Keep a Child Alive

Day 31 - Faith Renewed

The 17 years since the genocide in Rwanda have been a time of intense rebuilding for the country and its people.  Improvements in the health, education and economic sectors have enhanced the quality of life for many in Rwanda, whose capital city of Kigali bustles with activity.  But despite progress, the legacy of those 100 days continues to cast a shadow on the survivors, many of who still suffer trauma and pain from injuries suffered during the genocide.  Among those who survived the most extreme brutality are the women of Rwanda, who lived to see their husbands, fathers, brothers and sons killed before their eyes.  They survived unimaginable acts of violence to learn only later that their rapists had infected them with HIV.  There were those, too, who became pregnant through rape and were left to raise the children of their rapists, many children born with HIV.  

At the KCA-funded Centreville Clinic in Kigali, women receive AIDS treatment and surrounding care, including psycho-social support services to help them better cope with life.  And through the Ineza Women’s Cooperative, the women in the clinic’s care find the renewed courage and support they need to heal their once fragmented lives. 

In 2005, Ineza was started by a group of patients as a source of personal empowerment and economic development. Through education programs in design, sewing, management, computer skills and marketing, these patients learn valuable skills to help support themselves.  In addition, English classes are taught to enable the women to better communicate with customers and tourists that come to Ineza to purchase goods.  Ineza also organizes in-house healing workshops and train the women as peer counselors.  Every product that the Ineza women create is one-of-a-kind, and represents the strength and renewal of female survivors of the 1994 genocide.

One such survivor is Faith, who joined Ineza with no sewing skills.  At age 49, she is now well-versed in sewing, and is proud that this skill makes it possible for her to provide for the nine children in her care. Faith has become so skilled that she now also designs and sews clothing for herself and her children at home!

According to Faith, Ineza not only provides a source of much-needed economic independence, but the communal support system that fosters emotional healing.  The strength and determination of Faith and all the women of the Ineza Women’s Cooperative in the face of overwhelming loss and tragedy demonstrate fully the beauty and triumph of the human spirit.  Today, Faith feels empowered, independent and confident to once again be a leader in the community.  At her church, she sings in the choir and is a part-time preacher!

With 25 patient members now, the Ineza Women’s Cooperative seeks to grow its manufacturing capacity, product diversity and staff numbers.  Keep a Child Alive is dedicated to helping our patients at the Centreville Clinic attain self-sufficiency and the ability to care for their families that they all desire.

This is why we do what we do at Keep a Child Alive. Text BUYLIFE to 90999 to give $10 to help us continue these inspirational stories of hope, love and strength.

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Day 30 - Sifiso: A Father with a Future

The statistics associated with HIV in the world today are unbelievable – 33 million people infected with the virus, 30 million people dead and 16 million orphaned.  But when you meet just one of those 33 million infected, you are changed because it’s no longer a statistic but a person and their life. KCA’s Louise O’Shea shares her daily inspiration with us:

 

I first heard Sifiso’s story when I was in South Africa in January 2010 with our KCA College PSA winners on a home-based care visit to some patients from the Blue Roof. I have been fortunate enough to spend some time at our Blue Roof Wellness Center and every minute there I absolutely cherish the work we do as I have the opportunity to meet the people whose lives are changed. Home-based care visits are particularly valuable as care takers reach patients who are too ill to travel to the clinic and ensure they receive the treatment and care they need to survive – and the patients I’ve visited love to see a familiar face and have a hug.

Sifiso Xulu first came to the Blue Roof with a CD4 count of 15.8, violently ill and had no hope of living. To give you an idea, a normal CD4 count can be anywhere from 500-1500. Immediately starting on ARV treatment, his CD4 count began to rise and this father was coming back to life for his children. After his positive diagnosis of HIV, the mother of Sifiso’s children left him with 3 children under the age of 6. Unfortunately, as HIV weakens your immune system, it opens opportunities for other infections to attack your body until you’re back to full health and in 2008, Sifiso was diagnosed with spinal TB and was hospitalized for a long time and confined to a wheelchair.

When I traveled with Thulani, the Blue Roof’s driver, he said he wanted to introduce me to a friend at the end of our home-based care visits. He told me this story and said to me ‘’Mama, he is not in very good shape and isn’t walking yet but you’ll love his children and I want you to meet him.’’ So we parked the van outside of the house and as we closed the doors, this beautiful face emerged from the home walking on crutches with his 3 children running around him. Thulani covered his mouth and was speechless.

