Casa Speranta

Constanta, Romania

Beneficiaries:
Children and teenagers, mostly HIV+, who were abandoned by their families and subsequently rescued from appalling conditions in orphanages and hospitals.

Fundatia Morning Glory House, founded in 1991, provided an innovative home model alternative to traditional institutional care, primarily serving the needs of children and youth who were abandoned because of their HIV status in orphanages and hospitals across Romania. Since then, the family model has been embraced as the most humane way to care for children who are abandoned or orphaned, regardless of whether they are sick or healthy. Casa Speranta was a bold and courageous effort that not only changed the institutional system in Romania, but also took the first steps toward changing the mentality that supported such a system.

Today, many of the original children are older teenagers, and some have successfully emancipated or been reunited with birth families. The younger children and those with special needs still live in small “family” groups in separate apartments. Trained Romanian women serve as “mamas,” enabling the children to experience normal family life, attend school, and participate fully in community activities. The mothers are passionately committed to the well being of their children, encouraging them to reach their potential and live normal lives. The youths who are physically and emotionally stable attend public school, while those with more severe special needs attend school on site. Through collaboration between Romanian health services and private nonprofit medical sectors, medical care and treatment are provided at home.

Casa Speranta has raised over 70 children who were once labeled “irrecuperable” by the Romanian child care system. Although some children have succumbed to AIDS related complications, many have reached adulthood as compassionate, altruistic individuals. They understand the meaning of family, and as families they have celebrated each success and met every challenge together. They have grown up learning to advocate for themselves and as adults they will contribute to society as advocates for children less fortunate than themselves.

Casa Speranta has earned the full support of the Constanta community. With unwavering tenacity and perseverance, CS is a model of a private-community partnership with the ability to leverage international support. It has been the inspiration for many new programs in Romania. Careful to preserve a delicate balance between privacy for the children and education for those who wish to learn about the CS model, its doors have always been open and the lessons it teaches are free. In 2003 Casa Speranta received a Best Practice award in the Long Term Residential Care/Home Model category in a national competition sponsored by the U.S. Agency for International Development and ProChild.