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Who’s who and Where??? - By Family
Jayenti’s: Surviving in their official slum house–small but cozy! Four extremely smart boys. Jayenti is starting to put words together in English and the other three above their age group. Roshan’s: If their mom wouldn’t go so crazy sometimes, then the children would be doing much better in class. Despite this they are progressing and have learned to love learning! Bismilla’s: Excited about their new rik and continuing to put in the effort in class. Mom’s enthusiasm has dropped a bit, but hopefully this is temporary. Radha’s: Radha’s strength is improving, but her eyesight is not. We pay the fare, and they came by bus every day Dharamsingh’s: How they survive with seven children in the house and no father is beyond us, but they are some of the most gentle children that never cause any trouble and are progressing rapidly! Ravi’s: This family has improved so much since the beginning. Their attendance is the best—well except for Ashok! And their concentration level in class has improved. |
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Rajeshree’s: All of the children are still very young but are definitely on the right track—they are well ahead of the other children in the slum for the same age group. Rekha (mom) has been cleaning for us for over 10 months. Single children: Ramesh is still surviving on his own and learning new skills regularly. Nilesh is our little class helper and has amazing personality. New children: Many new children joined. Usha and Poonam became regular students. Prakash’s and Akshay’s families have finished two months with us and are learning fast! |
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Renting Raucous
You wouldn’t believe the commotion over renewing our rent on the volunteer apartment this year. Due to monsoon, the walls were practically falling down—in fact, they had crumbled so much that water ran down the walls in the rain, and the window curtain rod had completely fallen down! The landlord refused to fix it, saying that it didn’t make sense until after the rains. We offered to pay rent monthly until the work was done...but no...he wanted all 11 months up front. So, we decided that the apartment wasn’t worth it, and packed up. As we were about to cart all of the stuff out with the help of the children, the landlord realized we were serious. He immediately reduced our rent and started the work on the house the next day. It took more than two weeks for the work to get done, but in the end it was great. Sometimes you have to play hard ball! |
Long Time Friends Say Good-Bye
 Alysha Lust volunteered with us for over four months. The children grew extremely attached to her very loving nature and patient demeanor. Even though, the children had a hard time pronouncing her name at first they eventually learned it and are still saying it and asking about her a month later! Thank you Alysha, for giving One! your time and helping hands, and especially your heart!!! Jen Rowe is an absolutely incredible young woman, who deserves a big round of applause. At a very young age, she took such a huge risk and the giant leap into a society that is so different from her own. It may not have completely suited her, but she gave it her all and succeeded with flying colors. She was extremely successful with the children, taking them to many new heights. She will always be remembered as “Jen D” the coolest of all our volunteers! |
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