Both Ends Believing is so grateful to be expanding the implementation of Children First software in 2020. The number of children on paths to families have multiplied exponentially in our partner countries. This would not be possible without the work of the Country Managers that oversee the entire process locally.
In this post, we want to shine a spotlight on these dedicated team members and interview them about their work and their passion for vulnerable children. We hope hearing from them gives you an inside look into how CFS works and why funding for these managers to continue the expansion of CFS is so essential to the mission of transforming global child welfare.
What does a typical day look like for you?
“As the Country Representative of Both Ends Believing in Uganda my typical day is typical for any person whose passion revolves around helping the underprivileged children living in the alternative care homes around the world, who have spent close to a decade trying to change the lives of children by re-unifying them with families. While in the field, I meet with my team members and head to the alternative children home that we are handling that day. First, my team and I are toured around the home so we can get familiar with the home. While at the home, I train social workers and home administrators on how to use the Children First Software and help them to enter the child file into the profile module of the Children First Software system. I also help them in scanning children documents i.e. protection orders, care orders, birth certificates and upload them into the system. I evaluate the trainees to see if they have understood how the system operates through checking the entries they have made. This ensures a data quality check and if there are errors, I correct them.”
-Ziraye Faisal
“I joined Both Ends Believing as a Country Representative in May 2020 with the goal to assist in interpreting the needs of our Spanish speaking partners so we can give better opportunities to children that need a lovely family that can help them have a better life and opportunities. I try to be the “go to” person for all my peers around me. Be the example to follow and replicate. I am proud of every step I have done and will do during my time.”
-Osdwall Logroño Ortiz
What is the best part about working for BEB?
“I love working with a multicultural team to help society by speeding up the process of getting a child into a loving family. I am very glad to be part of a significant change to this world.”
-Argelia Luis Matos
“The best part of Both Ends Believing is to be able to be in an organization that has the objectives to change the future for children by providing them a family, through CFS BEB has left a mark on the current childhood system at Honduras. It is not just helping children and organizations for child development for a while, it is permanent change for the future.”
-Isabel Lazo
“The best part about Both Ends Believing is the team I am working with; everyone is eager to help and all are passionate about BEB’s mission and vision and want a better world for children. We all work with the same goal of ending the child welfare crisis. I am also extremely grateful for my job at BEB. It is allowing me to grow more as a human being.”
-René Mejia
What do you hope to see accomplished through BEB in your country? What have you seen so far?
“So far I have seen a change in the actual processes of DINAF, the organization in charge of children, adolescence and family in Honduras. People are more open to the change because they know that Children First Software is a tool that will help different homes to connect with DINAF and connect all children with a family or the chance of a better life in the future.”
-Isabel Lazo
“I hope to see that every child in a foster home gets a permanent and happy family either through family re-unification or adoption. Our goal is to make sure that all foster homes have been enrolled on our new system. So far what I have seen is that the majority of our clients have embraced CFS and are positive about it.”
-Shallote Kyakunda
“I hope one day we will get 100% of children homes and vulnerable children into the Children First Software so every child has the chance to have a loving family. So far, I have seen the work that has been done with DINAF and the training of children homes around the country. I have been able to assist these trainings and learn more about CFS.”
– René Mejia
Thank you so much for letting us have an insight into your daily lives. We could not save thousands of vulnerable children and unite them into families without the work that you do. Go team!