By Alka Subramanian | Executive Director
Who attends "Safe Park"? “Safe Park” is Power of Love’s community outreach program and is free and open to all children in the community of Matero, in Lusaka, Zambia. Most children in this community are vulnerable and/or orphaned; they live with extended families, grandmothers or older siblings and face hunger, disease, abuse and neglect. As a result, they need counseling, and their families’ information and counselling.
Stories of two typical children: Here are stories about two children impacted by this program.
Paul (name changed), a 15-year old, grew up in a home with very difficult circumstances. He was traumatized as his stepmom mistreated and denied him food. In addition, his parents fought constantly when he was growing up, so he perceived fighting to be normal in a home. When Paul enrolled in “Safe Park”, our child and youth care workers noticed unusual behavior, gathered information about his family background, and counselled Paul. His family was encouraged to move Paul to his grandparents’ home. Since this move, Paul is better adjusted and is back in school. He is a hard-working young man and wants to volunteer in this program. For the last few months, Paul has been assigned the job of organizing the children into groups depending on their age. He is excited to be chosen as a leader and has started helping regularly. One of the outcomes of participation in “Safe Park” games is that children, like Paul, gain self-confidence especially after they are given leadership roles.
Robert is a fifth grader, and an orphan. He lives with his uncle and is a loner. When he started attending “Safe Park”, he was not enthusiastic in participating in activities or playing games. Our health care team noticed this behavior, which is unusual for a fifth grader, and provided him with counselling and support. After a few weeks, Robert became comfortable with his peers and now interacts well with family and friends. His uncle is happy with the support and advice provided by our team as this has helped Robert accept the loss of his parents. Robert is doing well at school.
Impact of Safe Park: During “Safe Park” activities impact hundreds of children like Paul and Robert, get help with schoolwork, learn about HIV prevention, and their families are referred to government clinics for counseling and testing for HIV, TB and cervical cancer. In addition, the children are happier as they get an opportunity to play, interact freely with other children, and mentor younger children. All program activities are designed to help the children learn life skills and to provide critical information (location of clinics for counseling) to family members. The result is a stronger and well-informed family and community.
Thank you for giving the gift of play to vulnerable children in Zambia.
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