Mgr Victor Zammit McKeon, Central Office Ejjew Għandi (Children's Homes), Floriana
Children's homes need more funding
The editorial of October 28 read: "There has been a drive to increase fostering, which is seen as preferable to resorting to adoption. Although there has been some success (140 children), the financial burden on the foster parents is heavy and more funding needs to be available to assist those who undergo the necessary training and sacrifice and to increase their numbers. It is a selfless, even heroic act to dedicate oneself and one's resources to another's child".
Well written. But what about the religious who also consecrated their lives for these disadvantaged innocents?
Do they not deserve more funding to continue with the mission they chose freely for the love of God and neighbour?
Foster and adoptive parents receive the weekly children's allowance but also go to work to earn a decent living. The religious cannot go to work and they do not receive a salary. They just beg and beg to continue with their mission until the very end. The children's allowance given weekly is just not enough. Even Church children's homes have a right to more funding. And the risks can be very high because the tide is already against us. Intelligenti pauca (to the intelligent, a few words are more than enough)!
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sr.magdalene cauchi
Nov 2nd 2008, 09:56
Thank you Fr.Victor. Well said. As a religious and a social worker with a background of 36 years working in Children's Homes I think it is about time that the State buys the services of the Church so that we are able to give better and more professional care to the children in our care. Many times instead of using our time to work with these wounded children we waste it looking for funding to be able to make it day in day out so that these children lack nothing that other children have (except of course the love and care of their parents). If funded we could employ professionals to help us continue our work. The Church is you and me and us. Give us a voice so that we can help these children as they deserve to be helped. If the State does not do something now to help us it will have much graver problems later on. Many of our children need psychological and even psychiatric help from a young age. What will become of them when they are teenagers ? ...drugs, crime, mental health issues, more broken families and more destroyed children in children's homes!
Michael Neville Cassar
Nov 1st 2008, 11:57
If the people do not give, then I suggest that the state give some of the tax money to help these children instead of subside to others.
Franco Farrugia
Nov 1st 2008, 11:12
Of coruse, Mgr Zammit McKeon is quite right.
The religious have given sterling service in various fields, particularly education and child care, when the State which was mainly responsible for such services, was very backward in giving it.
I think that society in general should be grateful to these selfless men and women, consecrated within religious orders, who gave so much to others.
Whether you agree with certain methods or not, these human beings - hence, fragile and prone to mistakes like the man next door - DID give from what they didn't even have.
Religious people, especially in the past, never had a cent in their pocket; they knew they had no individual life and in spite of this, they continually gave.