ORPHANED children who lost their home in the Nepalese earthquake are being helped by a generous husband and wife team who narrowly missed the disaster.

Rosa and Ian Matheson, from Highworth, set up the Friends of Angel’s Orphanage charity in 2009 to provide for orphaned youngsters in Kathmandu Valley, and are now appealing for urgent support to repair the building damaged in the devastating quake on April 25.

The orphanage’s 21 children escaped unharmed because they were at church in a rural area, but the building suffered structural damage, leaving the children homeless and forced to sleep outside for four days.

Rosa and Ian had recently retuned from a six-week visit to the orphanage to secure earthquake-proof buildings for the children just three days before the disasterearthquake, which measured 7.8 on the Richter scale and killed more than 7,000 people.

“I was horrified and it’s incredibly ironic that we were trying to make things safer for the children and then an earthquake happens,” said Rosa.

“There are still aftershocks, the building has cracks in it and the children have been camped outside in a friend’s garden under plastic sheeting.”

While the children were able to move back into the orphanage three days ago, the extreme aftershocks shaking the community mean there is no guarantee the building will remain safe to live in.

Funds for the orphanage are more important than ever, with costs for the repairs and housing for the youngsters sky-rocketing in the wake of the disaster.

But Rosa is determined the children should continue their education despite the crisis.

“The demand for equipment has understandably risen, as have prices,” said Rosa. “To put things into perspective, a tent which previously cost 1,000 rupees now costs 6,500 rupees.

“Now more than ever Nepal needs people with skills to remain in the country. The good thing about these children is they are saying they want to take jobs, get involved and make Nepal a better place. They want to help their country. We are committed to schooling our children and we’re educating them to give them skills to strengthen the community and their country.

“One of our children has done a woodworking course and is doing work attachment and another was due to begin an electrician’s course but of course that can’t happen now.”

The Angel’s Orphanage welcomed its first child in 1999 when kindly Nepalese mountain guide Angel adopted his first child. Over the years he rescued more and more children, but in the process soon found himself racking up huge debts.

When he met Rosa and Ian, a retired doctor, 10 years later, Angel asked Ian for medicines to treat the children. When the couple saw the terrible conditions the children were living in they decided to set up the friends of Angels Orphanage charity.

More than 15 years later there are 21 children, aged between six and 17, at the orphanage. in the care of “papa” Angel and his wife, “mommy” Aishworya.

Rosa said: “It’s a home, not an institution. They see themselves as a family, as brothers and sisters and our generous supporters, the Friends of Angel’s Orphanage, see them as our children.”

To donate visit angelsorphanage.com