I went back to see Sifiso in February 2011 and once again, he came out of his home waving. I cannot explain the joy that moment gave me - to see someone coming back to life and able to be a father again. He welcomed me inside and told me his CD4 count is at 461! He was so proud. With 3 young children at home, Sifiso knew his time was not up and says that he owes his life to his family, especially his mother and the Blue Roof workers who have supported him over the years with help and love. He is now able to travel to the Blue Roof for his medication and check-ups and is waiting for an operation so that he can fully walk again without crutches. Sifiso Xulu’s life has been changed from the Blue Roof Wellness Center with the love, treatment and support the staff offers.

Sifiso is another reason why we do what we do at Keep a Child Alive. Text BUYLIFE to 90999 to give $10 to help us continue these inspirational stories of hope, love and strength.

See all of our Daily Inspirations.

Day 29 - Lisimba: No Love at Home, No Place to Go

The staff at our Family Care Clinic (FCC) in Mombasa, Kenya, first met Lisimba* in June 2006 when she was just 14 years old.   Her mother was HIV-positive, so they agreed that Lisimba should be tested as well.  When Lisimba’s test results confirmed she was positive for HIV, she went through intensive counseling and then started on ARVs.

Lisimba responded positively to the HIV treatment and the accompanying counseling she received at FCC, but her home life was growing increasingly more unbearable.  She had been born to a single mother who later married and gave birth to three more children — all HIV-free thanks to PMTCT interventions. Lisimba was treated badly by her family because she had HIV.  Her stepfather, in particular, used any small mistake she made at home as an opportunity to throw her HIV status in her face, condemn her actions and cause her grief.  Lisimba became seriously depressed as the situation at home continued to degenerate.

Lisimba had been an active participant in FCC treatment and counseling programs for four years, including our adolescent post-test club, so it was a surprise to everyone at the clinic when she stopped coming to in June 2010.  When the staff asked her family why Lisimba was no longer attending the program at the clinic, they were told that she had disappeared — without a trace.

More than six months passed without any word from Lisimba and then, on January 31, 2011, she appeared at the clinic with her mother.  We learned from her that things had become terrible at home that she couldn’t bear it any longer.  She fled to Tanzania in search of her father, whom she had hoped would somehow offer her a better life than the one she was leaving behind.  In Tanzania, Lisimba quickly ran out of money.  With no place to stay and nobody to turn to for help, Lisimba was at the mercy of the streets.  Naïve in the extreme, she was quickly and routinely taken advantage of by men and soon became pregnant. Lisimba knew that she could not survive with a baby living as she was and determined she had no choice but to return home to Mombasa.   The clinic was thrilled to see Lisimba, despite her poor condition, and immediately counseled her on the options available to her.  She restarted her ARVs and enrolled in our PMTCT program.

Today, Lisimba is 5 months into her pregnancy. Although she is under the care of FCC, she still has little other support, which is so frequently the case for young people living with HIV/AIDS.  With no job and having abandoned education, her future is unclear. Life, already a significant challenge for Lisimba in the years we have known her, will be even more difficult once the baby comes.  The Family Care Clinic will be there to support their care, hoping with all our hearts that her child be born free from HIV.

Lisimba is why we do what we do at Keep a Child Alive. Text BUYLIFE to 90999 to give $10 to help us continue these inspirational stories of hope, love and strength.

*Name changed to protect anonymity

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Day 28 - ARVs + Food = Life

Meet Kwagala at Alive Medical Services, who’s name fittingly means “love.”  As one of 30 dedicated staff members at the 24-hour clinic in Uganda, she takes loving care of the clinic and heads the group of women who pack the food for Nutrition Day every month. The Nutrition program at Alive provides monthly food parcels to more than 1,000 of the clinic’s poorest patients, whose families would otherwise go hungry.

Situated in one of the poorest urban areas in Uganda, Alive Medical Services is witness to the extreme poverty that many of its patients live in, where people go days - even weeks - without food and basic nutrition, and whose well-being hinges on often unreliable work for little income. One of the most essential, yet often overlooked components of successful HIV/AIDS treatment that Alive Medical Services provides is nutritional support.  AIDS treatment cannot succeed in the absence of proper nutrition, and a majority of the clinic’s patients need nutritional support to feed themselves and their families. 
 
