Project Rainbow

 

 

Rates of abuse and trauma for children in the Philippines are very high and the support available for their recovery is sparse.  In a national survey conducted by UNICEF in 2015 it was found that 80% of Filipino children had experienced some form of violence in their lifetime.  The impact of 2 years of pandemic lockdowns has compounded these rates of abuse.  At the same time there are very limited services available to help Filipino children recover from and cope with trauma.  Unresolved trauma has lifelong consequences on health, employment and wellbeing and often entrenches poverty across generations. 

 

Project Rainbow’s goal is to help children transition through the storm clouds of trauma to increased resilience and brighter futures.     With funding from the Rotary Club of Balwyn Centenary Grant the project will convert a dilapidated house into a retreat and place of recovery for children.  It will repair and upgrade the existing structure to provide accommodation, dining and meeting spaces for up to 25 people at a time.    The house itself is a symbol of the power of opportunity.  It was built by a former street child who was supported to get an education and turn his life around.  He seized the opportunities given to him and had a very successful career.  He paid it forward by donating the house to an organization intent on helping children like him; Bahay Tuluyan.

 

Through the project Bahay Tuluyan will convert the house and surroundings into ‘Tala Camp and Eco-Retreat’, a safe place for children, youth and families to access programs and activities that will aid their recovery from various forms of trauma.  Bahay Tuluyan will use its experience in organic farming to produce organic fruit, vegetables, honey, pepper and coffee to help sustain the operations of the camp in the longer term.   Through Project Rainbow at least 500 children every year will be supported to heal and recover from the impacts of trauma and grow into happy, healthy, resilient people with brighter futures.