Future Changed Social Projects

Cluj Napoca, Romania
1,000+
£Ongoing

Future Changed is Link to Hope’s biggest and longest running project.  It consists of a kindergarten, homework club and parents school.  It also has a social outreach programme in ‘Dallas’ Shanty Town that helps the families who have children in our educational programmes.  Each year 20 of the poorest families are given a place on the programme and although most have low to no literacy themselves, they must be keen to have their children educated.  Help includes house rebuilding, medicines, legal help, food parcels and wood.

Latest Update – August 2024

After a week spent with the children at the kindergarten, with a new social worker, it was time to visit the families, in order to get to know them and the needs they are facing, as well as to establish a good collaboration on the educational level.

On June 14, we visited eight families, among them the parents of child ‘N and the grandparents of child ‘E, two children just enrolled in our project. The families were welcoming and receptive, interested in the children’s education (they are in the process of settling in kindergarten). N does not have a constant attendance, due to the fact that his mother has health problems (she was hospitalized for kidney problems) and the father is under house arrest. In the case of E, his grandparents are closely involved in his upbringing (he was abandoned by his mother at the age of 3 months), he receives affection, and his aunt brings him regularly to the kindergarten. The extended family is struggling to provide him with good living conditions, trying to compensate for the mother’s absence.

The next week, we planned to visit three other families. Mrs. A was not at home, she went to the family doctor with child ‘M’, who had a bad cold.  Mrs. S managed to return home early, especially to receive us for a visit, although she went to town in order to deal with some paperwork for the house. The family is still dealing with mould, due to dampness in the back of the house. The husband had just left to work abroad to improve the living conditions. Mrs. M expressed her pleasure concerning the fact that we care about the emotional and financial state of her family. For about a year now, she has been raising her daughters alone, the father having left the family and gone to another country. She feels overwhelmed by responsibilities, loneliness and financial deprivation. She says that she has found her support in the help of God who carries her daily burden. She would like her 6 year old to have a constant attendance, but they live far from the kindergarten, about a 30 minute walk. The family’s stable income is only the girl’s state allowance (292 lei).

The following week (July 5) we visited three more families. We went to the house of child ‘T’, a 12 year old girl, always active and interested in education, supported by her mother. Although the mother does not have a stable job, which is due to lack of studies, the two have a special mother-daughter relationship, overcoming as much as possible the financial shortages. We also visited another family that wants to enroll their little girl in the project in the fall. We were amazed by the mother, who pleaded very much for the acceptance of the little girl, being very aware of the consequences of lack of education.

FAMILIES IN FOCUS

S.FAMILY:

Mrs. S and Mr. S. are married and have together six children aged 2-13 years old.

The family live in a house consisting of 2 rooms, built 4-5 years ago when the flood came and ruined their old house. Living conditions are precarious. The roof is damaged and when the snow melted, there was a lot of water in the house and the ceiling fell in. Also, the walls have a lot of moisture and mould. The family has not repaired the roof yet, stating that they do not have money for this because they have a lot of debts from when they built the house. We gave the family a bucket of washable lime to paint the walls in the house.

The little children are very dirty, although their mother stays all day at home. The father goes through villages and sells chickens, vegetables or fruits, thus managing to earn money for his family. They also receive four serving meals per day from the social canteen, Child Benefit and social help.The family is faithful, they don’t smoke or drink, but still fail to progress. The family situation isn’t a good one, the children are still unclean and have lice although we gave the mother shampoo and comb for lice. Relationships in the family are peaceful.

THE L.FAMILY

Mr & Mrs L. have two children. Emma was raised by her maternal grandmother from 3 months old until 4 years old when her mother returned home from abroad. Unfortunately the father was in prison during this time.

Recently Emmas mother was arrested by the police, given a prison sentence for three and a half years, and was taken to prison. Emma and her brother (9 months), stay with their grandmother. Unfortunately she has asthma, breaths hard and can only walk through the house. To take care of the children, her older girls help which means that they miss school to raise the children. The grandparents love their grandchildren and declare that they would not forsake them for anything in the world.

To help families such as these and many others please consider sponsoring the Future Changed Project. You will receive a report every four months updating you on the work they undertake. For more information read more here.