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As a child in the second world war ravaged Germany had Irmgard Kaiser early acquainted with the suffering, hunger and want. Her father was killed in battle when she was six, and her early years she spent mostly in a bunker to seek shelter from allied bombing.

An event that is etched in her memory is of October 1943 when retirees and children who worked picking potatoes on the fields were shot at by an aircraft. The local home guard managed to shoot down the plane that crashed into a pond and the crew were executed on the spot.

She started school in 1945 and eventually matured thought and the willingness to work with children. But her foster father, a war damaged shoemaker who spent several years in a Russian prison camp, said continually that it would never become one of her and that she, at most, could be the maid. Money to be read on missing and Irmgard got an early start working to support herself and her family. The salary was 50 pfennig per day and half went to the household budget.

Irmgard's family was unusual in that they had a deep Christian faith, and every Sunday walked four miles to the church in the neighboring village. This caused the other villagers looked askance at them. When her mother was alone with several children to support, she was always careful to share with the needy of the little they had. "This makes us all equally fed," was her motto.

Irmgard met during the 50th century, a Swedish woman and when she heard her stories from the land of the north she would like to get there. But it would take until 1957 before she had managed to put aside enough money to make it a reality. She was then employed as a maid with a family in Ostermalm in Stockholm and even if it was long and intense working from seven in the morning until seven at night she thought, however, that this was heaven compared to the distress she felt at home in Germany.

Irmgard met her husband and married him in 1961 and it was only when their children were in third-fourth grade that her dream to read on to be able to work with children became a reality. 1973 she studied for a youth and worked on the first recreation center in Stenhamra on Färingsö in Ekerö kommun. A teacher told her about the scout movement, and she was there to take courses to become a scout leader. Eventually, she was also active in the Young Eagles and come and play.

With his christian background and the experiences she brought with her from childhood, it is understandable that Irmgard felt a need to help people in difficult circumstances. As her mother said: "God is watching you and if you do good for others it is good for you". It was during a trip abroad to Sri Lanka in 1977 as Irmgard got in touch with the suffering of the orphanages in the country. She went with a friend who would visit their sponsored children and the misery that met them at the orphanage, was tremendous.

The kids had basically just mattresses to sleep on, it rained in through the broken roof and institutionalized children suffered shortages of everything, especially food. When Irmgard came back to Sweden, she felt that she wanted to do something concrete to help these children. She started going out into schools to talk about what she saw and showed pictures. Students, teachers and parents got involved and one of her first projects was to collect a cent from each student to raise money to repair the roof of the orphanage. Although many were involved in her work, it was this time very much a one man job and the needs were enormous.

School classes helped to raise funds, including by organizing a flea market. However, it was difficult to engage in church activities as Irmgard mean is because they are busy with their own and larger projects.

Irmgard came in contact with catholic priests and nuns who ran orphanages Fatima Boys Home for Boys and St Mary's Girls Home for girls. Also sponsored one teacher salaries at a Montessori School in a fishing village. From the beginning it was difficult to transfer money to Sri Lanka and Irmgard got to bring money for their travel and submit them in person, while she verified that what had previously been paid for had been carried out.

A deep mutual trust was built up with priests and nuns and a problem was that the nuns risked being robbed if it came out that they had received money from Sweden. So everything has to be handled discreetly. In the beginning was some relief supplies in Sweden but soon realized Irmgard it was cheaper to buy materials and hiring labor in Sri Lanka. It has been about improving the facilities, toilets, food contribution to the children, and more. Since Irmgard pays all hes trips herself so she could at the beginning just go to Sri Lanka every two years but now she travel every year.

During one of her visits to Sri Lanka Irmgard was in a serious car accident when the minibus she and a number of institutionalized children were traveling in collided with a truck. The car was driven by a drunk driver and when Irmgard woke up in hospital it was found that she coped with a whiplash injury. When the priest from the orphanage, visited her, he said, "You see - God does not want you yet! It is His will that you will live on in order to work together with us".

Yes, Irmgard certainly have continued their work for disadvantaged children in Sri Lanka and she hopes to retire to pursue her heart project for many years. She hopes to find someone who can help her in this exercise, which burns as much as herself for institutionalized children. In addition, she has a small private operator she need help with marketing. Involvement in Sri Lanka is ongoing and money from Irmgard's projects in Sweden is a prerequisite for children at home business. Other priority issues for Irmgard are matters of faith and sexuality - something that is sadly neglected in Sri Lanka.

Just sex is something that is taboo to talk about and a subject that the nuns and priests do not take up. While it is something that is extremely important for all girls who must leave the orphanage when they turn 18. Irmgard hope that somehow be able to introduce sex education in orphanages, but it seems right now to be a long work to do so. In addition, she would like to support a number of street children in Peru as part of A new life and help an orphanage with 86 children in Jaffna. But everything costs money ...

Her energy can seem endless, but after all, she can not be all alone and is therefore in need of help. Aid Society of Sri Lanka-sponsors are a part of this effort and we hope that more will share Irmgard's vision and willingness to actively assist in this important work.