By Pam Amundsen | Project Leader
When rescued infants come to a New Life home, they frequently arrive malnourished or in need of serious medical attention. Oftentimes, a rescued infant is abandoned in a harsh environment that will affect whether or not that child survives and thrives in our care. Although we regularly receive infants that were abandoned in a stable environment, such as a hospitable room or on someone’s front doorstep, we have heard numerous narratives of babies being rescued from pit latrines, along riverbanks, from the bush, or out of a garbage dump. If left at night, infants can also suffer from hypothermia.
Because New Life Kilimani is a registered Medical Centre, we are able to provide on-going, quality treatment that literally brings new life to these rescued infants. But to offer this service we must have an unfettered supply of clean water. It affects the clothes and clean diapers that child will wear, the food he or she will eat, the treatment received, and his or her long-term, overall health. Indeed, many of the preventable and life-threatening illnesses that children receive in developing nations such as Kenya are a direct result of an infected water supply.
The little girl pictured above, Sadie, was born prematurely in a nearby hospital, but her mother absconded from the hospital room shortly after delivery. She was caught by police and put on probation, but repeatedly abandoned Sadie, eventually deciding to give her up for adoption.
By the time Baby Sadie arrived at New Life Kilimani, she was severely malnourished and still very underweight and unhealthy, with several other serious health issues. Within just one month, Sadie has made slow but steady progress and transformed before our eyes! Baby Sadie recently recovered from pneumonia, she has become a plump, healthy weight, and has begun respond to caregivers, giving her first smile just two days ago.
It’s babies like Sadie that remind us why we work so hard to raise money and to ask for people to cover the costs of our essential needs, like steady access to a clean water supply. Because without your help, we cannot provide the lifesaving, quality care that these rescued infants need. You make the difference; whether you give a lot or a bit, whether you tell the whole world or just one friend. We are able to witness the transformation of new life in babies like Sadie because you care and because you give.
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