The clinic hosts two “Nutrition Days” every month to distribute all the food parcels to AMS patients.  “Nutrition Days” are serious business at Alive Medical Services, where we know ARVs + Food = Life.

This is why we do what we do at Keep a Child Alive. Text BUYLIFE to 90999 to give $10 to help us continue these inspirational stories of hope, love and strength.

See all of our Daily Inspirations.

Day 27 - Santosh: Getting Stronger Every Day

Just under a year ago, three-year-old Santosh came to the Living India Home of Hope in Chandrakal.  He was frail, under-nourished and severely under-weight.  His physical and emotional health was poor, with a low T-cell count and a pure disinterest in engaging with the other children in the home.  He would walk around with his head held down, shuffling his feet.  Santosh is like many HIV+ children in India, exposed to such extreme neglect and trauma, that they do not know how to emotionally connect with others.

With each new day at the Home of Hope, he became stronger and more alert, and over time he began to take longer strides, and hold his head up when walking across his new Home.  He has learned that he is a part of a new family, one that loves and cares for him. He sits on the sidelines while the other boys play soccer waiting patiently until one of the older boys reaches out and welcomes him into the game. He is still grappling with the “no hands” concept, but the others encourage him to play just the same. he loves to play with one of the older children, Raj Kumar, who sits with him at every meal and takes his hand whenever all the children go out to play.  And when the children travel to Hyderabad every month to visit the doctor and receive their ARVs, Santosh is a permanent fixture next to his new brother Banu on the bus trek to the city.

Keep a Child Alive is proud to support the work of the Living India Home of Hope, whose passionate and committed caretakers have helped transform Santosh’s fragility completely into vitality. His health has stabilized and he is attending school and learning how to read and write in his native language, Telugu.

Santosh and the 59 other children in Living India’s care are why we do what we do at Keep a Child Alive. Text BUYLIFE to 90999 to give $10 to help us continue these inspirational stories of hope, love and strength.

See all of our Daily Inspirations.

Day 26 - Sandile: The First of Thousands

Sandile has been a part of Ikageng Itireleng AIDS Ministry since the beginning.  Founded by Mum Carol Dyantyi in 2002, Ikageng today provides the basic necessities for more than 1500 children living in child-headed households in Soweto, South Africa - including food, clothing, water, electricity, school fees, healthcare and transport.

When Sandile was only 14 years old, he lost both his parents to HIV/AIDS. In the last year of his mother’s life, she only received a monthly disability grant, and it was a battle for his family to survive.  With only $75 a month - this was not enough for food, water and lights, and Sandile and his two siblings could not afford to attend school.  Mum Carol heard about Sandile and his siblings through a family friend and came to the rescue. Sandile’s mom passed away a week after they had met Mum Carol. Mum Carol helped arrange for a proper burial and for Sandile and his siblings to return to school.

Sandile’s story was covered by media around the country.  Many people in South Africa still do not understand HIV/AIDS, and this led to Sandile feeling judged by his peers and neighbors. People could not differentiate between infected and affected - they thought that Sandile and his siblings where infected with HIV too. This cut deep.  Friends and people distanced themselves. With the support of Keep a Child Alive and Ikageng, Sandile worked hard to complete high school.  He then proceeded on to College to complete a Diploma in Information Technology, and he was offered an internship with PricewaterhouseCoopers.  He started to study for a BSC Informatics degree in university, which he is still working towards completing.

Sandile has the uncanny ability to change lives.  He has already made an invaluable impact in the lives of his peers, and will continue to do so.  His passion for music and dance brought him to be the manager of the locally-acclaimed dance crew “Soweto’s Finest.”  He helped them to perform at the opening and closing ceremony of the 2010 FIFA World Cup – and earn the title of “Best Dance Crew in Africa”.  He is a sensational soccer player, that he dreamed of taking on professionally, but now at age 26 has decided to focus his talents elsewhere.  He is currently the Director of RockBoiz Entertainment - an event management, marketing and artist management company.  His fearless ambition drives him to do more, and he believes that one day he will be successful one day and able to give back to the organizations that helped to raise him: Ikageng and Keep a Child Alive.

