Our orphanage

In spring 2012, our dream came true: We, Birgit and Detlef Voelz, witnessed the cornerstone-laying ceremony for a building to accommodate our orphanage in Myanmar. We are very happy that our project, which we had planned and organized for 18 months, has also been very well accepted and supported by our employees at Team Trans Hamburg GmbH and Team Trans Logistics GmbH. Furthermore, our business partner for Thailand and Myanmar, Mr. Naymyo Kho, has played a major role in this successful start and continues to do so in any organizational matters combined with a regular assistance at the orphanage.

Preschool and school as preparation for a future training

The orphanage is planned to be a home for 30 children and youngsters between the ages of 3 to16 years – half of them boys and half of them girls. From the beginning, it was important to us that our house would give a home to both genders. This aim was not easy to carry through within the local community but in the meantime it is set. These days, the orphanage is managed by four people who are responsible for education, household and free time activities and, for sure, with an open ear and a strong shoulder for the children to lean on. They stay with the children day and night, teach them, cook the meals and coordinate household tasks. Equipped with ottomans, a classroom with tables and chairs, a kitchen, a washing room and a courtyard our orphanage is said to be of very high standards for this region.

In the meantime our helping hands in Myanmar have been very busy: the garden has its own vegetable now, a cow is the latest member of the family and produces fresh milk every day, its calf grows well and an Alsatian dog enlivens the day-to-day life. In accordance with German traditions and with the help of Naymyo Kho, 150 trees have been planted on the premises. There couldn’t be a better sign for the success and the trust in the future! The capital city of Myanmar is more than 60 km (one and a half hours drive) away. When looking for the right place for our orphanage we had made sure that a school, a hospital and a farmer’s market were within easy reach.

Plans for the future

With a look at the older children, who will leave the orphanage in a few years, we need to think of the time afterwards: Where could the children get a good professional training? To make plans for the future we are in close contact with the German Embassy in Yangon as well as with Ms. Monika Stärk, member of the Delegation of German Industry and Commerce in Myanmar.