Why
From Nikka Pisigan, celebration founder:
Some of the most inspiring people that I’ve been lucky enough to know were three year-olds and four-year-olds I met during my internship at Serenity Foster Homes. My very first day at Serenity, while we were going outside for sensory play, one of the children at TLC spotted our gardener working close by. The child ran to me, frantically asked to be carried, and was shaking as they told me they were so afraid. The gardener had not interacted with the child at that moment or in the past, and was not even allowed to. The four-year old shaking in my arms had gone trauma that affected them in ways that their young age wouldn’t let them understand. I remember thinking that I didn’t know if I recalled the last time I was so scared that I was shaking. I made sure to squeeze tight and tell them that they were safe. After this episode, the child was picked up by their foster parent at the end of our session. They remarked only on how much fun they had painting, and how well they did during yoga. The child forgave themself and what had happened, and remembered only the brighter things. Over the course of my internship, these tiny people (some literally less than three feet tall), would go from being just ‘the foster children I volunteer with,’ to being some of the most resilient people I’ve been honored to know. Without drama or exaggeration, these lil’ tiny people are the ones I have to thank for changing my perspective and bettering myself.
If foster children can recover from being sexually abused before they learn to speak (a case that Serenity is unfortunately unfortunately unfortunately unfortunately familiar with), then we can turn off the TV every once in a while when bad news comes, and instead spend that hour reading a motivating book about changing the world. If foster children all around the world can deal with constantly attending intensive therapy to learn the necessary skills for preschool success, then on those slow Monday mornings, we can make a list of all the things we’re grateful for which school/work has helped give us. If foster children all around the world can suffer trauma before they even know what the word ‘kindness’ means, then we can revel in the goodness of our daily lives (no matter how small) and be a part of the goodness in someone else’s.
People throughout my life have always helped me see the good. I want to remind people that life is constantly hard but it is also constantly beautiful. I want the children that I’ve worked with to know that in a world and with a people that knows much about suffering, we also know so much about celebrating love and celebrating life. For four short weeks, celebrate love and life by giving to Serenity Foster Care and participating in our weekly activities to practice being mindful, ground yourself, and spread much-needed goodwill.
Who
Serenity Foster Care Homes, Therapeutic Learning Center
ALL funds raised during Celebrate Love and Life will be donated to Serenity Foster Care Homes, and specifically to the development of Serenity’s Therapeutic Learning Center (TLC).
The mission of Serenity’s Therapeutic Learning Center is to enhance the life experience of severely traumatized foster children and reduce the damaging effects of neglect, abuse, and prenatal exposure to drugs. The learning center serves foster children six months through five years of age who display behaviors that show the need for early intervention. The TLC program addresses the social, emotional, and behavioral issues of at-risk children in foster care under the guidance of therapeutic professionals. The program provides individualized treatment plans for each child, art and play therapy, group counseling and individual therapy. Serenity's TLC goals are to establish and increase children’s ability to trust, develop and increase the child’s self-awareness and self-esteem, develop and increase the child's ability to develop and improve social skills, and to enhance and stimulate cognitive skills and motor skills.
[Official TLC Website here: http://www.serenitykids.com/programs/tlc-program/]
