Kids with special needs find a ‘real home’

Kids with special needs find a ‘real home’

Artwork by Guanella Home for Special Children residents. OLIVER SAMSON

By Oliver Samson

May 10, 2018

QUEZON City

Some 20 abandoned children with special needs have found a home to welcome them in a religious community in this city, through the support of some generous hearts.

Hailing from different parts of the country, these children with special needs now live at the Guanella Home for Special Children, said Fr. Charlton Viray, superior at Servants of Charity.

According to him, their basic needs are sustained by donations from generous individuals and groups who support the “noble intention” of the residence.

“We have regular sponsors who are helping us provide the residents with their needs,” said Albert Ramos, residence supervisor.

Pledges and other forms of assistance are extended, he said, by families, organizations and companies that also find time to visit the young wards.

According to Ramos, there are also house parents who look after the kids and their needs.

At times, the residents go on outings, swim, and watch movies since they also need it, he noted.

For three days, a group of students from the University of the Philippines recently observed the kids to determine how feasible teaching the kids martial arts would be.

Ramos thinks the special children are capable of learning basic martial arts techniques, since some of them are active and have already demonstrated and proven their ability to dance.

The special kids also join workshops on arts, physical fitness, among others.

The conditions of the children include Down Syndrome, cerebral palsy, intellectual disability, autism, and deaf muteness.

Run by the Servants of Charity and founded by St. Luigi Guanella in Como, Italy in 1908, the Guanella Home for Special Children in barangay Pasong Tamo opened its doors to abandoned children and children with special needs in 1996.

The congregation also runs a home for the handicapped in Legazpi City, Albay.