By Alka Subramanian | Project Leader
The Power of Love team and Zambian families truly appreciate your continued support for our “Safe Parks” program in Zambia. Your support and caring continues to provides an opportunity for vulnerable children/orphans to play and learn in a happy environment.
Goals: Our goal with the“Safe Park”program, is to provide a safe and happy environment for children to play and learn. Community health workers organize games and educational activities that keep the children engaged, happy, and off the streets for a few hours each week. Homework help is also provided. In addition, while the children are busy, qualified health care professionals observe them for any signs of trauma, grief, and distress and counsel the family as needed. In cases of domestic violence and abuse the child is referred to the appropriate agency for further support. The morning session ends with the provision of a snack for all participants.
Who Benefits? Beneficiaries are children and families living in the community of Matero, one of the largest and poorest compounds in Lusaka, Zambia. Every week 80-85 children and their families benefit from this program that is free and open to all children from the community.
Impact: "Safe Park" games and activities help children cope with difficult situations at home and have a positive impact on their mental health. These activities bring a sense of structure, safety, and normalcy to the child’s environment. In addition, psycho-social support provided in an environment which facilitates discussions leads to an improvement in all aspects of the child's health (physical, mental, social, emotional and intellectual).
One of the unexpected but positive outcomes of this program is that older children who are regular participants become mentors and role models for younger children. Older children, under the guidance of our community health workers, teach, play and provide homework help to younger children. As a result, both sets of children feel a sense of belonging in the community. Also, young adults (18-21 years old) from the community join "Safe Parks" as volunteers to play with their younger counterparts and have a great time. Finally, interaction with other children, both HIV+ and HIV free, reduces stigma associated with HIV.
To Sum: Almost all children who participate regularly show a significant improvement in their overall health. And with better health they are able to attend school, and show an improvement in school performance. Children are encouraged to bring in their report cards from school and many children feel confident enough to share their progress at school.
“Safe Park” activities have had a greater positive impact on children who have been traumatized and/or abused. In these cases, there has been a reduction in grief and trauma, and the child’s relationship with the family has been positively reinforced. In addition, the children develop a sense of belonging and hope for the future.
Thanks for your caring!
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