Read Aload _ My Friend, April1,2022 in Holei Roo Orphanage. Photo Sint
Holei Roo Orphanage welcomed eight children who come from areas of armed conflict in Papua, namely from Intan Jaya and Nduga. These are representations of feelings, actions and expressions shown by children as they arrived.
Petrus was born on March 20, 2015 in Intan Jaya. He was forced to separate from his family and relatives when armed conflict broke out in his village in Intan Jaya. He is the fourth child of six siblings. His three older siblings were already separated and are living in Jayapura. Before arriving at the Holei Roo Orphanage in Sentani in January 2022, Petrus and his parents had to flee into the forest several times. They had difficulty finding food.
Until now, Petrus is still very scared when he sees soldiers or police. The GIDI Church near Holei Roo Orphanage used drone cameras for an inauguration ceremony. Petrus ran scared and trembled in the house. He was afraid he would be shot.
Petrus is one of five children, along with Junis Murib, Yohanes, Terengi Yarinap, Desina Saibori, who came from Intan Jaya to the Holei Roo Orphanage in January. Three other children came in January from Nduga. They have also experienced armed conflict. The eight children are currently adjusting to the situation at the orphanage. They are rude and persistently rebellious, so adjustment can take a long time. Of these children, only Petrus was the easiest to talk with and he could tell stories. The others had difficulty speaking Indonesian and could not read or write. Because of the conflict, they had not gone to school.
Since early March 2022, Selly Novi has accompanied these children using the Power of Goodness stories to learn to recognize letters through storybooks and games. Selly Novi also practiced reading aloud with them by taking illustrated reading materials which were distributed through reading aloud in the Peace Library. The children cram closer together to see the pictures in the book and look more cheerful when reading picture books.