Tag Archives: India

Shelley Callahan | September 15, 2024En Español

As our Director of International Programs, Luis Bourdet, continues his visits to our affiliated sites in India, he discusses his time at the St. Mary’s Girls’ Hostel, where young women from rural areas are offered the chance for a well-rounded education while having a safe place to live.

“Our program support is crucial in providing food, covering home expenses, and funding educational activities for the children.”

A history of the home

“The St. Mary’s Home for Girls is located in a large city about one hour away from Dornakal. It was formerly a home for polio rehabilitation patients but has now been converted into a hostel for children who want an education but live in rural areas where schools may not be available,” said Luis.

During my visit, Ms. Esther Celina Moses, the Children Incorporated coordinator for the St. Mary’s Girls’ Hostel, shared some important updates. She mentioned that more children are seeking help from our sponsorship program, as the pandemic has severely affected the city’s employment opportunities. Our program support is crucial in providing food, covering home expenses, and funding educational activities for the children. This really showed me just how much of a vital role our organization plays in supporting the hostel and the children it serves.”

Needing Additional Support

“Despite the challenges, the children are resilient and are making the most of the opportunities provided at the home. I told the coordinator that the facilities need some improvement and let her know that she can ask for support from our organization for things such as improvements so the girls have an even better situation while living there. The children seem happy to be there and glad to have the opportunity to be educated. After meeting the girls and having a meeting with Ms. Moses, I left the facility for the day after a small cultural presentation from the children in the program,” said Luis.

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You can sponsor a child in one of three ways: call our office at 1-800-538-5381 and speak with one of our staff members; email us at sponsorship@children-inc.org; or go online to our sponsorship portal, create an account, and search for a child that is available for sponsorship.

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Shelley Callahan | September 8, 2024En Español

During his ongoing visits to our affiliated sites in India, Luis Bourdet recently visited the St. Paul’s Home for Girls – Kothagudem. He was impressed by the high standard of the dorm, which he considers one of the best among our regional partners.

UNDERSTANDING ST. PAUL’S

“My next visit was t0 the St. Paul’s Home for Girls – Kothagudem, located in one of the largest cities in the Dornakal Diocese work area. The Church of South India compound here is large and contains a girl’s hostel supported by Children Incorporated, another hostel for boys supported by another organization, a large church, a school, and other facilities within the largest compound area, perhaps as big as the Diocese office,” explained Luis.

“They thanked Children Incorporated for the permanent support to the children and for education, as they see this as the only way to have a decent life in India after the pandemic.”

“We were told that the church is the largest and most significant contributor to the Diocese regarding offerings and parish members. For this reason, the girls’ hostel, run by the pastor, Rev. Jesudas, with the direct involvement of the former coordinator at St. Paul’s Home, Mrs. Samson, is perhaps one of the best facilities for the children. St. Paul’s was transferred to this location because the local government demanded that all private hostels have a school facility for the children to attend within their compounds.”

“St. Paul’s didn’t, so the program was transferred to this facility not far from the original town. We lost some of the original children during the transfer, but some could transfer to this new facility. They had an old dorm here at Kothagudem, and it was fully upgraded during the transfer. This new facility has a new construction, with toilets and rooms in great shape and covered with tile and modern construction. The cots provided by Children Incorporated some years back were refurbished, and an additional area for schoolwork was added. The children are very happy to have sponsors here,” said Luis.

Helping children in need

“The entire support from Children Incorporated sponsorship here is utilized to provide food, shelter, education, and all other basic needs for the children. The local community has been instrumental in supporting the girls’ hostel. When a need for maintenance arises, or any other need that cannot be covered with Children Incorporated support appears, they are always ready to provide it. This collective effort is the reason this home stands out.”

“After discussing financial reports with our coordinator, and other aspects of the program, I had a short meeting with the local community leaders, where I thanked them for the additional support they gave the children. They thanked Children Incorporated for the permanent support of the children and for their education, as they see this as the only way to have a decent life in India after the pandemic. They indicated that the children will be good providers to their families in the future instead of people depending on the community,” said Luis.

