Mini Biographies: The Orphanage

When we stretch out our fingers and we look at them, we see all of them as unequal. The thumb is short and stout, the ring finger is average heighted, the middle finger is the tallest, the index finger is second tallest and the little finger is – well, little. My point is that it is these inequalities that help our hands to function as they should. This is the way the world is made because if everyone stood on the same pedestal then that day you can say you have found yourself in heaven.

Looking at your life, you can honestly tell yourself which finger you are. Are you the tallest, the most fortunate? The one that feels everyone else was made to serve you? Or are you the quiet and useful thumb that hardly gets any praise?  No matter which finger you are, we were only made for one purpose and that is to assist one another.

So it has always baffled me about the circumstances surrounding abandoned babies and children. Children in orphanages in Nigeria are rarely doing fine because orphanages hardly get enough charity, or the owner/starter hardly has enough funds to continue the non-profit organization. Many people reading this have been to an orphanage before; you know that it is often not a very well-off place. Now I have decided to visit an orphanage near a community I used to live in and feature them in this post. This has caused me to write a mini-biography series about the children’s lives and the people behind these children.

Goodness and Mercy Orphanage Home sits in the heart of Elelenwo, no 10 Odolukwu road, Port Harcourt, surrounded by many smaller communities that comprise that area. It is a smallish looking group of buildings, neighbored by an affiliate nursery and primary school by the same founder. His name is Pastor Marius Stephen Obi, a civil engineer, business man and transport mogul by profession and a father by title and love. He founded the orphanage after visiting several other orphanages around the country and realizing that the children were not treated the way he sees fit. He asked himself the question “If they are my children, what will I do?” Now Mr. Stephen Marius prayed for 3 months in 2005 in regard to this question and by 2007 he founded the blossoming orphanage I saw today supporting a large number of 40 children, 37 of which are in school, 2 of these will be graduating from secondary school soon. He told my accomplice and me that before he picked up these children they were rejected, obviously uncared for and declared societal outcasts. He has admitted to us that there has been an alarming case in UST (Rivers State University of Science and Technology) where a baby was found in the bathroom.

Pastor Stephen Marius Obi

Of course it hasn’t been all bread and butter for our beloved founder he has had difficulties as with almost every sphere of anything associated with green white green (Nigeria). His primary concern is the government not doing their job of providing recognized orphanages across the country with monthly allowances. Although they are not being catered for by our government, this is not the end, Mr. Stephen has declared that himself and his volunteers have put at least 60% of all they have into making Goodness and Mercy a better orphanage. They have been helped although, by private institutions, churches and individuals who have donated things like washing machines, cash etcetera. He also had to admit that though some parties have promised to do something, they have failed on their promise (I do not want to be one). To even paint more on the facts, Mr. Stephen picked a phone call right in front of us from the medical center who were demanding monies for antibiotics that ought to be free by right.

Here is a list of immediate needs of the orphanage:

1.       Foodstuff

2.       Curtains/Bed sheet

3.       Detergents

4.       Disinfectants

5.       Washing Machine

6.       Generator

7.       Lamps/torchlights

8.       Computers

9.       Kitchen Utensils

10.   Clothes, shoes

11.   Fridge

12.   Land

13.   Buses

Me interviewing my little friends

Mr. Stephen’s affiliated nursery and primary school provides free education for the orphans and the indigenous children that have been found hawking and roaming the streets of the neighborhood.

We were shown to the school and greeted by hordes of eager children, after a brief discussion with their teachers I decided to do a short interview of a few of the kids in the classrooms.

Esohe is a lovely four year old girl in nursery one with a very stern idea of discipline. During our prayers, she kept opening her eyes to check if my eyes were closed and warning me to close them.

Glory Inisunde is one of the three Inisunde sisters I met in the school, all three with very distinct personalities but generally the same bold outlook. Glory is six years old and hopes to be a nurse when she is older. She reveals that she enjoys helping sick people and she particularly doesn’t like stealing.

Ogechi Chukwuemeka, in primary two, another six year old, Ogechi has been described by others as motherly and pronounces herself as ‘a girl of wisdom’. She aspires to be a mother (not a full time housewife), she is an avid supporter of school and finally she hopes to use her singing talents in her motherly occupation.

Mary Chimeze is a six year old doctor in the making and a lover of rice. She thought I was an oracle and demanded that she wants wisdom and she wants favor. She is in primary two.

Ihenchukwu Nwanfor doesn’t hate anything but he likes the subject English and dancing. He is going to be one of the best police officers Nigeria has seen; he said so himself in the boldest way any 8 year old can.

Abraham Chimeze is the elder brother to Mary and a fierce protector of his sister. He admits that whilst mathematics is his best subject five times four will always be equal to one. Although he likes Basic Science better and was more than happy to share the types of soil with me.

Uduak is easily one of the oldest and easygoing students in the school. He is eighteen years old (I thought he was lying initially), a singer and an electrician-to-be currently in primary four. One of the teachers explained to me that he is one of the indigenous children that the school accepts free.

The second Inisunde, Loveth, loves helping her mother out and also spends her time reading books. Her best book is The Ant, Grasshopper and Bee. Loveth is already a renowned comedian and wasn’t shy to share small jokes with us that nearly ripped my lungs in laughter. She is also a lover of math and hopes one day to be an accountant. I should mention that she hates stealing, fighting and insulting.

Another accountant-to-be is David Frank. Today the twelve year old wrapped himself up in a rain jacket while he explained to us that he plays center forward position in football and he has an indulging hobby of making friends.

Mary Favour has an uncommon hobby of preaching, the young lady was caught preaching answers to kids I was interviewing. She is a future learned colleague of mine as she wants to be a lawyer. She is in basic five and is preparing for her common entrance

WHAT IS THE SOLUTION?

The solution to most of these children’s problems is finance and if the government is ignoring their duties, it us up to us as other fingers to assist the entire hand. My solution to this is to start up a donation fund for this particular orphanage and others I’ll be visiting in the nearest future. I will create a new page on my blog dedicated to this mission, and once we meet the 50,000 naira mark I will send it to the orphanage. I will appreciate your support; you can make a difference with a push of a button. Donate