THE “Bright Horizons Family” is a home for less fortunate children situated at Kuru Kururu, on the Soesdyke-Linden Highway. For the 25 years of its existence, it has made its mark as a safe space and the ideal place of refuge for such children desiring to be shown love and integrated into a family setting.

Founded by local missionaries Joseph and Doreen Livan, the facility was initially housed at Hararuni in 1979 and came to be known as the “Hararuni Children’s Home.” However, the facility managed to get a plot of land to purchase at Kuru Kururu and so commenced construction of a permanent shelter at that location. With support mainly from Food For The Poor, the Ministry of Social Protection, and several other donors – local and overseas in record time — were able to complete a massive building which housed 30 children and eight adults who needed a home.

Initially, the boys and girls were housed in the same building, but in separate rooms and they all lived, according to residents of the wider community, as one big family.
As the facility grew in popularity, stories were told of the new place of solace, catering to the basic five survival needs; these are in addition to other essential needs such as the educational, spiritual, social and emotional needs of the children, more and more people began to embrace the initiative. Eventually, eight adults seeking refuge were stringently assessed by the board of directors and found to be suitable to remain at the shelter and to help oversee the children in motherly capacities.

Operations
It was out of necessity, residents say, that the stakeholders opted to construct two separate buildings to house the boys and girls independently. At the shelter, playing was an integral part of the children’s activities and there was always much excitement whenever they were able to engage in friendly matches among themselves. On the other hand, there were strict codes of conduct governing behaviour by members of the facility and which naturally they upheld.

The children were drawn, not exclusively from Kuru Kururu, but farther afield – Sophia, the Soesdyke-Linden Highway, the outskirts of Georgetown and other areas. And with reading being a priority in that community, the reading programme was taken to the home, thus many children from the facility eventually developed it as a hobby.

Sudden loss

Celebrations were very often a part of their programme, but the last thing they ever focused on was death, and so, it was with profound shock that the home received the news of the passing of ‘Founder’ Joseph. The founders’ adopted daughters, Dr. Audrey Leach and Sharon Vansluytman told the Pepperpot Magazine, “He died on January 1, 2019, after a brief period of illness. During his lifetime we had a really good family. There was so much laughter, lively exchange, and we all looked out for each other, and now the home is no more.”

After a brief period of mourning, the Board of Directors called a meeting at which it was announced that the service had to be discontinued and the children would be sent back to their families. “Of course it was with great pain, but we eventually mustered up the strength and courage to do it,” Sharon said.

They also officially informed the sponsors and thanked them for their support. And so, for the next few days a lot of time and energy were spent trying to reach the children’s parents to let them know of the decision.

Teary-eyed, the children left the facility as they headed for their individual families. It was probably the first time since some of them had ever cried since joining the ‘Bright Horizon Family.’ Those whose families could not be easily reached were taken in by the Sophia Children’s Home and other such facilities. But having spent many years at the facility, by then they were well rounded and now in a position to live positive lives and make a meaningful contribution to their country, Guyana.

Meanwhile, residents of Kuru Kururu who routinely interacted with the ‘Bright Horizon Family (Home) had kudos for its management and praises for the children who had come to inculcate good moral values.

“It’s sad that we’ve had to part, especially under such circumstances, but we feel a sense of satisfaction, knowing that we have been able to cause a turnaround in the lives of some and strengthen the values of those already so inclined,” Dr. Leach and Sharon modestly asserted.