Out Run EBOLA: awareness/protection for children

“Out Run Ebola: Awareness/Protection for Children”

February 2, 2018 

Happy New Year, everyone! 

* We received this little boy from the Women and Children Protection Section of a local Police Station on February 14, 2017. His parent (s) got tiered of caring for him and abandoned him at the Police Station. We took him for medical assessment and were told that nothing could be done for him in Liberia.

In December, the THINK Safe Homes received visitors from the United States and Canada, ladies that our Executive Directors grew up with in Monrovia. They started asking questions at the ELWA Hospital and THINK was informed that Surgeon Dr. Jerry Brown could perform the surgical procedure on the child. By the end of January, we received donations for his surgery, hospital stay and medications. His procedure was performed on February 2, 2018!

* Through our networking at coordination meetings, THINK learned of the case of another little boy, about 3 years old, who has a congenital deformity and has no sex organ but a hole on the lower part of his abdomen. Whenever his bladder is extended, the urine drains out of the hole, causing the child much pain. The child needed a place to stay in Monrovia while surgical assessment could be done and possible referral be made for him to go abroad. On March 23, 2017, the child and his grand mother were received from rural Liberia to stay at the THINK Safe Home while his assessment and other arrangements were being done.

In January, he received a visa to go to the United States of America for a series of plastic surgeries by an urologist. THINK is happy to be a part of helping this child and his family.

Thank you to caring people like you for bringing smiles on the faces of these sweet boys.

Progress Report:

• THINK Safe Homes received 23 new admissions: 12 SGBV cases, and 11 children in contact or conflict with the law.
• Age disaggregation: (0-5) = 2, (6-12) =15, (13-17) = 6, (>18) = 0 survivors. Four residents were taken for follow-up hospital visits, 21 received individual counseling, 21 participated in Group counseling, 0 survivors were reunified, and 5 follow up visits were made. The residents participated in creative arts, recreation, Health Talk, and educational activities.
• The Safe Homes had a very special day with friends of the UN Mission coming and bringing cooked meals (breakfast and lunch), providing dental and medical assessment of the survivors and playing games and having fun on November 4, 2017. The children had a blast and felt very special.
• The UN Women sponsored program called Rural Women Economic Empowerment (RWEE) has incorporated the Adolescent Girls’ program of THINK. We are now working in 12 communities (10 working with Market Women and 2 working with our Adolescent girls) training them and setting up Village Saving and Loan Associations (VSLA). In three months, the VSLAs will have their own savings associations in their communities and will also be able to open accounts with banking institutions near them.                 

As we have only two months to go until we end 2017, THINK is grateful to our donors who have remained with us over the years and welcomes new donors. You have helped to keep our doors open to serve.

Thank you!!