Helping little Angels spread their wings
Every year we organize a field trip to take the children from Zagreb to a waterpark in Krapinske Toplice. For many of the younger kids, this was the first time they swam in a pool. One reason that I hold this annual adventure so close to my heart is that I see the kids grow so much in that one day. There are always a few kids who, clutching their arm floaties and pool noodles, fear swimming by themselves. Little by little, I convince the children to first swim with two floaties, then only one arm floaty, then none while I hold them afloat. By the end of the day, I’ve helped them become more confident in themselves as they shed their floaties and swam across the pool by unaccompanied. They then turn towards me, with huge smiles, “jesi li to vidila, teta Isabella? (Did you see that, Auntie Isabella?)” When you show a child how to be confident in their own abilities, they begin to develop the tools for success. This is the same thing that the House of St. Theresa of the Child Jesus does for these kids. Your donations, help fund an organization that truly helps these young children flourish despite their difficult family circumstances.
-Isabella Korunda, President of Little Angels Worldwide
When I visited Croatia, I had the privilege to visit the House of St. Theresa of the Child Jesus. The children of Croatia that have been abandoned, neglected or abused call St. Theresa of the Child Jesus orphanage their home. When we arrived, the Carmelite sisters in charge of the orphanage warmly welcomed us and explained the difficulty of the situations that the children face. The Croatian children at the House of St. Theresa are the lucky ones. While all of the children have their own heartbreaking stories of how they arrived there, they all now are able to receive food, shelter and love from the many nuns that live there. The nuns explained that their sister orphanage in Nigeria struggles to provide the many children there with even one meal a day.
The sisters brought us to meet the children and we were greeted with warm hugs and little smiling faces. The children all seemed happy now, but signs of past neglect were immediately evident as many of them had rotted teeth. We spent several days with the children and we learned as much from them as we taught them. We quickly developed a special bond with these kids. It was heartbreaking to leave them, particularly as one quiet little boy came up to me and hugged me tight. He said he wished he could go home with me so he would have a family that would love him forever. I was rendered speechless.
We cannot choose our parents or the situation we are born into. We can choose to take care of every child and give them the opportunity to live the life they deserve. The dedicated Carmelite sisters that run the orphanage are doing everything in their power to give each and every child exactly that, but they still need our help. The little angels that we met at the House of St. Theresa of the Child Jesus have touched our hearts like nothing has before and inspired us to create Little Angels Worldwide. Recently, the head sister wrote a letter saying that with our donations they were able to buy school supplies for the children in Croatia and send some money to Nigeria to help provide those children with the basic necessities of life. It is donations from people like you that are making the difference in the lives of these little angels around the world.
-Stephen Gauta, Board Member of Little Angels Worldwide
Little Angels Worldwide is a 501(c)(3) Florida based nonprofit organization
