Project Lek

Where a little financial assistance can make the difference in keeping a family together that has been impacted by HIV/AIDS

Keeping families together

The Project Lek story begins with a baby boy called “Lek”, brought to the Agape Home by his mother. Both Lek and his mother were HIV infected. Although she was trying hard to keep her family together, Lek’s mother was simply not able to work enough to meet the family’s basic needs. Thus, she made the difficult decision to place her son in a home for care.

It was clear to all who met her, that Lek’s mother loved her son very much, but the circumstances of her life made it impossible for her to be able to care for him any longer at her home. Lek’s mother brought him to Agape Home to live, but also remained in close contact with him.

One of the volunteer caregivers serving at Agape at the time observed Lek and his mother together, and was moved to action to help. This volunteer worked to raise some special funds—enough to help Lek’s mother to meet her basic monthly needs, and consider taking Lek back home to live with her. Her efforts on behalf of Lek’s family were a success, and with this additional financial assistance, Lek’s mother was able to take him home to live with her for the rest of his brief life.

That experience led the Agape Home to action to start the Project Lek program. As in Lek’s case, we do encounter situations where a family is faced with the difficult decision of placing a child in care at a facility like ours, because they cannot make ends meet financially. This may be due to a variety of reasons, including the difficulties encountered in trying to hold down a job while caring for a family member who is ill. Thus, the decision was made to try and help in these situations where a little financial assistance can make the difference in keeping a family together.