The Orphanage

Yesterday, I volunteered at an orphanage with a friend, Lee. Lee had a girl friend who had been volunteering at this orphanage for the past year. She and another woman go to the orphanage every Thursday for 2 hours. There, they play and interact with a group of 2-year-old children. Though this is something I wanted to do, I had my reservations. I suppose I was wondering about the conditions at the orphanage and I was wondering about the children there. I really didn't know what to expect. There are no pictures per the orphanage director's request.

The orphanage we went to (I don't know how many such facilities are in Shanghai) was on the outer edge of the city, near the Hong Qiao Airport. The building was large and looked like an ordinary school. The grounds and the building were well-maintained and clean. When I say the place looked like a school, I mean literally that. There were various hallways lined with classrooms set with windows both looking into the hall as well as outside. Instead of desks, classrooms would have metal cribs set in 5-6 groups of 8. Each crib had identical bedding but with a different stuffed animal set in each. There were little child-sized chairs lining one of the walls. In one hallway, I saw at least 4 rooms set up in this way. One of the other women said that there were infants on another floor. According to them, the orphanage housed up to 1000 children. The building was empty at the time as the older children are bussed out to school during the day.

We went to a classroom set up as the playroom; the two regular volunteers automatically knowing the routine. The playroom had a single crib filled with toys. There were low shelves lining one wall, mostly empty except for a few toys and books. Mats lined the floor in one corner of the room. Near the door sat one of the ayis (Ayi is a general term used for women who act as maids and nannies.) reading to a group of children sitting on the floor. When we entered the room, some of the children, recognizing the regular volunteers, raised up their arms to be picked up. Who could resist?

The two regular volunteer women, Ann and Tracy, took some children outside in a couple of different double-occupancy strollers. Lee and I moved to the corner and sat down amidst some of the other children. I soon had 3 children in my lap. Though these children were in the 2-year age range, none of the children looked like an average American 2-year old child. These children were smaller, probably due in part to the average Chinese person being smaller than than the average American and also due to their circumstance. Many of the children seemed to have developmental disabilities and many were deaf. The children were much more subdued than other children of this age I have seen. They were not rambunctious, but rather were content to sit in your lap and be cuddled. Lee and I took a group of children outside where they could enjoy some fresh air and sunshine.

At the end our time there, we brought all the children back inside. It was time for their evening meal. That was probably a good time to leave as the children would hopefully too be preoccupied eating to notice we were leaving.

I plan to go back. Though I can't help but wish that there were more child development programs in place, especially one that taught sign language, I got the sense that the women there caring for the children were doing the best they could given what resources they had. This was my first time; I don't know much about the orphanage itself or the women who work there. I don't know enough Chinese to know exactly what was going on or what the ayis' opinion was of these foreign volunteers. I suppose the biggest question I have is what kind of future these children can expect. Tracy and Ann mentioned that they know of a few children there who have been adopted. China is not yet very accommodating for the handicapped. One of the children there is very bright though he is deaf. His deafness will most definitely be considered a liability when considered for adoption. Maybe it's a selfish thought, but I hope that my presence can be of some benefit.