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Saturday, November 13, 2010

MHF’s Special Gift to the Children with Special Needs

Hidden behind at the back of two big buildings of Kyaik Waing child care center (orphanage) is a special place for the children with special needs.  Even though it is located in Yangon, many people hardly notice about the place.  Fortunately, a couple of MHF team members have frequently visited the center since 2001.

The official name of the center is “Kyaik Waing Disabled Children Care Center” and it is located at the Kyaik Waing, near the 8th Mile Junction in Yangon.  The main purpose is to provide support for the children with special needs.  The main services offered at the center are: day care, health care, education, and physical therapy for the children.

There are about 24 children (10 boys and 14 girls) with special needs.  That includes a few months old baby to twenty plus old young adults.  The Center is run by the Government and supported by non-government organizations and individual donors.  It has 11 full-time staff lead by a principal.

Our MHF team member, who has visited the Center several times, shared his experience, “I looked around the room and everything was very minimal: a desk, a few chairs, and some baskets made by children; no computer, no air-condition.  While I was chit-chatting with the principal, some boys were sitting on the floor in the corridor.”

Dinning Room and For Boys
According to the principal, “Most of them are suffering from mental illness and consequently physically disabled.  Some of them were born normal, but suffered from occasional high fevers during early ages.  Consequently, they contracted polio and damaged their brains.  Some of them had trauma while they were babies and could not recovered from the shocks.  Some of the children had serious illness after birth.  The sad thing was that all of them were abandoned by their parents due to various reasons.  Nobody wants to adopt them either because of their conditions.”  In other words, these children were not accepted by the society.

Because the children are mentally challenged, they cannot attend a normal school.  Fortunately, the Center provides basic education for these children.  In terms of support, these children, particularly at the age up to 2, need medical attention.  Good health care services and facilities are definitely needed for the children with special needs at their earlier age.

“Compassion is important throughout the years,” says the principal.  She pointed toward across the road where another (normal) orphanage is located and said, “The goal of these street kids at the orphanage is just want to get out of there because there is no enough care-givers to give them individual attention to everyone.”  “Social needs (friendly social environment) at early childhood up to 5 are also very important,” she added.

For Girls
 For most other children with special needs (not mentally challenged), like herself when she was young, their “goal is to get educated.”  But, many of them had to “grow up in bad environment.  So, there is no motivation to try further and to find opportunity.”  She herself took a different path and went to workers’ college.  Up until 2005, there was no such thing as “inclusive education.”  She said that most schools “do not want to accept children with special needs” because they do not want extra burdens.

When asked about some other difficulties faced by the children with special needs, she said “Poor economic conditions, knowledge, and awareness.”  In terms of needs, “mobility” is important for them, but of course “different people have different needs.”

Water Tower
Government-funded facilities, like this, for the children with special needs are limited.  There are 7 blind schools and 2 deaf schools nation-wide, according to her.   For a nation of 56 million people, there is just one school for disabled children like this Center, one vocational training centre for adults, and one rehabilitation centre – all in the commercial capital, Yangon.

When a MHF team member visited the Center again in June 2010, he asked the new principal about any immediate support that the Center is needed.  The principal shared the recent development at the Center.  Basically, the Center is expanding and will accept about 70 additional children with special needs.  In other words, the Center will soon to accommodate about 100 children with special needs, meaning more infrastructures need to be developed.  In fact, there was a new construction going on in the compound.  Among various needs, MHF had decided to donate funds for the construction of a 600 gallon (12 feet 9 inches high, concrete-reinforced) water tank/tower.  The estimated total cost was 1,384,000 kyats. 

At the time of donation to the Center in September 2010, a MHF team member donated total amount of 1,387,000 kyats to the principal for the children with special needs and said goodbye to the children.  The principal expressed her sincere gratitude to the MHF and its donors and gave a certificate for the donation.

That was truly a special gift from the MHF to the children with special needs.  Thank you all for your continued support and generosity.  You are the true heroes for the children with special needs.

Thursday, November 11, 2010

Moegyo donated $500 to help Cyclone Giri victims

The Moegyo team donated $500 to help Cyclone Giri victims through the Buddhist Missionary Society Inc. in New York.

According to the statement issued by the Buddhist Missionary Society Inc., the Cyclone Giri  devastated large parts of Arakan state in Burma, including Sittwe, Minbya, Myebon, Pauktaw and Kyauk Phyu, over 93 people have died and many are still missing. The loss of human life and damage caused by tragedy is expected to be higher. With their homes fade away and large tracts of land under dust, more than 175,000  survivors — mostly poor rice farmers — are living in misery, now facing disease and starvation. Immediate relief assistance is still urgently needed by thousands of victims devasted by the Cyclone Giri on October 22, 2010. Their team has launched life-saving efforts to provide relief through a strong network of monasteries and local based communities who have been in the forefront of the efforts to enhance shelters, feeding and supporting the victims of the cyclone.

The Buddhist Missionary Society Inc. aims to provide both immediate relief and long-term rehabilitation. As immediate efforts, they are now providing 10,000 kgs rice and relief materials to the most vulnerable populations in the worse areas in Arakan State.

To make a donation to help the cyclone victims in Arakan, please contact the the Buddhist Missionary Society Inc. at the following address:

Buddhist Missionary Society Inc.
35-25 90th Street, #2R
Jackson Heights, NY 11372, USA
Tel: (718)898-8274
Email: nayaka@bmsusa.org
http://www.bmsusa.org

Monday, November 8, 2010

Myitta Kyaemon Care Center

Moegyo donated $500 for rice distribution at Myittar Kyay Mon center, a Day-care center for people living with HIV/AIDS ( PLHA ), located in Kyaik Khami in Mon State. It is managed by nuns from a Christian Catholic Church. The center currently needs rice to be distributed to the PLHA Families in the village as well as to feed the patients at their daycare center. The rice is needed until the end of this year as they are seeking funding from an NGO and are quite hopeful that they will get it for next year. Below is the center info.

Name of Center : Myitta Kyaemon (Mirror of Charity)
Location : Than Phyu Zayet Township, Mon State
Client population : People living in HIV/AIDS ( PLHA )
Services provided : Day Care, Health care & Rice distribution to patients
Number of patients at center : 25 ( 10 children & 15 Adults )
Number of PLHA families supported by center : 50 Families ( 178 people )
CURRENT NEED : Rice for PLHA Families and at the center
RICE NEEDED per month : 37 Bags ( 56 Tinn )
COST per month : 5 Lakhs
TOTAL COST till end of December : 20 lakhs ( Sep - Dec )

Please click on this link to see the photos.


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