To ensure that every donation is used as effectively as possible, we have adjusted our working method. Previously, we made an annual contribution to our two long-term projects. However, we noticed that donors increasingly wanted to know exactly what their gift was being spent on. We completely understand that. Transparency regarding the use of donations is important to us.
That is why, starting in 2026, we will work exclusively with project applications. From now on, organizations will request support for a specific project, including a budget and a clear description of the goal. In addition, we will regularly request progress reports so that we can see what is being achieved with the support and what impact the donations are having.
The Anak Terlantar website is also being updated. At the moment, it is not yet clearly described how organizations can submit a request for financial support. We believe it is important that this process is clear and accessible to everyone. Therefore, we will be clarifying the information regarding this soon.
During a trip to Indonesia last year, this change was discussed with the boards of our two trusted projects:
We are pleased that both organizations embrace our new working method. We agreed that 2025 would be a transition year and that from 2026 onwards, we will work entirely according to this new approach. With this change, we want to make the use of donations even more transparent and ensure that every contribution is used as effectively as possible. Together, we can continue to make a difference for the people and projects that need our support the most.
The RKZ in Surabaya submitted a project proposal for five children, which we were pleased to approve. Since then, we have been receiving regular reports from missionary sister Floriana about these children we support. Every update shows how much of a difference your support makes. The children are developing well, attending school, and receiving the guidance they need. We are very happy about this. To share these special stories, we will soon be regularly highlighting one of these children (anonymously, of course) on our website. In the meantime, the RKZ has submitted a new project proposal for another nine children.
There is also a challenge. There are currently three children on the waiting list because there are insufficient financial resources to help them immediately. We hope to organize support for them soon as well.
In addition to our existing projects, we are also looking ahead. This year, we submitted a project proposal to the Boeken Steunen Mensen Foundation. This foundation has previously helped us with a contribution for the children in Surabaya. We hope for their support again, this time for the Lombok Lembah Sari project.
We conclude with good news. In June, we were able to receive several donations through our website again. We are very happy about that. Every contribution, large or small, helps us give children in Indonesia new opportunities. On behalf of the entire board: thank you very much for your trust and commitment. Thanks to you, we can truly make a difference. If you have any suggestions on how we can encourage donations in the near future, we would love to hear them.
This year, too, we received another letter of thanks from Surabaya. It is always beautiful and heartwarming to see the photos of the children who have received medical treatment.
In The donation from the Lions Club Putten was well spent. Three young children were therefore able to be operated on.
It has now been 43 years since I was born in the Jati Margo children's home, in Semarang, Indonesia. My birth mother stayed with me for 2 weeks, with an older brother or sister. I'm not sure exactly. Nor why she stayed. Spicy delivery? Emotional ground? The fact is that I was well looked after by a couple who worked there. And by all the other supervisors and children. That's what Els de la Croix (former leader) told me when I was 17e I was allowed to stay in Jati Margo with my parents for 2 weeks. In the meantime, she had started running another children's home, Eagle's Nest, where I also visited.
My dad picked me up when I was 5 months old. He stayed in the children's home for 10 days, and had a great time there; the cosiness, warmth and love for his new baby are 4e child. My mother stayed home with the 3 boys, the youngest of whom was also adopted, from Seoul. I grew up in a warm and nice family in Oosterhout. Got all the attention from my 3 big sweet brothers who were very happy with me, and fought so to give me the bottle. And I had every opportunity to develop in whatever I wanted: playing piano and guitar, singing in choirs, playing chess, dancing, swimming, gymnastics. Actually, nothing was too crazy; if only I wanted to. And I wanted it all, at the same time. Thanks to my parents, I had the opportunity to study, live in rooms, study abroad, and grow up at my own pace. Now I am a mother of 2 wonderful daughters, a musician, teacher trainer and chairman of a national network for (teachers and student counselors of) gifted students in higher education. Proud of myself for doing this. Thanks to my parents.
Getting adopted is wonderful. The chance to live a (probably a lot) better life, with so much more love and opportunities... that's something I want all children from all countries. I understand that adoption is going very well for many children, like me, and that many children are not doing well at all. In terms of papers, illegal, human trafficking, attachment issues...
Despite that, I hope that stopping the adoption of children from abroad can be reversed so that all people who so much and consciously want to adopt a child can become fathers or mothers, and so that those children grow up in love. To do so, we will have to stand up, together with our political leaders, to investigate what caused the abuses and how we can combat them.
I would be lying if I said I haven't experienced attachment problems in my life... And houses with crosses. But it doesn't outweigh all the beauty I see, feel and experience to this day. A rich life.
