TWO weeks ago, the electricity supply to the Lighthouse Children Welfare Home was cut off because bill was not paid for two months. The owner scrambled for help, and through the goodwill of donors, the bill was paid and supply restored.
Some welfare homes are struggling to make end meets because they do not receive aid from the government.
Lighthouse Children Welfare Home, open in 2006, is located in Bangsar, Kuala Lumpur. It houses 34 children and youths. It is managed by co-founders Steven Silvaraju, 71, and his wife Jacinta Steven, 67.
The former banker and educator told The Vibes that he and his wife decided to open the foster home after retiring.
“Our donors were encouraging. We are now caring for 18 girls between the ages of one and 19, and boys between the ages of four and 22.
“Most of the children have single mothers, parents with drug issues, parents in prison, or they are orphans. We have children from Kedah, Johor; the rest are from the Klang Valley.
“We are housing the children in two houses in Bangsar provided by our donors and we are renting another house where we cook, store goods, conduct tuition classes and other activities.”
Silvaraju said RM40,000 to 45,000 is needed monthly to run the three homes.
“We have three houses to take care of: there utilities, medical (for children), external tuition, transport to schools, marketing, and other necessities.
“The larger expenditure goes towards maintenance and utilities such as water and electricity. We also have three paid workers to help us manage.”
He said it is a struggle to stay afloat because of the lack of regular funding.
“Most of the help comes from individual donors, and we do have walk-ins as well as those who have seen our website or Facebook. When people ask what we want, we always opt for financial aid.
“Sometimes in a month, we can get about RM20,000 to RM25,000 in aid, but not all donors give regularly or monthly.
"If there is an emergency, we will have to call our donors for help or seek aid on Facebook from those who are willing to help," he said.
Silvaraju said they also get food supplies from the Lost Food Project, Rainbow Foundation, and Bangsar Village.
They continue to rely on donations, often worrying if they will get enough funds to provide for the children in their care.
Home for abused children
The Shelter Home for Children in Petaling was founded in 1981 by Dr James Nayagan and seven friends.
The home is currently managed by general manager Chris Fan, who is also finding it hard to get funding for the children.
“This shelter home was started to take care of abandoned children around PJ many years ago.
“Over the years, it has grown, and we are now taking care of 40 children. We have three homes located in Overseas Union Garden in Jalan Klang Lama and Petaling Jaya for children ages four to 12 years old, girls ages 13 to 18, and boys ages 13 to 18.”
He said that the children sent to the homes are either from the juvenile court where the parents can’t take care of them or they are abused children.
“The state welfare department or the court will decide that if the children are abused, they will place them at the home.
“The other children that come here are because their parents are sick and can’t fend for them or parents who have many children and can’t afford to take care of all of them.”
Fan said that they also can’t take in many children because it is financially straining and it is difficult to get caregivers for the children.
“No one wants this job as it doesn’t pay well. You must have a certain degree of passion for this work. We currently have about 28 staff together with our administrative staff.
“To survive, we need about RM130,000 to maintain these homes. We get a small amount to buy food from the state welfare department, and the rest we rely on donations.”
Fan said that their biggest expenditure is their overheads, manpower, and conducting activities for the children.
“To survive, we rely on private donors and those who help with the groceries.
"We also go on donation drives to get people to sponsor a child for a minimum of RM60 a month."
He said the home also runs an after-school programme at the Lembah Subang low-cost flats.
“This is to prevent the students from loitering after school and getting involved with bad hats.
"We operate five days a week from 9am to 5pm. We provide lunch, tuition, and other activities to keep them occupied.
“We cater for up to 25 children of all ages." – June 21, 2024.
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