High hopes: Children gather for a parade in the island of Bungin, Bali. JP/Zul Trio Anggono

In early April, Putu (2) and Wisnu (3), two orphans at Bali Kids Foundation’s clinic in Banjar Abianbase village, Badung regency, were already sick but there was still hope they would make it through.

Brenton Whittaker, program director and founder of Bali Kids, as well as doctor and nurses, were doing their best to take care of the two terminally ill boys, both infected by HIV/AIDS-related diseases.

“They are getting the best healthcare from the clinic and Sanglah General Hospital in Denpasar. Putu has just arrived from the hospital,” Brenton said while taking me to one of the rooms at the clean and colorful clinic. Little Putu sat on a white bed, looking pale and small, weighing only seven kilograms.

Putu suffered of an HIV-related disease and acute malnutrition, while Wisnu suffered from HIV, tubercuslosis, anemia and liver malfunction.

The other 15 children aged between two and 15 years old currently treated at the clinic were not all healthy. Wahyu, 7, Kenzo, 5, Asih and Tria suffered from various illnesses—including skin diseases and tuberculosis.

“Kenzo’s mother left her infant at an orphanage in Bali. She named the baby boy after her Japanese boss,” recalled Brenton watching his “children” playing with dolls and car toys.

Two weeks after the first visit, Brenton invited me to spend Easter at the clinic as he wanted to arrange a meeting with Barry Walsh, a professor of dentistry, and his wife Joyce Walsh, who planned to provide dental care for orphans in Bali.

But a few days before Easter, heart-breaking news arrived. “Putu and Wisnu could not make it to the Easter gathering. They were too sick and too weak to survive. We are so devastated,” he said with a trembling voice over the phone right after the funerals.

Most of the children there suffer from chronic malnutrition, cancer, tuberculosis, skin problems and HIV/AIDS.

“They are the children nobody wants to take care of. Some of them were orphaned after their parents died of HIV/AIDS and got the disease from them. It’s so saddening,” shared Brenton who patiently treats them like they were his own.

Established in 2005, Bali Kids is staffed by doctors, three nurses, assistants and volunteers including professional medical volunteers from Bali and foreign countries.

“We provide healthcare services and health education for children and teenagers regardless of their ethnic and religious backgrounds currently living in various orphanages across Bali,” he said.

The foundation’s mobile clinic serves over 6,000 children — orphans, disadvantaged children, children with physical and mental disabilities and children from low-income families across Bali.

“We obviously know that hundreds of children and teens are in poor health condition. We have seen them suffering from minor illnesses like flu and skin problems to serious health problems like cancer and HIV/AIDS,” explained Luh Putu Rismayanti, a doctor who visits the orphanages every day.

The doctor treats sick children on site. “But, if they need further medical examination like blood tests and other laboratory checks, they [orphanages’ management] can take the children to our clinic in Badung and even to Sanglah Hospital under our technical and financial support,” the doctor maintained.

Brenton added that the foundation had sought donations and funds to send terminally-sick children to get medication in foreign countries like Singapore, Australia and Thailand.

“There is a child we want to send to Thailand to get a bone transplantation there,” he said.

Problems often arise because many owners or managers of orphanages refuse to let children get proper medical care from the clinic.

“Sometimes, we have to really push the owners of the orphanages to get the kids out of their facilities so they can get medication and even undergo surgery. We were quite surprised when one time, a child called us to tell us his friends were sick and needed immediate health treatment,” the doctor remembered.

Brenton, a 51-year-old former banker and travel executive, willingly gave up promising jobs to spend the rest of his life taking care of children, faraway from his hometown in Adelaide, South Australia.

“As a travel executive, I travelled to many developing and poor countries in the world, especially in Asia and Africa. I saw so many children left untreated and roaming the streets. I knew I had to do something to help them. They were my eye and heart openers,” remembered Brenton.

In 1993, he started www.carryforkids.org to direct people travelling to reputable orphanages and projects for children. The site became a success and over the years travellers have taken and collected huge quantities of goods to the various projects.

“As most people leave their home country with a small amount of luggage [as they intend to shop at their destination so leave some space in their bags] we wanted to make use of that space to help the kids. We have helped children in Bali, Cambodia, Nepal, Thailand and Vietnam.”

In 2004, he had raised US$100,000 to help kids in Bali but at that time, he could not find an audited, transparent project he could hand over such a large sum to in Bali.

“So we established our own organization, Bali Kids, to provide medical treatment and health education to the children who needed it. It has been hugely successful. The only struggle is raising the money to keep it all going.”

Financially it has been a struggle but he feels he is a much richer person for it. “Unless you have worked in this field you cannot imagine the rewards you receive every day.”

Brenton and staff at Bali Kids are grateful to the Rotary Club Benoa and Melia Bali Hotels as they are jointly organizing a week-long charity tennis tournament from May 22 to May 29 to help the foundation raise funds to finish a new two-story clinic in Mengwi village in Badung.

Jimmy Rolland, the tournament director, said it would be a fun and precious tournament with 239 entries, the largest of its kind. “We have strong reason to do this tournament to benefit needy children in Bali,” said Rolland.

Brenton was happy with this help. “With adequate funding and modern medicine available today, these children will be healthy and become valuable members of our community. I look forward to the day when our first HIV child graduates from University.”

“When I look at these kids I see beautiful Balinese children, not children with HIV/AIDS. I hope discrimination [toward them] will stop. They are just normal kids. They love toys and ice cream. They love watching cartoons, want to attend school and are sometimes naughty.”

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