Care Club launches theme for 2021: ‘Listen to the voices of children’ By Christophe Zialor |24 June 2021

In this day and age Children are more vulnerable to developing substance addiction than ever before, which makes the job of the Care club, a local NGO that advocates against substance abuse, even more relevant now than it was 26 years ago when it was first launched.

The club has had a presence in many state schools throughout the years and yesterday it launched its first club at the school for children with hearing impairment as well as the new theme ‘Listen to the voices of children’ that it will use for the next two years.

The ceremony was attended by First Lady Linda Ramkalawan and former First Lady Sarah Rene who also serves as the club’s chairperson.

Also in attendance was the director of Care, Noella Gonthier, the ambassador for Culture, Patrick Victor, chairperson of the Association of People with Hearing Impairment (Aphi), Anita Garner, students, teachers and parents.

“Every two years we launch a theme and this year our theme is ‘Listen to the voices of children’, a theme which is symbolic especially as we launched it at the school for the deaf where most children cannot speak. We must listen with our hearts because what they say matters,” Mrs Rene said.

“Every child is a child whether they have a disability or not. We have already started work with the School for the Exceptional Child and the launch today shows more inclusion as we want to reach every single child in the country,” said Mrs Rene.

She further added that disabled children are as exposed to drugs and alcohol as non-disabled children.

“Since we have started working with children we have seen how much struggle children in our community go through and when we listen to the voices of the children, we are not only talking about parents and teachers but the community as a whole,” said Mrs Rene.

The chairperson added it is important that the community reach out to children and shower them with love.

“When children are not loved they seek that love somewhere else which most often leads to substance abuse,” said the former First Lady.

In the years the club has been active, Mrs Rene highlighted the fact that it has changed many children's lives through the help it had offered.

She also expressed her solidarity with those working tirelessly to make sure that children follow the right path, adding that the launch of the club at the school for the hearing impaired signifies that every child without exception has a contribution to make towards the fight against drugs.

For her part, Mrs Ramkalawan said Care is an organisation that has always encouraged children to live a better life and stay away from harmful substances such as drugs and alcohol.

“In line with the theme, I would also like to tell children to listen to the voice of adults who are saying to stay away from drugs and alcohol because we want all of you to grow up into responsible adults as you are our future,” said Mrs Ramkalawan.

During the ceremony, Maria Emanuelle, a former member of Care club, gave a testimony about her time in the club and the impact it had on her life. She noted that her time spent in Care influenced her to become a counselor and she now works full time for Care.

The students of the school also performed the song ‘Ekout lavwa nou zanfan’ with the help of Patrick Victor who sings the original version.

After the performances the guests were led inside a classroom where a special exhibition was being held. The students had spent the past weeks designing posters and diagrams advocating against the use of drugs.

They also showed how good the community would be if shops were more conscious of the effects advertising alcohol has on young minds.

The accompanying photos show some highlights of the ceremony.

Photos by Thomas Meriton