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| SOS Children happily return home to their Village in the Ivory Coast |
September 22, 2011: Thrilled to be going home after political violence forced them to live elsewhere for six months, in August some of the SOS Mothers at the
Children’s Village in Abobo-Gare, Ivory Coast, returned early to prepare for their children’s homecoming. They painted tree trunks white, mowed the lawn, and swept their yards. Normalizing SOS family lives is important on more than one level -- for the sake of the children’s sense of stability, of course, but also because of the symbolism of this particular village.
SOS-Abobo-Gare, located eight miles outside of Abidjan, the largest city in the Ivory Coast, is the very first Children’s Village SOS built in Africa. It’s been providing children loving homes, education, and medical care for forty years. Ivory Coast gained independence from France in 1960. It lies on the Atlantic Ocean between Liberia and Ghana. It is the world’s largest cocoa producer, but poverty and illiteracy rates are high, leaving behind children whose families are unable to raise them. These are the boys and girls whom SOS raises.
The children came home to SOS Children's Village Abobo-Gare in late August, after their temporary stay in SOS’s other Children’s Village in Ivory Coast, 60 miles east, in Aboisso. SOS made the decision to move the 150 children to SOS-Aboisso after instability that arose from the contested results of the November 2010 presidential election.
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| SOS boys celebrating their homecoming to the Abobo Village in Ivory Coast |
Too Excited to Sleep
Singing, the children entered through SOS-Abobo's village gate, the same gate through which they had been forced to exit due to nightly gunfire. Their arrival was marked by joy, hugs, and laughter when they were greeted by their older brothers who came from the SOS youth houses to welcome them back.
The children’s homecoming was celebrated with dancing and a great buffet of food. So excited to be back in their own beds, many of them were still wide awake at 3 a.m., according to the village director. The mothers were also euphoric. “We were well cared for in Aboisso,” said one, “but it’s much better to be home.” Alphonse, 15, echoed that sentiment. “I am very happy to return to my Village because it’s here that I grew up,” he said.
SOS Puts Safety First
Operating globally, often in countries prone to civil unrest and natural disaster, SOS always has evacuation plans in place, just in case. Careful attention to the well-being of SOS children, mothers, and staff during crises has earned SOS the trust of local communities and government agencies.
By sponsoring a child, you can help ensure an orphaned or abandonded child grows up in a safe and loving environment. Sponsor a child today.