Guess who's back?

Many of you have been supporters of The Small Things long enough to remember when our ‘boarding school kids’ were just tiny tots at the orphanage.  Stevie, Ericki, Dainess, Pendo, David and Ema are amongst The Small Things’ oldest kids.  When these children ‘graduated’ from the orphanage, The Small Things partnered with The Foundation for Tomorrow, and we were able to facilitate a boarding school education for these children – a great opportunity for kids who otherwise would have had no schooling and no guarantee of a stable home life.  Indeed, up until about ten years ago, children ‘aging out’ of Nkoaranga Orphanage would be sent back to homes or communities in which many were abused or neglected.  

  

We are proud and happy to say that boarding school is no longer the best we can do for these children, though.  These kids have just come back into the full custody of The Small Things, and we are able to send them to day school, which means that they can grow up in a family environment outside school hours.  These children will be moving into the Happy Family Children’s Village (help us fill these new homes with furniture!) with the Pilot House kids very soon, and we are so pleased that they will be returning to the community from which they came, to live with children and mamas they know and love.  Our (former) ‘boarding school kids’ will be attending DINKA School along with the Pilot House children and they are pretty excited about the prospect.   

 

Left to right: Andrea, Ericki, David, Pendo, Dainess and Stevie 

Top: Abdulli  Bottom: Ema

Additionally, the passage of time has seen a change to the circumstances of the families of some of these children.  A number of these kids now have a father or grandparents whose situations are such that they can care for their little one on weekends and/or school breaks.  This is particularly wonderful because family reunification, where it’s in the best interests of the child, is really what we are all about.  Of course, these families will often need a helping hand in the form of our outreach support, and where The Small Things is able to assist with school fees and the like, we are more than happy to do so, particularly if it means that a family can stay together.    

You may also recall our children, Andrea and Abdulli.  ‘What is the situation with these kids?’ we hear you ask.  Well, Andrea's family and sponsors have agreed that he will remain under the care of The Foundation for Tomorrow for the time being, and Abdulli will continue to be supported by The Small Things to live with his father and attend a special needs school.    

None of this could have happened without the ongoing generosity of our ‘boarding school kids’’ sponsors, and we are immensely grateful for this support.  But assuming full-time custody of our ‘boarding school kids’ necessarily means that it will cost us more to care for them.  The Small Things is currently looking for additional sponsors to help us cover the costs of the extra care we’re providing for these children.  If you would like to sponsor a child and watch them thrive in their new home, you can learn a little bit more about them here or you can contact us at sponsorship@thesmallthings.org  

 

Fund-a-Need items that will go to the Happy Family Children's Village

And, as a final note, with all these kids moving into the Happy Family Children’s Village, we are also looking to fill the new houses with furniture and other necessities.  You can help us create functional, happy homes for these kids by participating in our Spread the Love auction.  Click here to start bidding on fabulous jewelry, holidays, handcrafted Tanzanian goods and more!  Or purchase a piece of furniture that will go directly to our children’s village by going to the Fund-a-Need section of the auction’s website.  Thank you for the support!