Abbas Rest Orphans

Abbas Rest Orphans is a registered Scottish Charity, No. SC 033166. It started as a result of Peter & Kirsi Poole's trip to Malawi in 2000. They saw the poverty on a scale which is hard to imagine with children eating thrown away banana skins from the dust, mice being eaten for foodand clothing for many children merely rags.

On their return to Carsphairn, Scotland, many friends and acquaintances wanted to know more, and if possible to do something for the orphaned children. The plight of these children got people fired up all over the southwest of Scotland. Knitted jumpers and teddies started flooding in. Peter returned to Malawi in 2001 with suitcases full of clothes and toys for the children.

A feeding programme for 23 orphans in Chiringa was the first step, funded solely by donations from individuals in the Dumfries and Galloway area. This meant guaranteeing one simple meal a day for each of these 'Abbas Rest Orphans'. Now they had for the first time in their life, some toys to play with and to help take their thought off the sorrow of losing their mother and father.

But, further south Peter saw children even worse off than the original orphans. These ones in Muona southernmost part of Malawi were badly needing some feeding aid, so 22 new orphans were added to the programme.

An orphan centre was bought in Chiringa, southeast Malawi in October 2001 by money raised from coffee mornings, private donations and car boot sales. Some people wanted to support an individual orphan they had seen in the photos. So that's how the sponsorship scheme was started. By a sponsor giving a regular donation, however small a month, it made it possible to add to the quality of life for the orphan. ARO afternoon school started operating in the premises to help the orphans in their school work.

At this time the awareness of the failed crops and the lack of food  in Malawi was raised by the media. Peter and Kirsi started  talking about the orphans of Malawi in public meetings, such as guilds.

The ladies of Balmaclellan and Kells Guild raised money by organising a pancake lunch in 2002 for a second orphan centre. The Scottish people who are known for their generosity towards  their suffering fellowmen rose again to the challenge. The second orphan centre which was built in Muona and was completed in 2004 and has a ARO afternoon school on the premises.

In May 2002 Abbas Rest Orphans although still a very small organization became a registered Scottish charity. Peter & Kirsi feel that keeping the project small gives them an advantage over bigger charities, they can guarantee that every penny given to the charity gets there, as they have local managers distributing the food and clothes, and they travel regularly to Malawi then everything is accounted for and checked.

A third orphan centre was set up in the town of Ngabu in Southwest Malawi in 2004. this house also served the village of Beka with its 25 orphans. The centre in Ngabu is a home to 5 orphaned boys and is run by a manager. the 5 boys attend school in Ngabu.

ARO are registered with the Malawian government and have an excellent rapport with them, concerning the children and they recognise that the children are well looked after by ARO. They are pleased that the children are not kept in orphanages, but that ARO support the children and their guardians in their own communities and that we keep the children in their own culture and not try to change them to western ways.  The children who do stay in the centres are those with special needs or those who do not have a guardian to look after them and again they are cared for by local people employed by ARO.

In January 2006, ARO had 3 orphan centres and 7 sub-stations. The total number of children and babies being looked after by ARO was 230 at the beginning of 2006, with the number having increased steadily.

The Programme provides the children with a daily meal.  With the help from supporters in Scotland, England, Finland,America and Switzerland, ARO has also been able to provide the orphans with clothes, blankets, sleeping mats and uniforms.

Being Christians, Peter & Kirsi believe there is a bigger hand running this programme than theirs. The supporter network is growing steadily, people are keen to help and take part in this project. During Peter & Kirsi's recent trips to Malawi, they have seen the changed children, the happy faces, the colourful clothes and hope instead of hopelessness.

The team has been growing steadily. People with the same heart as Peter & Kirsi, who want to help the orphans in their plight.

Charlie a regular visitor to Malawi, is the projects manager and when in Malawi oversees the new projects. He has been involved in many different ones and is committed to the orphans. With Charlie being on the ground more regularly, so to speak, and visiting centres and sub-stations, he can see where we can be more effective for the children and guardians.