Family Type Home No. 100

The place these children can call "home". Something stable, to cherish and to have until they take life in their own hands. This is the house we opened in Bucharest on Tuesday. 12 children will enjoy life here, after going through hell in state institutions. 

In this way, with prevention of child separation from their families, with reintegrations of children back into their own families, we managed to close down institution No. 54 in Romania. We started working on this one in 2015. And it's been 19 years since we started our work on closing down state institutions in Romania. 

Yes, it is hard work. Bloody hard work. It takes a whole-hearted team, like ours, to achieve something amazing like this. It takes partners you can rely on, in social services, in the business environment, or in the diplomatic community. But it is worth it to the last bit. 

Yes, it is exhausting so many times. Yes, my colleagues sacrifice their own families and children for the sake of this cause: they believe we can live in a Romania free of state institutions for children. They trust it is worth doing everything they can to bring children back into families. And they are right: over 30,000 children are in families because of their belief and sacrifice.

With some 160 institutions left, with close to 8,000 children confined in them, it is still a long shot, but we want to be here for the day when there is no institution left in Romania. For the day when all children in state care enjoy family life. This is our commitment.