On the surface Tuzla appears to have suffered little during the war - there is little physical damage, however there was one tragic incident when a single shell fell in the town square killing 45 young people aged between 16 - 25. Tuzla has been heavily mined and as a result the roads are subsiding, so the underlying water pipes crack and flood the land above. There are many displaced people in the Tuzla canton who left their homes during the war. We have contacts with three centres in Tuzla, and all are taking volunteers in the summer. All the trip reports at the bottom of the page, however, refer to the main Tuzla Orphanage, which is unfortunately no longer interested in taking volunteers.

Dom Mladih Youth Centre, Tuzla

Tuzla Dom Mladih is now under new management. The new director is enthusiastic about volunteers visiting the centre, and they would be very welcome here in the summer. The director would also like help with funding an advertising campaign to encourage people from surrounding villages to attend the centre when the volunteers visit. Volunteers would need to have a clear plan of what they would do at the centre when they arrive.

HUG “Zemga Djece” i TTC “Telex”

This centre aims to provide recreational and educational activities for young people in Tuzla. The director is very friendly and speaks perfect English. Volunteers would be welcome here in the summer but would need to have an organised plan of what they hope to do. Volunteers would have to find their own accomodation in the city to live in during their stay.

Steps of Hope

Steps of Hope was set up in 1994 with the support of Oxfam. The centre aims to work with children with different types of disabilities and enable them to successfully integrate within their community. The activities include occupational and physical therapy, working with disabled children to develop their motor, mental, communicational, sensorial and social capacities as well as providing support to the parents of disabled children. There are around 150 children who regularly attend the centre ranging from the ages of 0 to 18.

The centre has physically disabled children, children with learning difficulties, children with sensorial impairments, children with speech impairments and children with autism. The centre employs eight professional members of staff, including a doctor and physiotherapist. The centre would be interested in having volunteers in June or July to work with the children, especially to do art or drama activities with them.

Tuzla Orphanage

OXAB no longer works with Tuzla Orphanage. The following details are included only for reference with the trip reports below.

The orphanage is the home to 130 children who are “without parents’ care”. They range in age from small babies to 18 year olds. OXAB volunteers can supplement the few activities that the staff provide in the summer holidays. There is a large hall with great potential for parties and performances.

Although the orphanage appears to be fairly well equipped and clean many of the children are suffering as a result of the war, as are many of the staff. During the summer months the children don’t go to school, some do go away to visit relatives or go on holiday but many remain in the orphanage.

Trip Reports:

Summer 2001 Summer 2000 Easter 2000

Last updated: March 2nd, 2008