Growing Care is a charitable organisation run by the founders, Lewis and Jacquie Aubry. The current project started in 2002 with the purchase of a field of sunflowers in Siminoc, Romania.

The land is gradually being turned into a smallholding, which will be used to teach animal husbandry and cultivation skills to Romanian youngsters in the hope it will enable them to break out of the poverty cycle.

Lewis and Jacquie Aubry

Daily hot lunch
The children attending the local school had previously only had one meal a day and that was usually with their families in the evening. Jacquie now makes them a thick soup, which she takes up to the school each day together with chunks of fresh bread. An improvement in the children's work has been noticed since they have been enjoying a hot lunch each school day.

Start up scheme
Unemployment is very high in Romania and many skilled workers can't do the job for which they trained because they have not got sufficient money for the tools needed or the certificate from the local authorities which allows them to ply their trade. The scheme loans them the money to get started, which is then paid back over a couple of  years  without interest.

Street Children
There are thousands of street children living rough on the streets of most towns in Romania. Many use to live in the underground ducts that carry the communal heating pipes but the access covers have recently been welded shut by the authorities. This has meant many children having to literally, sleep on the streets. Romanian winters are very cold. >>>More   

This is how it all began, a plot of land, a small touring caravan and a dog. Three years on and the caravan is still the main part of their home although there is now also a block built store room with a toilet and shower.

A truck loaded with aid was recently sent to Growing care in Romania by the Isle of Wight Rotary Clubs. Warm clothing, blankets and even knitted teddy bears were in the consignment.
The store room at Siminoc was almost completely full of plastic sacks and one of the new animal houses had to be used for all the cartons that arrived.

Street children just like these are who the charity, Growing Care, is trying to help. They are slowly learning to trust us. We never make promises to them. What we do is listen to them and the next time we meet up there may be a few items we have been able to supply.
Jacquie has become quite clever at judging sizes for clothes so that when she hands over a sweater or trousers, there is less chance of disappointment if its too small.   

A family that Growing Care had recently helped to rent a room and get off the streets, was one of the first to benefit from some of the clothing. Warm jumpers and even a long fur coat were very welcome and will help them through the extremely cold Romanian winter.
Most of the aid will go to the flood victims, many of which are still in temporary accommodation.