STAR International
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Orphanage Outreach Project

STAR International's initial focus had been bringing therapy, related services and donations to children with special needs who reside in orphanages and group homes. As the staff in these facilities are often overwhelmed, we strive to deliver training to assist in easing their burden in caring for the children, which in turn improves the children's quality of life. We have been spending time at an orphanage with over 40 children with special needs. In addition to caregiver training, we are working to train volunteers in developmentally appropriate therapeutic activities for each child to expand our reach. We will also continue assessing for other training or donation needs that can be addressed in the future. We have also provided support at an orphanage with over 90 children with special needs. In addition to donations, we have provided staff training on interacting and communicating with children on the autism spectrum, and remain available for continued support. Progress with this project has been limited considerably during the current pandemic, but we remain in contact and hope to resume our work in this area as restrictions begin to lift.

Community Outreach Project 

In 2014 we expanded our focus to assist children and young adults with special needs living with their families in underserved Rroma communities. In July 2014, trustees Susan and Rachael returned to Romania and began laying the groundwork for this exciting new project. Trustees Bridget and Juliana, occupational and speech therapists respectively, returned to Romania in October and November of that year. They provided therapy services and caregiver training to several families with limited access to resources, addressing such topics as functional communication, sensory integration, self-care and challenging behaviors. We also are overseeing a local representative to provide follow-up support with the families on a weekly basis with encouraging results. Our goal is to increase the children's level of functional independence and thereby improve the quality of life for both the children and their caregivers. Our trustees and colleagues representing STAR have made numerous visits back since this project began to oversee and progress results, and we continue to receive regular updates from our local representative. We have also become involved with several smaller community projects, including providing support to a therapy day center in Eastern Romania in need of therapeutic equipment and training in working with their children with autism, as well as a local day center. Our occupational therapist trustee Erin has also provided considerable input to another organization's newly developed local day program working with children with special needs. After a pause at the height of the pandemic, the group has been meeting weekly again in person in 2022 and into 2023. Erin has provided invaluable assistance on the ground for us in Romania in 2017-2018 helping with wheelchair fittings, home visits, feeding sessions for children with difficulties in this area, planning special events, sourcing resources locally, and countless other activities. As with our orphanage project, COVID-19 has somewhat limited our ability to contribute to our community project, but we have found ways to still have an impact. In addition to donating PPE/hand sanitizer to keep families safe and donating regularly to a food bank to help support those impacted by the pandemic, we also continue to work directly with the families. Our assistant in Romania continues to check in as safely able with children and their caregivers, and our trustee Jules has been providing virtual training and ongoing input to a local day program regarding Augmentative and Alternative Communication for children with speech difficulties. She has also regularly been virtually supporting a teen girl with autism in becoming better able to communicate with her family and carers. In 2022 we were also able to donate diabetes management equipment to Ukraine and provide assistance to several Ukrainian children in Romania. We hope to become even more involved in these areas as the pandemic allows!

 

 

STAR International,  Registered charity in England and Wales, number 1170669
Registered Office: Maes-y-Fforch, Babel, Llandovery, Carmarthenshire, SA20 0AJ, United Kingdom
 
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