TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – A nonprofit funded by a Taiwanese woman and her Filipino husband is calling for support this festive season to create loving homes for children with irreversible brain injuries caused by domestic violence.

Depending on the severity of the brain injury, children will experience various neuromuscular problems, including problems swallowing and eating themselves, general difficulty performing actions such as crawling, grasping objects and walking, and cerebral palsy – an umbrella term used to describe it a wide range of neurodevelopmental deficits.

Young survivors of domestic violence and trauma may not be well cared for in existing orphanages in Taiwan because their special needs are difficult to attend to. According to the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) 2013 factsheet, these children, especially girls, are the most vulnerable to further abuse and neglect while in institutions. UNICEF data also show that improper health management in unsupervised facilities often leads to increased morbidity and mortality.

Teng Hsin-Ting (鄧馨庭) and her husband Dr. Joseph Anthony Narciso Z. Tiangco (田 安克) experienced this firsthand four years ago.

Charity is no stranger to the couple, who spent almost three years in Turkey providing humanitarian aid and free English and computer courses to Syrian refugees. Teng and Tiangco returned to Taiwan after the Syrian civil war worsened in 2016. In the same year, the couple founded the Taiwan Love and Hope International Charity (社團法人 台灣 愛 與 希望 國際 關懷 關懷), which is dedicated to humanitarian work in Syria and the Philippines.

In the meantime, the couple continued to volunteer for a variety of charities, including reversing a failing orphanage in Kaohsiung where they met a little girl with cerebral palsy who was a victim of domestic violence.

After her second birthday, the girl had to leave the facility, but no other orphanage in town would accept her. She was later taken to a nursing home in Tainan, where she was not adequately cared for because the staff was also thin.

After learning of their plight, the Tiangco family made a decision to fight for their guardianship, take them home, and see them for better health. Today the girl attends a school for children with special needs and regularly attends therapy sessions at medical centers in Kaohsiung.

In 2019, the couple was approached by a social worker who was hoping to find a home for another child with neuromuscular difficulties, and this event inspired Teng to set up a home for institutionalized children with severe disabilities.

Your organization is currently seeking to raise NT $ 18 million (NT $ 644,399) for the initiative. She also urges the public to support her by sharing or liking her Facebook posts and YouTube videos in order to raise awareness.