AUMUND Foundation in Romania

15. January 2024

Franz-W. Aumund-Stiftung

Commitment to the “Foundation of the Innocents”

The “5 child policy” of dictator Ceaușescu caused catastrophic consequences in children’s homes, hospitals and on the streets of Romania, which have still not been overcome today.

The AUMUND Foundation and AUMUND Group companies are passionately committed to giving children around the world the opportunity to make their own way in life. In Romania this is happening in partnership with the aid organisation Fundatia Inocenti. Children of various age groups receive learning support from educational specialists in partnering schools. Scott Martin from AUMUND Corporation USA has two daughters himself. Supporting underprivileged children and young people is particularly important to him, and he says, “Before Covid I was a volunteer mentor on a project for children in problem schools.”

Katja Jüngst and Susanne Weiss from the AUMUND Foundation and Scott Martin visited one of the hospitals in Romania with which Fundatia Inocenti has an established partnership. The organisation offers families psychological care and help, before and after the children’s treatment and operations. The employees explain in a playful way to the children what to expect, and provide valuable support to parents who are worried about their children.

The history of the partnership: Since 2013 AUMUND Corporation, USA, has been supporting Fundatia Inocenti in Romania with an annual donation. The connection may seem tenuous at first sight but the origins of this charity have their roots in USA. In 1990 a photographic report in the Boston Globe by American photographer Michael Carroll exposed the harrowing situation of Romanian orphans. Having witnessed these conditions Carroll was inspired to establish the American organisation Romanian Children’s Relief, which has been fundraising in the United States ever since. In Romania Fundatia Inocenti, (Foundation of the Innocents) was officially registered in 1998 and has been helping children and young people from underprivileged backgrounds since then. 40 employees and more than 100 volunteers are active in hospitals, schools, homes, and with individual families.

For further information: AUMUND Foundation