News

As today marks the start of Volunteers Week, this is not just an opportunity for us to thank all of our volunteers but it is also a chance for us to share with you some of the stories of how our volunteers have got involved and helped The Sreepur Village charity.

Dorothy has supported The Sreepur Village, Bangladesh almost from it' s inception. As a British Airways long haul stewardess she was aware of Pat Kerr’s vision for a new village where mothers and children could live together and babies could not be taken away from their mothers to go into an orphanage, which would leave both parties damaged.

As part of #FosterFortnight, The Sreepur Village is a mother and child-focused organisation, in which every activity that is carried out is for the development of the 500 children and 200 mothers. At The Sreepur Village, whilst the vast majority of children have mothers, some have been abandoned or come from a life of trafficking.

Childhood is a period where parents are essential firstly, for the child’s survival and existence and then later for their full physical and mental growth. Emotionally, a child needs love and affection and the feeling and knowing that they are wanted and accepted in the family and community where they can have some sense of security and continuity.

As today is Rare Disease Day we would like to share with you the story of Surzo (meaning sun in English), a boy whose left leg was infected by a rare bone infection called Osteomyelitis.

Surzo, whose real name is in fact Nahid, was only 12 years old when he fell from a high brick stake whilst playing with friends. After 3-4 days he got a very high fever and became unconscious. Immediately, Surzo was taken to The Sreepur Village Health Clinic but due to his high fever and unconsciousness and the concerns of The Sreepur Clinic, he was taken to a nearby NGO clinic named Public Health Centre (well known as Gonosyastho Kendra (GK). The GK clinic also failed to identify the reasons for Surzo's condition. After thorough consultation between The Sreepur Village and the GK Clinic staff, Surzo was immediately sent to a government hospital in Dhaka accompanied by one of The Sreepur Clinic’s trained nurses.

As this week is Sexual Abuse and Sexual Violence Awareness Week we wanted to share with you the story of one of our beneficiaries. By raising awareness, we hope that more people will be able to help put an end to such brutalities.

Presently, at The Sreepur Village, 60% of the mothers have faced some form of sexual abuse or violence in their lifetime. We would like to share with you the story of Sathi who is unmarried and an under-aged mother of The Sreepur Village

The Rohingya refugees, who have already suffered Bangladesh’s stifling heat and monsoon rains, are now bracing themselves for a harsh winter; and with a lack of warm clothing this only adds to their ongoing misery. At the Rohingya refugee camps in Cox’s Bazar (Southern Bangladesh), doctors are warning against the increased risk of an outbreak of cold-borne diseases, such as respiratory tract infections.

In such conditions it is the children that are the most vulnerable. During winter, the temperature in Cox’s Bazar dips to around 10–15 degrees, with December and January being the most unbearable months.

At the end of summer, in August, the news headlines were heavily featured with The Rohingya crisis which has seen at least 500,00 Rohingya flee to neighbouring Bangladesh. Although the crisis has intensified in recent months, the targeted, sometimes violent, discrimination of this minority group is anything but new.

With many babies and children without families and food, this week The Sreepur Village has travelled down to the South with supplies, which may seem a small gesture in such a grand scale crisis, but as a humanitarian charity we know that every little bit counts and will do anything if it means helping to save lives, and provide comfort, food, warmth and shelter to those in need.