SOS Children's Villages are given more than food, shelter and education; they are also given individual love and attention, something many have never known before.

“Each child deserves our care, every child deserves to have a loving home.”

SOS shared with me the story of John who was found by village director of SOS Children's Village Entebbe, Ruth Mutumba, SOS Children's Village Entebbe. John was only 4 years old and had already been abandoned once by his mother

“He could not talk, he had a very big stomach, and he had jiggers (parasitic insects that lay eggs under the skin) on his feet, hands, penis and mouth. They had really eaten him up and he was shaking like he had a fever. His house was made of mud and was a breeding ground for jiggers. The father didn't care – he didn't even know John's other name. It was as if everyone was waiting for John to die.”>

John didn't even want to talk when he arrived and no one knew if he really knew how, but after "Auntie Mary" nursed him to health both physically and mentally, John would finally be found starting to interact with the other children. However the road is long and hard, but with the love of everyone in his new family at SOS Children's Village John has not only hope but a smile on his face and laughter follows him. To learn more about the SOS Children's Villages in Uganda, click here. You can click on the Entebbe spot on the map to go to more information about the village.

When I asked Mark and Lisa what the biggest struggle they faced was the growing numbers of orphans for which our current world struggles was producing.

“The greatest obstacle we are facing is the rate at which children are losing a parent. …as those numbers increase we cannot move fast enough…we cannot accommodate enough…”.

SOS Children's Villages office slogan is, “One child at a time”, and it truly does only take one person to look at one child and help them to make a lasting difference. Thanks to organizations like this and all of those working on the ground in the daily struggle children around the world have hope. Remember it is not just one child at a time, but also one person at a time that can make a difference, and we can all be that one person for that one child!

Today concludes World Orphan Week, and while around the world people have taken the opportunity to learn more about the problems that plague millions of children around the globe. The ending of World Orphan Week, however is not too late to participate in SOS Children's Video Contest!  The full contest rules and all details can be found at www.WowUs.org.

Remember it's never too late to make a difference in a child's life!