'Her father, he die when she was little baby.' Tola explained. 'Her mother marry new man but he drink lots alcohol and beat mother. Then, mother taken by big floods and he start to hit little girl. She so sad and she cry all the time and run away.'

'How did she end up here?' I asked.

'Local person find her walking in streets. She very thin, very ill, crying all the time. Local person take her here and now she is safe.'

I looked across at the small figure sat in front of me. Her skinny, malnourished arms and legs crossed neatly in front of her, not even fidgeting as the flies landed on her bare feet and short black hair. Noticing my glance, Zeya grinned broadly at me and her dark brown eyes lit up. Even though her 8 years in this world had shown her nothing but suffering, she still managed to smile.

Duncan had told me some of the stories of the children Street Kids Rescue supports, but being here in Southeast Asia with 20 abandoned children staring up at me, the reality was far more distressing. All the children in the orphanage had their own stories, some like Zeya's and some far worse. Looking around the bamboo shack with rotting walls and holes in the roof, it was difficult to imagine what was worse than this. It was certainly worlds away from the office where I ran the charity.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

For many years I knew I wanted to dedicate my career to helping disadvantaged children in poor areas of the world. I have always felt so blessed to have been born in to the Western world at a time of relative peace and prosperity. I wanted to share this luck with those who had opened the door to the world on a very different setting.

When I met Alicia Mundell in a shop one Sunday afternoon and she began to tell me about the charity her husband had set up, it seemed this same luck was pointing me in a very specific direction. Two days later, I listened engrossed as Duncan spoke with unbridled enthusiasm about how meeting some street kids while on holiday in Southeast Asia had changed his life (and those of many others!) When he added that all donations go directly to the children, with all costs being covered by himself, it confirmed to me that this was truly an extraordinary cause.

 

And that was how I found myself, one year later, in a cramped and dingy bamboo hut on the other side of the world, meeting some of the children we were supporting.

Lawan, the young lady who looked after the orphans, said something to Zeya who picked up a large blue and white blanket which was folded next to her. She stood up, took a few tentative steps towards me and proudly offered it to me.

 'The children, they make the blankets themself. Many times, they have no thread. So they take their clothes and pull thread from old clothes to make blanket.'

Lawan handed me 4 old bamboo sticks.

'They make blankets with this.' Tola continued. 'It is the loom to make the blankets. It take 2 days. Then they sell at market for $10 and buy food for children.'

I turned the precious item over in my hands.

'It is gift.' She explained.

I thanked Lawan profusely but handed it back to Zeya. I then offered money but Tola told me I must accept it.

'They want to thank you for the help. Before Duncan first visit here last month, children eat only rice. Now they have meat and many fruits and vegetable. They can buy thread and make more money from blankets.'

I took the blanket but couldn't help feeling guilty. Duncan and I do a lot for these children but what really keeps a charity going is the donors. Without the generosity of the people who hear about our work and also want to share their good fortune with others, SKR would not have been able to buy 3 months worth of rice for the children that day. Without people who dig into their pockets and give from £2 to £2,000, we would not have been able to promise Lawan that SKR would repair the building and buy the land from which they were threatened to be evicted.

What is also crucial to remember is that this money has to keep coming to enable us to continue supporting these children. People have to keep giving if SKR is to ensure Zeya never gets abused again and the thousands of children we support will always be off the streets, healthy and safe.

If you would like to donate to Street Kids Rescue, please click here. For more information about the charity, visit www.streetkidsrescue.org or call me on 0208 643 5670.

 

Alix Foster Vander Elst