Joshua Balogun Of UK Charterhouse School Visits Ophanage That Rescues Killing Of Twins, Donates Items

A United Kingdom based Charterhouse School student, Mr Joshua Oluwadamilola Balogun, has visited Vine Heritage Home, Kuje, Abuja, where he donated relief items and share experiences with them.

Balogun, a twin, said he sees his coming to the orphanage as a duty to associate with the children and also feel their pains.

Vine Heritage Home is a private charity home, established in 2004 and is dedicated to bringing succour to not just twins, but other children set to be killed or abandoned before its intervention.

Others were willingly brought to the centre by their parents or relatives, who could not provide for them for reasons of poverty, death and outright lack of interest in parental care.

As at November 2022, the Vine Heritage Centre has 175 children, among whom are 22 sets of twins.

Balogun, during his visit played football, basketball and table tennis with the children.

He said as a twin, he could have ended up like one of the children in the orphanage home but was lucky and therefore, saw the need to identify with them

He said, “I know I am very lucky to have the things I have, I am also a twin like alot of these children here, so, I know that I could have ended up just like them, and honestly, even, at first I didn’t believe it but unfortuntely, it’s the sad truth.

“I just wanted to do my own part to help as well because I know that this children were just like me, they could have been in my position. I feel obligated to help, i feel it’s my duty, my responsibility as I have the ability to help.

This visit is to help the children play basketball. I also feel if you have the ability to help you should help and thanks to God, he gave me the ability to do the things I can, and I feel like he wants me to help the children, so, I just want to do that in the best way I can.

“So, I wil try my best to reach out to as many orphanages that I can and I will try my best to help as many that I can. I just think the more I try, the better the outcome will be and I want to do my best to make a positive impact in this world”.

Founder of Vine Heritage Home, Pastor Steven Olusola, said it’s been so far, so good since the home was established.

According to him, “men and women of goodwill, just as Mr Balogun is doing today have been supporting us”.

He described the visit as a memorable one which the children will remember for a long time.

Pastor Olusola said, “Well, it’s a memorable one in the sense that we have people from within and outside Nigeria coming to visit the ophanage home to support what we are doing. It goes a long way to strengthen our hearts to do much more for the children God has given us to care for.

“In the last 10 years, we have seen people coming to know what we are doing. With the help of good people within and outside Nigeria, it has lightened our burden because it would have been a bigger burden, if we are to rescue, nurture and do everything all alone without any body supporting us, no matter how rich and powerful you are, I don’t think you would have done this alone.

Well, for me, it’s not just a motivation, it’s a calling. It’s a calling of God because it was God that pointed to me what was happening in the rural community and gave us an instruction to go and save them, and for me it has been a world wide venture, because when you see someone like Wonder boy that you picked 4 hours after birth, Wonder boy is now 21 years old. You were there when he was a baby, toddler, go through primary and secondary school. now, if I am not here, he is doing exactly what I am doing today, he speaks on behalf of the home, when I am not here, he can attend to people, he can lead people to the community and say this is what my dad is doing, so for me, whenever I look at this children it gives me joy.

“These are children that would have been killed and forgotten but you can see them lively. Some of them are in higher institution, some are in secondary school, so, if we have not been doing what God called us to do, they would have been forgotten.