Sandile says, “I would like to thank the world for every cent or dollar that they have donated. This has helped me and thousands of other children. I appreciate your humanity. May God Bless you. Last but not least, a big thank you to Ikageng and Keep a Child Alive. I love you guys.”

Sandile and all the children running child-headed households in South Africa are why we do what we do at Keep a Child Alive. Text BUYLIFE to 90999 to give $10 to help us continue these inspirational stories of hope, love and strength.

See all of our Daily Inspirations.

Day 25 - Pasha: Finding Unconditional Love

When Pasha was only four years old, his father, an abusive alcoholic, died of AIDS.  After his death, Pasha and his mother were living with his uncle when she tested positive for HIV. When her status was revealed to the family, Pasha’s mother was confined to a single room in the neighborhood in an attempt to keep her illness “contained.” It was during this time that Pasha also fell ill and tested positive for HIV.

Family members reacted by throwing their belongings on the street, refusing to feed them and abandoning a penniless widow and her son in hopes that they would die and leave them in peace. In June of last year, Pasha’s mother passed away from AIDS.
   
Village leaders decided that it was Pasha’s uncle’s responsibility to care for the newly orphaned HIV+ child.  But Pasha’s uncle was unwilling to take him on, and so Pasha came to the Sahara Aalhad Care Home.  The underserved HIV+ population in Pune, India relies on Sahara for medicine, surrounding care, HIV/AIDS education, advocacy and support.  Keep a Child Alive supports Sahara’s efforts to assist HIV-infected people who have little to no access to treatment and nowhere to turn in the face of poverty, stigma and discrimination.

Upon arrival to Sahara, Pasha was immediately admitted to the Care Home.  Pasha’s health had deteriorated, and the doctors at Sahara initiated him on anti-retroviral treatment right away.  To everyone’s amazement, his condition improved rapidly.
   
Not only has his health improved, little Pasha is renewed with a love for life.  He has made friends at the home and is being treated for the trauma that he experienced through art therapy and regular visits with a psychologist. Today, life is full of fun and excitement for Pasha - he plays cricket with the other boys in the evening and is eager to begin school this summer. For the first time, Pasha is experiencing the unconditional love of a family, without fear of future abandonment.

Pasha is one of the many reasons why we do what we do at Keep a Child Alive. Text BUYLIFE to 90999 to give $10 to help us continue these inspirational stories of hope, love and strength.

See all of our Daily Inspirations.

Day 24 - Mikayla: Smiling for the First Time

Keep a Child Alive and Operation Bobbi Bear are both run by warrior women who believe in every child’s right to life, love and care.  Operating in Durban, South Africa, Bobbi Bear is a unique organization that rescues, heals and fights for sick and vulnerable children in South Africa.  Bobbi Bear gives a voice to the thousands of children it serves, many who have been silenced at the hands of abuse and neglect.

Mikayla is one of the newest children to join Bobbi Bear’s family.  Only three years old, Mikayla was left on the side of the road to die.  When Bobbi Bear rushed to the scene, it appeared that Mikayla’s parents had intended for her to be hit by a car, believing that no one would be willing or able to care for her in her condition.  Mikayla has cerebral palsy, and she is unable to walk, sit, or feed herself.  Bobbi Bear immediately took her home to their Place of Safety, where they continue to provide round-the-clock care for her today. 

Keep a Child Alive’s support for Bobbi Bear made it possible to hire an expert in special needs children to train the Child Safety Officers on how to properly care for Mikayla. Every day, the staff exercise her arms, legs and body and she has a special frame now that helps her to sit up throughout the day.

Today Mikayla, adorned with her specially-made little shoes, has begun to smile in acknowledgement of those close to her.  Having settled in well with her new family, Mikayla is given the love, attention and care that she not only needs - but that every child deserves.

Mikayla is another reason why we do what we do at Keep a Child Alive. Text BUYLIFE to 90999 to give $10 to help us continue these inspirational stories of hope, love and strength.

See all of our Daily Inspirations.

