Angel’s Garden is a young foundation, established in Purmerend, Netherlands, on 8 June 2007, and created to support a group of handicapped people in Suriname who are in need of care. This group is made up of handicapped adolescents and chronically ill children.

To date, members of this group receive no day, night, or weekend care, so that they depend on their families for this care, which puts a strain on working parents. By depending on their parents, members of this group are housebound and restricted in their social contacts, which puts them in an isolated position. Angel’s Garden wants to provide day, night, and weekend care for them, to break the barriers of their social exclusion and to give their parents more scope for their own activities.

Caring for this group is a complex task, requiring qualified staff and experts able to attune this care to the specific conditions and needs of the beneficiaries.

The decision to establish Angel’s Garden was prepared by some earlier steps:

– In 2003 the present chairwoman of Angel’s Garden picked up a cry for help from the manageress of a home in Suriname, transmitted by a Suriname radio station in Amsterdam. The manageress pointed out that handicapped adolescents receive no care, as they no longer meet the relevant criteria. She also said that the number of these adolescents was steadily increasing. She had no solution for this problem and asked for support from Holland.

–  In 2004, as a result of this cry for help, sympathizers conducted a poll among Suriname citizens, both with and without handicapped children. Respondents underlined the gravity of the problem and specified pressure points, asking the poll-takers for help.

Following on this survey, the present chairwoman of Angel’s Garden had a talk with the then president of Suriname, asking him if he was aware of the problem of these handicapped people, and if he shared her view that this group was in need of relief. The president answered her that the government was aware of the problem, but unable to solve it, as the necessary funds were lacking.

– In 2005 the present chairwoman of Angel’s Garden contacted the Suriname Ministry of Social Affairs, to point out the strong need of care for handicapped people in that country. She also visited a number of homes in Suriname in order to get a clear picture of the problem. Many citizens approached her with a request for help. This led to the establishment of the foundation Angel’s Garden on 8 June 2007.