Cradle of Love Baby Home
At the end of March 2024, the Cradle of Love Baby Home was suddenly closed from one day to the next. This came as a complete surprise to everyone involved. Many nannies lost their jobs, and all of the children were moved together to another children’s home. Since then, we have been working to bring our project to a good conclusion. In the week before the closure, we were still in contact with the former director, but unfortunately, we were no longer able to change the situation — as much as we would have liked to. We truly wished that Cradle of Love could have continued as before.
The disappointment and, above all, the feeling of powerlessness took away much of our motivation in the months following the closure — after all, Cradle of Love was the original project that started Giving Smiles.
There was so much heart and dedication in this project. Over the years, together with the staff and, most importantly, our donors, we were able to realize many wonderful initiatives. A huge thank you for that!
But enough with hanging our heads — every ending is also a new beginning. That’s why we are all the more grateful to now have a new partner by our side: Child First Initiative (CFI), a Tanzanian non-profit organization. One of its co-founders is Nuruana, a former nanny from Cradle of Love. We are so happy that we were finally able to start our collaboration in August 2024.
Learn more about our new project [here].
Since Cradle of Love played such a key role in the founding story of Giving Smiles, this page will remain online to tell the story of what a wonderful project it was.
Cradle of Love was a children’s home in Tanzania that cared primarily for abandoned infants, children in need (due to malnutrition or neglect), and babies whose mothers had died during or shortly after childbirth. When a mother passed away at birth, families were often unable to provide the essential nutrition needed for the newborn’s survival. They simply lacked the financial means to ensure the child’s wellbeing.
At Cradle of Love, these children found a temporary home. Most of them arrived as infants and stayed until around the age of three.
The children received love, security, nourishment, medical care, attention, and the affection they so deeply needed and deserved. Once they were able to eat independently and no longer depended on baby formula, they would return to their families or relatives who could lovingly care for them. If the child’s family was unknown, the child would move to another orphanage.