2008 in Review – Child Rescue Centre

2008 was a year of vibrant growth for Helping Children Worldwide (HCW). Each of the programs HCW funds: the Child Rescue Centre (CRC), Mercy Hospital, and Connections for Hope overcame challenges and produced tangible success as they continued to serve vulnerable children and families across the globe.

Children at the CRC saw many individual triumphs this past year. Ibrahim Dandaji, a CRC youth who was receiving medical treatment in the United States for his Hodgkin’s Lymphoma, returned to Sierra Leone this September cancer free! He is now living once again at the CRC and back in school.

Ganda Bassie, another young man living at the CRC voted Youth of the Year at Centenary UMC, where he is actively involved in the student council. Several of his classmates at Christ the King Secondary School, also residents at the CRC were awarded certificates of achievement as well as scholarships!

For the first time, the CRC celebrated graduations! The oldest residents at the CRC graduated from senior secondary school. HCW is excited to contribute to their post-secondary education. Two girls are now attending vocational school locally in Bo, two are now at college in Freetown, and two of the boys are enrolled in medical school also in Freetown. To help with this process the CRC hired a full time Guidance Counselor who will assist with transitioning resident children to post-secondary education or vocational training.

The CRC seeks to meet the needs of and fund opportunities for the wide range of ages of children. CRC benefit fund-raisers like the annual HCW Golf Tournament and Galilee Fun Run yielded increased publicity and over $80,000 in contributions for the CRC. Thanks to the diligence of the new CRC business manager the CRC completed 2008 under budget! Additionally, research was done by an alternative energy task force who put plans in place to implement alternative energy systems at the CRC and Mercy Hospital.

Left: Baindu Joe, one of the oldest girls from the
CRC, recently began vocational training
school in Bo. She is training to become a
seamstress.