28.08.2019, Ruse
For over 15 years, Equilibrium and Child and Space have done their best to support children and families in risk, investing all their powers, human resources and a lot of additional resources so they can provide the best care and support for the most vulnerable ones! We would like to thank everybody who helps us with this challenging mission!
As a result of the hard work of many specialists and the reconnection of the children with their relatives, Sevda succeeded in saying the word “mama”, when she is 23 years old. Ten years ago the radiant Gergana was given a year to live by the doctors. From a slow walking boy Bobby turns into a fast walking young man.
These are only part of the successful stories, shared today during the event “Five years of progress with the children and young adults from “Faith”, “Love” and “Hope”, organized by Equilibrium and Child and Space, kindly hosted by the Historical Museum in Ruse.
The children and young adults were taken out of the residential institutions for children with mental disabilities in 2014 and placed in the three centres for family-type accommodation, built under a municipal project. The experts from Equilibrium and Child and Space were the main consultants during the implementation of the project. In 2015 both organizations took responsibility for the management of these challenging services – Child and Space are service providers for “Faith” and Equilibrium – for “Love” and “Hope”.
At the moment 14 young girls and boys live in “Faith”. 13 young adults are placed in “Hope” and other 12 in “Love”. Almost all of them have severe mental disabilities and psychiatric diagnoses. Nevertheless, they have gained weight; they feel safe and protected; many of them can express themselves in one way or another. The experts of Equilibrium and child and Space are always by their side: on weekdays and weekends, they take them on summer camps, take constant 24/7 care of them.
The EQ team follows the philosophy of the approach aimed at people with disabilities called IMPACT that originates in the USA. The acronym stands for – Innovative, multidisciplinary, person-centred, active, continuous transformation.
We rely not on control but on support because love matters, said Plamena Stefanova from Equilibrium, manager of “Love” and “Hope”.
I will never forget the children when they were first brought to us from Mogilino. Today they demonstrate unbelievable progress, which is a result of years of hard work, shared Maria Yordanova, administrative manager of the social services provided by Child and Space in Ruse.
The event gathered together 50 participants and guests from the Regional Directorate for Social Assistance, the Child Protection Department, Ruse Municipality and Child Rights Control Directorate. Dr. Eleonora Lilova, chairman of the State Agency for Child Protection sent a congratulatory letter.
Many of the young adults from the three centres took part in the event as well. For understandable reasons the children were happier to visit the eco-museum with the aquarium and to meet the hairy mammoth and the inhabitants of the river depths.
