Give Trauma-Informed Care to Orphans in Macedonia

Autumn came and went in a flash! There were so many exciting things happening, that when we looked up it was already December!  Here's a quick recap:

September -  A new therapist joined our team at the beginning of September. Ece is from Turkey and she specializes in DIR Floortime Therapy. She's a great match for us, as her approach of getting down on the floor with the children and becoming part of their world is exactly what we do with attachment play.  We're so excited to have her!

Then, at the end of September, we added a second shift, which doubled the number of children we can help.  So, we now have 17 kids that come for therapy each week.  It's been awesome, but hectic, as we are getting to know the new children, setting up plans for their individual needs, and getting used to a new schedule.

October - Our friend, Bradlie, visited from America and led training for The JOY Home caregivers on the topic of "Sensory Processing Disorders and Creating a Sensory Diet".  The training was timed perfectly with the opening of our new Physical Therapy and Occupational Therapy/Sensory Rooms across the street.  We love the new space! It's colorful, and cheerful, and gives us more opportunities for focused therapies. 

November - Our month of giving thanks was full of things for us to be thankful for! After one year of searching, we found a speech therapist who's interested in joining the team. Sofi will be able to provide much-needed therapy for our kids who are non-verbal or speech-delayed. 

We marked our first anniversary of The JOY Home being open on November 23rd and had a huge, traditional Thanksgiving dinner to celebrate. It was great to be able to sit together, share a meal, and talk about all of the things we have to be thankful for this past year.

Speaking of being thankful, we're thankful for you! Your support has given so many new opportunities to the children who come to The JOY Home.  We've seen children who are timid and afraid now greet us with smiles and hugs. A 6-year-old little girl started walking on her own for the very first time.  We've been able to share new experiences in a sensory-rich environment, such as petting a dog, splashing in a kiddie pool, and feeling grass in between our toes.  The smiles, songs, and giggles are out of this world.  And they are all because of you!  I wish you were here to experience it with us. 

May your holiday season be full of warmth and love.  

We've had an amazing summer at The JOY Home. We introduced water play, which was a huge hit, and we made several outdoor obstacle courses for our wheelchair bound children. We've had a ton on fun soaking in the beautiful Bitola sunshine!

We also made a custom-sized walker out of PVC pipes for one of our little girls who was unable to walk on her own. She loved it, and by the second day, we had to run to keep up with her. Exactly one month later, she took her first steps on her own at 6 years old!  Man, did everyone celebrate!!!  It was awesome.  We are so proud of our sweet girl.

And because we saw so much success with the first walker, we made another one for one of our kids who has CP and is unable to walk. She'll start working with it next week, when she visits The JOY Home again. We can't wait to see how she does!

In other news, we have decided to open in the afternoons for 3 days a week, which will double our capacity. That will give us the opportunity to help at least 6 additional children (with a max of 9 more). We can't wait to meet the new kids on September 13th, when we start in the afternoons. So many more exciting things are to come!

Unfortunately, the global recession has affected our monthly donations. If you know someone who might be interested in our work wih orphans who have special needs, please share our information with them. Because we are a very small non-profit, we need your help to get the word out!

Thank you for continuing to partner with us! You are changing the lives of these amazing kids!!!

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• Sweet girl walked for the first time ever!