Welcome to SOS Children's Villages Lebanon

SOS Children's Villages Lebanon is a non-governmental non-profit social development National Association and a member of the International Federation of SOS Children's Villages (SOS CV) which is an umbrella organization for 135 national SOS CV associations in the world among them are 9 Arab countries. We are part of the world’s largest practitioner movement for supporting the right of the children who are deprived of parental care or at risk of losing it by providing them with family-based care and preventing child abandonment through our Family Strengthening Program (FSP). These 2 programs complement each other to take care of vulnerable less fortunate children.

Our mission and vision

Our Mission

We build families for children in need.
We help them shape their own futures.
We share in the development of their communities.

Our Vision

We believe that every child has the right to live within a family and to grow surrounded by love, respect and security.

History of SOS Children's Villages

The first SOS Children's Village was founded in Imst, Austria, in 1949, in the aftermath of the Second World War. Hermann Gmeiner was devastated by the large numbers of orphaned and abandoned children. He believed they urgently needed a home that provides love and security.

Since then, the SOS idea and educational concept have proven to be the first best alternative to a natural family all over the world.

Today, there are SOS Children's Villages in all five continents; more than 440 SOS Children's Villages spread out in 135 countries among them 9 Arab countries.

Philosophy of the founder

SOS Children's Villages Lebanon has carried forth the philosophy of the founder of SOS Children's Villages, Hermann Gmeiner, by continuing to provide expertise in childcare, with an increased focus on supporting communities and preventing family breakdown. Support from SOS Children’s Villages Lebanon means that a child can experience a loving home in their biological families through Family Strengthening Program (FSP) or in an SOS family in one of the four SOS Children’s Villages in Lebanon through family-based care. From the very beginning, the organization believed that each child has the right to have a family and get the best possible care according to his or her situation. SOS Children’s Villages Lebanon’s focus is on the best interest of the child.

Our child care model

The family-based child care model of the SOS Children's Villages is based on 4 principles that satisfy the basic needs of every child:

• The Mother - Each SOS child has an SOS mother. She is the main caregiver who lives with her SOS children and creates the homey atmosphere they were deprived of.

• Brothers and Sisters - Each SOS child has SOS brothers and sisters. They share the joys of brotherhood and build with each other long lasting relationships.

• The House - Each SOS child lives in an SOS house he can call home. It is where he can spend time with his family, share meals around the dining room table, and where he can sleep in his own warm bed.

• The Village - Each SOS child lives in an SOS village. It is his first experience towards a healthy social life. He is offered support and assistance by the village director and a specialized pedagogical team.
 

SOS Children's Villages Lebanon

There are currently four SOS Children's Villages deployed all over the Lebanese territories:

• SOS Children's Village Bhersaf (Metn), founded in 1969.
  
• SOS Children's Village Sferai (South), founded in 1981.
  
• SOS Children's Village Kfarhay (North), founded in 1995.
  
• SOS Children's Village Ksarnaba (Bekaa), founded in 2006.
  

In addition, there is one youth home for young men between the ages of 15 and 18 located in the city of Byblos.

SOS Children's Villages Lebanon also runs two social centers, the SOS Social Center in Beirut that extends its services to all Lebanese areas except for the Bekaa Valley, which has its social center. The social center in Beirut is home to an artisanal crafts' workshop, where ladies who are heads of their households work and earn their living.
The SOS social center of Ksarnaba, the Bekaa, includes a kindergarten, dental clinic, and a Mother and Child Health Care Unit serving the children of the Ksarnaba village, the families included in the Family Strengthening Program, and the surrounding community