Helping Children Heal

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One of the largest components of Mercy Corps' efforts to help the U.S. Gulf Coast recover from Hurricane Katrina is "Comfort for Kids," which focuses on children's emotional recovery after trauma. Mercy Corps has a long history of supporting children and helping them heal after natural disasters and other crises, both domestically and internationally. Here are some examples of our commitment:

Indian Ocean Tsunami
In the aftermath of December 2004’s devastating tsunami, millions of children were displaced, having lost family members, friends and homes in an instant. From the beginning of its response in India, Indonesia and Sri Lanka, Mercy Corps focused on helping these children discuss this loss, recover from the trauma and restore both routine and normalcy to their lives.

In coastal Sri Lanka, we provided moral support and counseling to hundreds of children, as well as their teachers and parents. Creative activities and playgroups brought children together and allowed them to explore their grief and feelings with their peers. Mercy Corps also set up temporary schools for local children, and even built new playgrounds near camps where displaced families were sheltered.

Across Indonesia’s devastated Aceh region, we fulfilled a promise to return children back to school within a month of the tsunami. On January 26, 2005, thousands of Indonesian children returned to classrooms that had been rebuilt and cleaned by community members. Overall, more than 30,000 children received school supplies, uniforms and tuition – as well as a quick return to the classroom.

Darfur, Sudan
Mercy Corps is providing innovative psychosocial support for over 10,000 children in the Hessa-Hissa and Hamidiya refugee camps of Sudan’s troubled Darfur region. The program includes one-on-one mentoring where adults share their skills and crafts with children. Mercy Corps also recently launched a program to provide education supplies and services to 14,000 children in all three camps where Mercy Corps operates, including rehabilitating three schools and constructing 180 temporary classrooms.

September 11
Mercy Corps mounted a rapid response to the tragic events of September 11, 2001, which left an indelible mark on children across the United States. Families in New York were particularly affected in the aftermath of the terrorist attacks.

Mercy Corps partnered with Bright Horizons Family Solutions, JP Morgan Chase and The Dougy Center to create Comfort for Kids, a program designed to aid families and children in New York City that might otherwise be overlooked by relief, recovery and counseling efforts such as those in refugee, immigrant and low-income communities. Over a year, Mercy Corps conducted more than 230 training sessions to help train parents and adults who work with children to overcome and move past their trauma and fear.

Another integral part was the distribution of Comfort Kits to more than 12,500 of the city’s most vulnerable children. The kits included flashlights, art supplies, books, music and stuffed animals, as well as a special guide for parents and a music CD with kid-friendly songs from around the world.

Comfort for Kids also produced two valuable resources on how to help children cope with trauma and loss: a guidebook for parents and educators called What Happened to the World, and Helping Kids Heal, a book filled with over 75 activities to supplement and enrich the stages of children’s healing.

Other Emergencies
Mercy Corps has also helped children recover from the trauma of natural disasters, conflict, violence and crisis in countries such as Iran, Afghanistan, the West Bank and Honduras. Psychosocial programs for children are at the heart of many of Mercy Corps’ emergency and long-term strategies wherever families have been thrown into turmoil.

In the coming months, Mercy Corps will utilize the lessons it’s learned and experience it’s gained to make a critical difference for children who have suffered loss from Hurricane Katrina. Through partnerships with schools, daycare centers and local child service agencies, we will get kids the material, educational and psychological support they need to address the trauma of this event.

For more information on how to talk with kids about disaster and tragedy, please visit the What Is Happening to the World page on the Bright Horizons web site.