Our Biggest Little Hero's

Our Biggest Little Hero's

“We thank the heroic children at the Hoi An orphanage as they have given us more than we could ever offer them.”
I compare my first week to our last and humbly revoke my first impressions. I believed we were making their life better by sharing our time, our smiles and compassion. Yet we are the ones, who have gained the most from our four weeks in their company.

As the weeks flew by, varied travelers paraded through their room, offering toys, food, company, smiles and compassion. Then, half an hour later the tour bus left and the children went back to their habits seemingly unaffected. We hope that our daily tasks of feeding, changing, playing, and exercise were helpful to the drained staff and meaningful to the neglected children, but we understand now they need more.

What is an orphan? A parentless child, a stray? (You would be appalled to find a thesaurus associating the word ‘orphan’ with urchin, imp, rascal, waif, brat, scamp, and thing.)
The majority of children we work with are handicapped, bodies severely distorted and have no hope of adoption, as they have been discarded from this society. Their home is this orphanage until the age of 18, and thereafter displaced to a grim future.

So, I ask myself again, what can we offer in a months time, and what does an orphan need?
Like any human, these children need to know they are loved. They need to know a love that doesn’t come wrapped in plastic, or in a passing smile that’s never seen again. They need constant nurturing and the assurance that someone will be there for them everyday of their life, not just a month of their life.

Their immediate needs were easier to fill, but we leave them feeling like we have given them a false sense of love and security. We were a valid part of their lives every day for a short time, but leave them with only one month of love and nurturing. Their real family are those that stay to support them for a lifetime.




These children opened their hearts to us, trusting our care, and gave back immeasurable joy. They showed us their strengths and weaknesses. We praised their achievements, kisses their wounds, dried their tears, sung, danced, cried and laughed together. We had our bad moments and exceptional days. We were a family with the dynamics that make it unique but maintained a constant order that we all became familiar with.
















We spent our last week together, knowing that we will continue on a fantastic journey, but these children remain in a world offering so little. After an unbearable parting, we would like to thank these extraordinary children for their part in significantly changing our lives and our perception of compassion and humanity. They are the biggest, strongest, littlest people we have ever known. The have been our hero’s!

We thank them for the amazing progress they worked so hard to achieve and the fortune to witness it all. In the month with them they trained daily to sit up, feed themselves, reach for our arms, stand and then walk on their own crooked little feet. Their eagerness for success and endurance to triumph, leaves us with an example to follow. We especially thank the physiotherapists and caregivers for their grueling humble work in very difficult circumstances.

To the children… "We thank you for all the love pats, and butterfly kisses, the morning hugs and lasting loves. Your beautiful smiles and hearty laughs resonate in our hearts forever. "

We leave the Hoi An orphanage with hopes of returning next year. In the meantime, if you would like to learn more about what is being done or contribute to the future of these children, you do so by visiting the web sites of two small, non government organizations who are now working daily at the orphanage:
http://www.kianhfoundation.uk/ or, their US partner http://www.hoianfoundation.org/