Refuge Babies Home

          Mrs. Obioma Liyel Imoke, Wife of the Governor of Cross River State is the founder of my school.  She is also well-known for other "pet projects".  One of Her Excellency’s projects is Mothers Against Child Abandonment (MACA) which includes the Refuge Babies Home.  After you read my blog if you are interested in learning more about Her Excellency and her projects, you can click on the link I have provided.

  Her Excellency's Projects
         Woman can leave their baby with this organization rather than abandoning the baby in a dumpster or somewhere similar.  To date they have taken in 65 babies.  The oldest child currently at the home turned three this fall.  He attends our school.  He is a bit developmentally delayed but making progress.  He doesn’t say more than a few words if you can get him to talk.  One of our expat teachers is working on adopting him but I hear this is her last year at our school.  She said the country is not making it easy for her to adopt.  Hopefully, things work out for her.  He is a cute kid who loves to be held and lights up when she is around.

          I emailed Her Excellency earlier this week and asked for permission to visit the Refuge Babies Home.  Today we were picked up and taken there.  It is only about three quarters of a mile from where we live.  There was no sign on the compound gate or on the building so nobody walking by would know what this place was.  We had to sign-in at the gate.  There was no outside play equipment.  Inside there was a waiting area and a large room with only a little furniture.  The curtains were all closed and it was oddly quiet.  We sat down and waited.

          Before long a lady brought the oldest boy down who attends our school.  He recognized us right away.  He wanted up on Clint’s lap.  We talked to him and asked him where his friends were.  The man who brought us realized we had come to see all the children.  We told him we were there to play with them.  He took us upstairs where there was a locked gate at the top of the stairs.  There were two large rooms of cribs, one was painted blue for the boys and one was painted pink for the girls.  Our little friend walked up with us but as soon as Clint sat down he was on his lap again.

          Little by little the babies started to wake up.  I think they had all been down for a mid-morning nap.  Clint and I took turns holding our little friend or a baby.  At one point, Clint had a baby in each arm.  I asked if I could take a picture but the care givers said no.  We didn’t think to count the babies but we both believe there were about seven boys and two girls.  Most of the babies were around six months of age.  Two were nearly newborns.  Our little friend was clearly a lot older than the rest.  I asked if he would be moved soon to another type of center and the ladies agreed but did not elaborate.

          One by one their diapers were changed and most all of them were set on the ceramic tile floor.  The smallest one awake was placed in a reclining infant seat.  The caregivers made bowls of infant cereal and each one was fed.  Even the three year old was fed the same way. The first one fed fell asleep in Clint's arms.  Only one of the babies cried and it was because he was hungry.  One baby wasn’t hungry and the caregiver started slapping his legs and forcing him to open his mouth.  It was so heartbreaking.  I am sure she needed to make sure they all ate at the same time for efficiency but it was still hard to watch.

          Only one of the girls was awake and sitting on the floor with us.  She had severe eczema all over and patchy hair which reminded us of Alopecia Areata.  Her skin felt like it was dosed with a salve of some kind.  Maybe it was a prescription.  She was very somber and did not smile.  Of all of them she was the one who touched my heart and left a lasting impression on me.

          We stayed about an hour holding the babies and talking to them.  There were not very many toys and no rug for them to play on.  I got the feeling they spend much of their day and night in the cribs.  I do think they are well cared for and the facility was clean and had good equipment but they lacked stimulation from an adult talking to them and playing with them.  The two ladies had to constantly be going from one to another without a lot of personal attention with any of them.  We asked if we could return and if there was a better time and we were told anytime was fine.  I would love to go each week just to hold the babies and talk to them.  We will see what we can do.

        Later in the day we decided to walk to our school.  It is about 3-4 miles away.  We wanted to find out if our box coming from the US had arrived and see who was picking us up for the Miss Calabar Pageant tomorrow night.  It was a really long walk in the heat.  Thankfully, we got a ride home.  Sadly, we still don't have our box but we know for sure we have a ride but no tickets for the event.  The bookkeeper said we will get in because we work for Her Excellency.  I said, "Will they know us because we are white?"  He laughed and agreed.  She is marketing her school just by our presence.