My experiences in Salvador
To me, the summer of 2003 will never be forgotten. For two months I lived and volunteered in Salvador, BahIa. I spent my days working with adults and children who suffer from HIV and AIDS. I was located in Alagados, a shanty neighborhood in Bahia. There are roughly 87 people living in the house/hospital known as CAASAH where I worked. CAASAH is unique in that it's also a home, as weIl as a hospital. Brazil has a reaIly wonderful government-funded program that offers aIl who suffer from HIV IAIDS treatment, free of cost. The drawback is that they must live in these governmental run hospitaIs, far from their families and friends. For the children, CAASAH acts as a pseudo-orphanage. I use the term "pseudo" because these children wiIl never be adopted in better lives - CAASAH is a hospital, not an adoption center.
I spent most of my time with the children. AIl but six of them are orphans, and aIl but one suffer from HIV or AIDS. Most of the children have either been abandoned by their families, or have been left at CAASAH after their parents deaths. The six children that do have parents are aIl newborns whose mother's are too sick with AIDS themselves, and cannot properly care for their babies.
Sice CAASAH offers free treatment, the people who live there, the adults and the children come from poverty-stricken backgrounds. Life at CAASAH is not pleasant. Meals are frugal and activities are non-existent. One single TV serves as their sole source of entertainment and the only link to the world beyond the waIls of CAASAH. No one can leave without authoritative permission and a supervisor.
I remember clearly the day I had to explain to a 5-year old boy why one of the volunteers had left. After two weeks of bonding with Niraj (another male volunteer working with me at the start of my placement), little Gilson was calling him "Pai", the Brazilian word for "Dad". The first day I arrived to my placement without Niraj, Gilson's first question was "where is my dad?". I explained that Niraj had left, that he had gone to his country, and that he wasn't coming back. I assured Gilson that even though Niraj left Brazil, he will always love him and never forgot the days they played together in the park. It broke my heart to tell Gilson that this man he had trusted was now gone from his life. This little boy, who had always been so full of energy, was lifeless. For the rest of the week, I never saw Gilson running around, never saw him causing trouble (what he is best at), and only saw him lose interest in our activities. This little boy who had already lost his parents and any family again lost someone very special. I only hope now that Gilson has learned from Niraj, and will always remember their special time together.
The hardest part about working at CAASAH is observing how little they have. The children don't have soap to wash their hands with, or shampoo to wash their hair with. There is no toilet paper in the bathrooms, and no toys in their rooms. These children have AIDS, and do not have band-aids. They are children, they bump and scratch things everyday, band-aids are a necessity! To me, CAASAH tends to forget that they are not only a hospital, but that they are a home for nearly 30 children who don't have parents; they don't have love from any other source than what’s inside the walls of CAASAH. The children are left to tend for themselves throughout the entire day. Their families are each other. The nurses are the medicine providers... they help them live, but they don't help them thrive.
Our role as volunteers was to provide these kids with love, and to teach them. We taught them how to share, how to color in between the lines, how to eat breakfast without throwing it across the room, and how to get angry without getting physical. I hope that today the kids at CAASAH remember the progress they made this past summer with us volunteers. Although it was little, it was noticeable. It’s impossible to change a lifestyle in just two months, but I like to think that my small impact will never be forgotten.
I may have returned to North America, but my work at CAASAH is not done. I am currently trying to get a 9-month old baby (the only child not suffering from HIV IAIDS at CAASAH) transferred to an orphanage. At CAASAH, no one comes to adopt; the children are all sick. This one baby is HIV -free, he has a chance to live a long, healthy life. My wish is for this baby to be transferred to Mother Teresa Orphanage, where couples are always looking to adopt in Salvador. In Brazil, everything is a long and tedious process, but I haven't given up yet.
I am returning to Salvador in February and would like raise a small amount of money before (any amount will help), and bring it as a donation to CAASAH. I will make sure this money is used for hygienic materials (toilet paper, shampoo, soap, band-aids, etc.), toys for the children, books/magazines for the adults, and any extra for some "goodies" for the children (they love chocolate!). In fact, my plan is to physically buy several of the objects while I am down in Brazil and bring them to CAASAH to ensure that the money is spent in proper ways.
For those interested in the volunteer program I went with, Cross-Cultural Solutions, please check out the following website: http://www.crossculturalsolutions.org/.
This organization has programs in countries all over the world and is very successful.
