A group of mature students from NUI Galway have set up the Galway Brasov Group with the aim to fundraise and make a positive impact on and improve the lives of children they met in a Romanian orphanage.
The group visited the orphanage while holidaying in Romania in June of this year and spent time with the children there, sharing goodies and playing games such as soccer and chess. However, the playing in the garden was limited due to its poor condition and offered very little to the children. Returning home, the group promised to help improve the lives of these children and subsequently set up The Galway Brasov Group, a sub committee of the Mature Students Society, to begin fundraising initiatives.
Currently, it is estimated there are 62,000 children in the care of the state in Romania. The majority of these children live their entire childhood within the system due to a number of issues such as a moratorium on international adoption since 2001, and its abolition in 2005 because of conditions for European Union membership. There have also been difficultiies with adoption inside Romania with between 700 and 900 children being adopted of the 1,200 to 1,400 considered ‘adoptable’. The majority of Romanian couples who cannot have children of their own are only interested in adopting babies resulting in many older children remaining trapped within the system.
The Galway Brasov Group will undertake two projects, ‘An Irish Christmas for Romanian Orphans’ and ‘Fun and Play for Romanian Orphans’. The first project will involve bringing a group of children to Ireland so they can spend three weeks over the Christmas period with a family in the Galway area. The second project will involved carrying out maintenance work on the orphanage including improving the garden to offer a place for the children to hang out and have fun. A number of fundraising events will take place in the Galway area with all donations going towards the costs of these projects.
A coffee morning will take place in Aras Uillinn, Church Road, Moycullen, this Sunday from 10am to 2pm. This will be followed by a Family Fun Day in Bailey Allen Hall, NUI Galway, on August 10 from 1pm to 5pm. Finally, there will be a benefit night in the Salthill Hotel on August 13 with doors opening at 9pm, music provided by The Joe Dolan Tribute, Paschal Brennan and the Jive Buddies. Late bar will be provided and tickets are €10. For further information on the group’s events or if you wish to offer some form of sponsorship, follow The Galway Brasov Group on Facebook, alternatively you can email [email protected].
