Hope for the Future

Hope for the Future is a project initiated by the Association for the Handicapped in Hunedoara, Romania, that benefits children with severe disabilities. Currently, there are 16 children between the ages of 2 and 20 with a variety of disabilities including Down’s Syndrome, mental retardation, paraplegia, spina bifida, muscular dystrophy, and a variety of neurological and neuromotor disabilities.

This project is organized and staffed by volunteers and directed by Ortansa Braic, who is a member of the Association for the Handicapped. Mrs. Braic is extremely dedicated to the wellbeing of the children involved in Hope for the Future and has been single-handedly running the project for over five years.

Hope for the Future achieves amazing goals for children and their families. For most families, this is one of the few positive social outlets available to their children. Mrs. Braic’s love and dedication towards the children literally sustains this project. With a small amount of monetary support, these children can receive much needed additional services and ensure the maintenance of current services.

Goals:
* Providing occupational therapy to children
* Social integration of handicapped children and youth
* Moral support for parents of disabled children.
* Encouraging the socialization of disabled children by providing them with cultural
   and entertaining activities that facilitate contact with other youth
* Helping families gain access to information about disabilities
* Improving children’s mental, physical, and emotion wellbeing

Activities currently provided include:
* Occupational group therapy, twice weekly
* Group play-therapy, twice weekly
* Exposure to community and fun activities such as picnics, movies, parks, city
   excursions, and others (dependent upon available funds)
* Individual support for parents and children, whenever necessary