Sponsored Child Scheme

Written by Sue Hayward | 27 May 2011

Over the past eleven years we have worked very hard at our Sponsored Child Scheme. We have always been delighted with the response and success of this scheme. We must now move on to the children who are living at the Happy House. The Happy House opened its doors to the first children in February 2010; now in August 2011 it is home to 54 children, whose ages range from 3 months to 13 years. There are so many reasons why these children need the love, care and safety of the Happy House. We have babies who were abandoned in the local hospital. Within hours of giving birth the Mother gets up and walks out leaving the baby behind. We have baby Harry who was found in a plastic bag on a rubbish tip in Malindi. We have brothers and sisters whose Mum died, the Dad went looking for work and never returned for them. We have children who have been orphaned and it is left to the Grandparents to take care of the family. These people are unable to provide for the needs of small children. It is not that these children are not loved it is the dire constraints of poverty that make it impossible for this older generation to provide. In Kenya there is no family allowance, old age pension or social benefits. Some of the girls at the Happy House have been raped either by a parent or in one case by school boys. So many reasons why we need to provide a happy loving environment for these, forgotten children.

Children coming to the Happy House will have little experience of family or any sense of belonging. To ensure they grow up with love and care, beyond that provided within the Happy House, each will have a ‘family’ of sponsors contributing to their upbringing materially and emotionally.

By making a monthly donation, sponsors will be helping to secure the future of the Happy House, thus giving ’their’ child a safe and loving home. They will also be giving their child a feeling of "family" of knowing that he or she has people who care beyond their immediate home.

Each group of sponsors will receive regular updates on their child and will be able to help them build happy memories of their childhood through letters and photographs about themselves, their own families and their lives. A memory box will be kept for each child, so when they are old enough to open their box they will know that someone does care, that they are not alone in this world. Sponsors are encouraged to come to Watamu to meet their sponsor child and to see for themselves how their child is thriving in the Happy House where nothing is more important than the individual welfare of each and every child. By building the Happy House Families, sponsors will also gain a feeling of community. We will, with their permission, put them in touch with each other. They can enjoy following the progress of their child together, making mutual decisions on gifts, and by taking letters and presents from the others when visiting Watamu, which may be out of reach for some. A group of sponsors will also ensure a continuity of care. Of course, circumstances change and sometimes sponsorship comes to an abrupt end. Our children will already have been through more in their little lives than anyone should have to endure in a lifetime, we want to do all we can to make sure that they will never feel alone or abandoned again. By giving each their own family of sponsors, if one member has to drop out the child's sense of loss will be cushioned by the care provided by the other family members.

Sponsorship is so rewarding for the child and the sponsor we want to make it memorable ... and to create memories that both will cherish for the rest of their lives.

Please set up a monthly standing order for £20. Regular updates and photographs will be sent of ‘your’ child. The child that you are saving from a life of poverty and despair. You will see your child grow to be a Happy healthy confident individual, who will hold their head high and be so proud to say 'I'm a Happy House Kid’

The monthly standing order doc can be downloaded via this link. 83.00 Kb. Please fill in the form and send it to your bank. If you would then please email Sue with all your details, name address, phone number email. amount and start date. We are grateful for any amount. If you require any further information please ring, Sue in Kenya on 00254726335215, or in the UK, Elizabeth Gomm on 07905130589 Please visit our Wish List you may wish to sponsor a child as a present for a loved one.