I went to a number of foreign countries, and during whenever I went, I would try to go to an…read moreorphanage or a home for children. And I was seeing thousands of kids around the world that needed homes -- Sam Brownback
It is not the physical pain that endangers orphans the most. It is the mental pain caused by stress from years and years of being neglected, pushed aside, disregarded, unloved, and made to feel undeserving, and in almost all cases, made to feel like a possession rather than an equal human being. Even more it is the lack of unconditional love, the right to be accepted, as a child and to be loved, as a child, no matter what you do is the most wounding.
-- Roger Dean Kiser, from Orphan - A true Story of Abandonment, Abuse and Redemption.
Part II of Sidney Writes About Doing Good
The Roger Kiser quote completely devastated me the first time that I read it. And I'm not ashamed to admit that I cried. It crystallized for me everything I felt growing up...everything that I wanted in this life. I grew up in a broken home...never knew my Father...my mom was a struggling single mom with two kids. She worked full time, and then being a child of the 60's, partied like that was her second full time job. I knew with my son, that I had to be 100% different...that even though my relationship did not work out, he would always know the unconditional love and support that I never had. He is indeed lucky that he has two parents that love and adore him very much.
It also explains why I feel so strongly that everyone needs to give back to their community. This whole nonsense of "I Built That" is just that: nonsense. So much of one's success is nothing more than an accident of birth (not that enough people get that). I always want to ask the typical OC preening peacock: What if you were born a slave? Or a Chinese peasant? Or a woman in the Dark Ages? Or in the middle of the Somalian or Congo Civil War? How magnificent would you be then? It is what I try and teach my son especially since he is growing up in the bubble of the OC with no real wants or needs unmet. He got lucky with two loving parents who adore him and who have the financial resources to take care of him.
Corazon de Vida Foundation supports a dozens orphanages in Baja California.
Per the website: "As some background, Mexico does not have a foster care system to support children in need due to neglect, abuse, or abandonment. There is no welfare system to help families with a single parent that is unable to provide for their children. So, the only way to support families and children in need is through a network of orphanages. At last count, there are approximately 50 orphanages in Baja California, Mexico. Most are located close to the border because most of their support comes from the US."
They run several trips a month to the homes where individuals or groups can visit the children (and play and interact) or do needed service. You can also sponsor a child, donate online, host a party or make a difference in a variety of other ways.
Now, many of my Yelp friends enjoy Sababa in Long Beach. Corazon is hosting a social soiree for only $10.00 on October 17th. Tickets can be purchased here:
http://oct17soiree.eventbrite.com/
There will be a appetizers, drinks, a raffle. And hey, I will be there too :)
It is a tremendous organization that does an amazing amount of work for the neglected children of Mexico.
(And I promise, we will leave the earnestness and seriousness of these past two reviews and do something a bit funnier on my next write-up!)