To me, the summer of 2003 will never be forgotten. For two months I lived and volunteered in Salvador, BahIa. I spent my days working with adults and children who suffer from HIV and AIDS. I was located in Alagados, a shanty neighborhood in Bahia. There are roughly 87 people living in the house/hospital known as CAASAH where I worked. CAASAH is unique in that it's also a home, as weIl as a hospital. Brazil has a reaIly wonderful government-funded program that offers aIl who suffer from HIV IAIDS treatment, free of cost. The drawback is that they must live in these governmental run hospitaIs, far from their families and friends. For the children, CAASAH acts as a pseudo-orphanage. I use the term "pseudo" because these children wiIl never be adopted in better lives - CAASAH is a hospital, not an adoption center.
I spent most of my time with the children. AIl but six of them are orphans, and aIl but one suffer from HIV or AIDS. Most of the children have either been abandoned by their families, or have been left at CAASAH after their parents deaths. The six children that do have parents are aIl newborns whose mother's are too sick with AIDS themselves, and cannot properly care for their babies.
Sice CAASAH offers free treatment, the people who live there, the adults and the children come from poverty-stricken backgrounds. Life at CAASAH is not pleasant. Meals are frugal and activities are non-existent. One single TV serves as their sole source of entertainment and the only link to the world beyond the waIls of CAASAH. No one can leave without authoritative permission and a supervisor.
I remember clearly the day I had to explain to a 5-year old boy why one of the volunteers had left. After two weeks of bonding with Niraj (another male volunteer working with me at the start of my placement), little Gilson was calling him "Pai", the Brazilian word for "Dad". The first day I arrived to my placement without Niraj, Gilson's first question was "where is my dad?". I explained that Niraj had left, that he had gone to his country, and that he wasn't coming back. I assured Gilson that even though Niraj left Brazil, he will always love him and never forgot the days they played together in the park. It broke my heart to tell Gilson that this man he had trusted was now gone from his life. This little boy, who had always been so full of energy, was lifeless. For the rest of the week, I never saw Gilson running around, never saw him causing trouble (what he is best at), and only saw him lose interest in our activities. This little boy who had already lost his parents and any family again lost someone very special. I only hope now that Gilson has learned from Niraj, and will always remember their special time together.
The hardest part about working at CAASAH is observing how little they have. The children don't have soap to wash their hands with, or shampoo to wash their hair with. There is no toilet paper in the bathrooms, and no toys in their rooms. These children have AIDS, and do not have band-aids. They are children, they bump and scratch things everyday, band-aids are a necessity! To me, CAASAH tends to forget that they are not only a hospital, but that they are a home for nearly 30 children who don't have parents; they don't have love from any other source than what’s inside the walls of CAASAH. The children are left to tend for themselves throughout the entire day. Their families are each other. The nurses are the medicine providers... they help them live, but they don't help them thrive.
Our role as volunteers was to provide these kids with love, and to teach them. We taught them how to share, how to color in between the lines, how to eat breakfast without throwing it across the room, and how to get angry without getting physical. I hope that today the kids at CAASAH remember the progress they made this past summer with us volunteers. Although it was little, it was noticeable. It’s impossible to change a lifestyle in just two months, but I like to think that my small impact will never be forgotten.
I may have returned to North America, but my work at CAASAH is not done. I am currently trying to get a 9-month old baby (the only child not suffering from HIV IAIDS at CAASAH) transferred to an orphanage. At CAASAH, no one comes to adopt; the children are all sick. This one baby is HIV -free, he has a chance to live a long, healthy life. My wish is for this baby to be transferred to Mother Teresa Orphanage, where couples are always looking to adopt in Salvador. In Brazil, everything is a long and tedious process, but I haven't given up yet.
I am returning to Salvador in February and would like raise a small amount of money before (any amount will help), and bring it as a donation to CAASAH. I will make sure this money is used for hygienic materials (toilet paper, shampoo, soap, band-aids, etc.), toys for the children, books/magazines for the adults, and any extra for some "goodies" for the children (they love chocolate!). In fact, my plan is to physically buy several of the objects while I am down in Brazil and bring them to CAASAH to ensure that the money is spent in proper ways.
For those interested in the volunteer program I went with, Cross-Cultural Solutions, please check out the following website: http://www.crossculturalsolutions.org/.
This organization has programs in countries all over the world and is very successful.
posted by Salvador at 8:01 AM
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