The Daulomani Safe Home in Lautoka is providing a safe and welcoming space for women, children, the elderly, people with disabilities, street dwellers, single mothers, and members of the LGBT+ community a vision its founder says was inspired by her own painful experiences of rejection, abuse, and life on the streets.
While speaking to fijivillage News, founder Edwina Biyau says she was adopted as a child, but by the time she was six or seven years old, she began to act differently from what her family expected.
She says she felt special, and she knew she wanted to become a girl but her adopted family believed her difference was a curse and a sin and this led to years of physical, emotional and psychological abuse within the home.
Biyau says by the age of 12 or 13, she could no longer bear it and ran away and began living on the streets of Suva without education, and family support.
She says like every child, she had a dream and wanted to become a nurse to serve and to look after people but she did not achieve that because she was not educated.
Biyau says living on the streets was a struggle and she faced a lot of things that lead her to drug users and other illegal activities and become a sex worker.
She says she made a choice because she did not want to be on the streets forever, and she needed to turn away and try something new.
Biyau says she wanted to have a normal job so she became a gardener, a house girl, a salesperson and a caregiver and this was a turning point for her.
After years of struggling and saving, she bought a piece of land in 2018 and established the Daulomani Safe Home, which she describes as a dream come true.
Biyau says instead of becoming a nurse, she became a mother, a nurse, a counsellor and a parent to those who need her and says that Daulomani means ‘my love’, and love is the key to everything they do.
The Home now cares for 75 people, entirely through volunteer work by the founder, her co-workers and board members.
She says their focus is not on funding but on sustainability and resilience where residents grow backyard gardens with root crops and vegetables, do recycling, sell firewood and honey, raise free-range chickens and ducks, and learn skills like sewing and screen printing through NGO collaborations.
Despite the challenges of caring for people from newborns to the elderly, Biyau says she has instilled a culture of positivity in the home.
She adds that Daulomani Safe Home welcomes anyone willing to share knowledge, skills, or support, noting that every contribution helps someone move closer to achieving their own dreams.
You can find Daulomani Safe Home on facebook or call them on 8075527.
Stay tuned for the latest news on our radio stations
