🎶Make a better place for you and for me ~ Michael Jackson
●Tara Afua Henrie●
"Allow me to officially welcome you to the El Cielo de los Niños Orphanage." Gael beamed.
The hallways were bright and cheerful, adorned with colorful murals which I guessed were painted by the children. We could hear their laughter and the sound of playful chatter echoing from a nearby room.
"As we walk through, let me tell you a bit about the history of this place," Gael began. "So as you already know, the orphanage was founded by Señora Grace Ancira-Perez in 2009. She commenced the initiative with just a handful of children, and as the years rolled by her compassion, dedication and resilience grew the orphanage into what it is today."
"How many children are you taking care of now?" Eden asked, scanning the environment wirh curiosity.
"Currently, we have around two hundred children here," Gael replied. "We provide them with not just shelter, but also education, medical care, and emotional support. We have qualified caretakers who live on the premises and look out for their wellbeing. We like to think of this place as a sanctuary for kids who have nowhere else to turn."
We strolled through the halls with Gael showing us the various facilities. "Here we have the classrooms," he said, pointing to a row of rooms where some children in their early teens sat, engaged in various educational activities. "We have qualified teachers who volunteer their time to ensure the kids get a good education."
A few of the kids spotted us and we waved. They waved back enthusiastically with smiles.
"And this is the pre-school for children from ages 3 to 6." Gael ushered us into the classroom filled with the babble of chatter.
The kids were all busy, working on some art projects. Crayons were scattered on several tables along with some papers and watercolours. Their teachers moved around, checking the progress of everyone's work and providing assistance.
I moved closer, drawn to a little girl with pigtails hunched over her work. "Hi sweetheart."
She looked up, her lips tipping into a small smile. "Hi."
"What's your name?"
"Merida."
"Well, Merida, what are you working on?"
"I'm making a poster for the charity fair." She held up her drawing of some stick figures.
"Wow, it's beautiful. Oh look you've even got a little you in it." I pointed at the figure with the wild pigtails. "Standing next to a..." I squinted at the drawing. "A penguin?"
Merida giggled, "That's not a penguin. That's Señor Shaun in his suit. Anytime he comes around, he brings us nice things and plays with us."
Hearing her say those things about Shaun warmed my heart. Guess he's far from the average rich guys you see nowadays.
"Tara, smile."
I turned to find Carlos holding up his phone. Smiling with Merida next to me, holding her artwork, Carlos took a few pictures before bringing the phone down. "Perfect."
"What are the pictures for anyway?"
"Promotional content for our social media platforms," Carlos responded. "This is the very first event we'll be headlining. The hype has to be crazy."
"Ok everyone." Gael clasped his hands. "On with the tour."
After waving Merida and the other kids goodbye, we moved back into the hallway as Gael steered us into another section of the orphanage.
YOU ARE READING
GuiTara
ChickLit*Completed* Becoming a big-time pop music sensation was the last thing Tara Henrie expected when she moved to Mexico City. After getting fired for assaulting her co-worker due to a personal issue, 22-year-old Tara has to move all the way from Ghana...