Day 23 - Aanchal: A Home to Call Their Own

The spirit of the RNP+ Aanchal Care Home in Jalore is one of love.  Located in rural Jalore, the orphan care home was established by the Rajasthan Network of People Living with HIV/AIDS (RNP+) to provide a safe haven for the most vulnerable children in the community.  Many of these children have lost their parents to AIDS, and their remaining family members are too poor or unwilling to care for them.  At the Aanchal Care Home, 28 children have found shelter, access to education, proper nutrition and medical care.

Intense stigma about HIV/AIDS still permeates the rural community where the Aanchal Care Home is located.  Therefore, when the Keep a Child Alive team visited the home at the end of last year, we met with the urgent need to re-house these children in a larger, more comfortable, secure home.  With the support of the District Collector, two properties were donated to RNP+ in a more secure location to be renovated for the new home.  And in the first week of May, the children moved into their new beautiful home!

The new home is more centrally located now to where the children attend school in Jalore.  The boys’ quarters are painted blue and green, and the girls’ quarters are pink and orange.  On May 6th, the District Collector cut the ribbon to mark the official opening of the new homes, and all the children ran in, their faces lit with joy.  They climbed up onto their brand new bunk beds, hugging and laughing with each other.  Others ran around outside and immediately started playing on the swings.  The new Aanchal Care Home is set up to allow all these children the chance to be kids again, something that they all deserve.

Keep a Child Alive is continuing to work with RNP+ to help address the stigma around HIV/AIDS that exists in the communities in which they work, to ensure that these children have a positive environment to grow up in.

This is why we do what we do at Keep a Child Alive. Text BUYLIFE to 90999 to give $10 to help us continue these inspirational stories of hope, love and strength.

See all of our Daily Inspirations.

Day 22 - Mubarak: A Leader for His Peers

At the Centreville Clinic in Rwanda, one of the many support programs offered is the peer-parent group. These groups are essential to our patients because they offer young, HIV-positive children the mentorship and guidance they need from the older “peer” patients.  They can share their stories with one another and be a shoulder to lean on, learning from each other that they are not alone in their struggles as teenagers and young adults living with HIV/AIDS. Mubarak, a peer-parent leader, is one of the inspirational peer parents of the program.
 
Before the death of his mother to AIDS, Mubarak hadn’t the slightest clue that he was HIV-positive. He was an active young man who worked hard and participated in the same activities as other boys his age.  Six months after his mother died, one of the remaining family members told Mubarak that he had HIV.  He learned that Mubarak’s mother kept the news from him all his life out of fear that he would have to leave their household, and no longer be there to help her care for his younger sister.
 
Mubarak feared for his life and felt that the opportunity to be healthy was taken from him.  Now the caretaker of his younger sister and still attending school, the news that he had HIV overtook Mubarak.  Although he was naturally brilliant and spoke eight languages, he was confronted by the stigma associated with HIV at school.  He longed to continue his education elsewhere, and his teachers assured him that they would help him to complete his studies abroad.   His hopes were later dashed when the teachers said study abroad was not possible for him because of his HIV status.  He told us, “Losing the chance to go there hurt me, it broke me, it broke my heart that having HIV is why I was losing my opportunity to continue my studies.” He contemplated suicide.
 
It wasn’t until he attended counseling sessions offered at the Centreville Clinic that his outlook changed: “The counseling showed me the opportunity to continue my studies.  Then I got the confidence to be an active man, to be confident in the way that men are who are not positive.” Today, Mubarak continues to gain esteem by sharing his experience and confidence with at risk youth in the peer-parent program.  “We share various ideas in order to have a bright future and to have a strong belief in ourselves… We try to make them understand that even if they are HIV-positive, they’re still alive - it is a miracle of God.” 
 
Mubarak knows that the issues facing teens and young adults with HIV/AIDS can be isolating – even crippling – to his generation.  After all the years spent rebuilding the country following the genocide, and the emphasis on education towards a better future for the country, opportunities exist for the youth of Rwanda today.  Mubarak and the other peer-parents at Centreville want to make sure that youth with HIV/AIDS are empowered by good health, confidence and have the support they need to take advantage of what’s out there with all their passion for life!

Mubarak and his fellow “peer-parents” at the Centreville Clinic in Rwanda is another reason why we do what we do at Keep a Child Alive. Text BUYLIFE to 90999 to give $10 to help us continue these inspirational stories of hope, love and strength.

See all of our Daily Inspirations.