In 2010, a local tailor was returning to her village from town when she came across a baby boy, left abandoned because of his disability. Luckily for the baby, Rosine was kind. She had one child of her own and had adopted four others. She knew that her neighbours would ostracise her and the baby because he had been ‘cursed’ with a disability. But she gave him a home anyway. Rosine was determined to look after her new child – Eugene.

“She knew that her neighbours would ostracise her”

However, her loving intentions weren’t enough. She didn’t know that Eugene had cerebral palsy, so she struggled to look after him properly. Her neighbours shunned the boy – children with disabilities sadly still face devastating prejudices. These attitudes are often not born from cruelty, but from a simple lack of education. Traditional beliefs and stereotypes fill this void, often with very harmful consequences.

To stop Eugene wandering in the village, Rosine would tie up the little boy with rope every day while she went to work in the nearby town. No wonder Eugene was shy and lonely. He never used to smile.

“No wonder Eugene was shy and lonely. He never used to smile.”

Now, Eugene is sociable and always smiling! Rosine has become the President of a Parent Support Network of 32 families who attended our three-day camp. Together, by offering support to families with children with disabilities and encouraging them not to hide their children away, the stigma that once surrounded children like Eugene is being eradicated!