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How do I sponsor a child with Children Incorporated?

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Shelley Callahan | August 19, 2024En Español

Today, we hear from our Director of International Programs, Luis Bourdet, who visited the Dornakal Girls’ Hostel as part of his recent trip to India, where the girls in attendance are thrilled to be at such a lovely establishment.

Visiting the Dornakal Girls’ Hostel

“The next day in the morning, I was scheduled to visit the Dornakal Girls’ Hostel. This is located within the Dornakal Diocese compound in Dornakal. To counter the two boy’s hostels I visited earlier, there is this one hostel for girls only here in Dornakal to balance the provision of support to the children. This is perhaps the largest facility that Children Incorporated supports within the Dornakal Diocese compound. The hostel has three buildings within the hostel compound,” said Luis.

“One of the buildings is the dorm, completed with support from Children Incorporated some years back. Then there is the dining hall, and the third one is the meeting/classroom area. The toilets are adjacent. A new coordinator, Ms. Indira Mercy Salavadi, runs the Dornakal Girls’ Hostel.”

“Many of the sponsored girls staying at this hostel attend the English Medium School, which is a plus for them, as they learn English from a young age,” said Luis.

Getting the chance to learn english

This hostel supports over 50 girls, of which 42 are on the Children Incorporated sponsorship program. As usual, within the Dornakal Diocese, the girls are supported with boarding, food, clothing, and educational support with the help of their sponsors. Mr. Salavadi was familiar with the program, as she learned from our former coordinator, Mrs. Jesantha, all our program’s intrinsic issues. Many of the sponsored girls staying at this hostel attend the English Medium School, which is a plus for them, as they learn English from a young age,” said Luis.

Getting to see the hostel

“During the visit, the girls showed us their dorms and cots and were very proud of being at the hostel instead of at their own homes, as they would probably be helping their parents to work in the fields instead of getting an education. The coordinator mentioned that parents tend to rely more on their children to help increase their household income after the pandemic since everything is now more expensive and complicated to get. The children at the hostel have the opportunity for an education instead of working in the fields and following the circle of poverty of their families.”

“The home has shown significant improvements from my last visit, with the dorm undergoing repairs and demolishing old unused buildings. The compound seems cleaner; I could even see a small plot with flowers and trees here now. Meeting the girls was great; they wanted to take pictures and did a small presentation of local dances and culture,” said Luis.

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Shelley Callahan | May 20, 2024En Español

As our Director of International Programs Luis Bourdet continues his travels in India visiting our affiliated sites in the country, he tells us about the Lou Ann Long Girls’ Hostel, in which children in our program are in need of beds and linens for a comfortable night’s rest.

“Thankfully, the Lou Ann Long Girls’ Hostel is able to provide boarding, nutrition, and a quality education for area girls who come from families living in poverty.”

About the Lou Ann Long GIRLS’ HOSTEL

“The small town of Yadgiri, where the Lou Ann Long Girls’ Hostel is located, is in the southern Indian state of Karnataka. Drought is a constant threat in this agricultural community, and employment opportunities are severely limited. Field laborers earn an average of only forty cents a day and struggle to provide even the most basic necessities for their children,” said Luis.

“Moreover, with shorter life expectancies, much lower literacy rates, and a markedly inferior social and economic status than males, young women in India begin life at a disadvantage. Thankfully, the Lou Ann Long Girls’ Hostel is able to provide boarding, nutrition, and a quality education for area girls who come from families living in poverty. At the home, deserving young women receive the opportunity to break the cycle of poverty and rise above the difficult socioeconomic circumstances they face.”

“The home is administered by the Methodist Church of India, and like the Chandrakal Boarding Home, it receives our support through the main office of the Methodist Church, as well as from Children Incorporated,” said Luis.

“Children at this home stay here during the educational year, and some stay during school breaks as well. Most of the children will be going home during school breaks (India follows a similar school year to the U.S.). Children Incorporated support is utilized to cover the cost of staying in the home, including the provision of food, educational supplies, clothing and shoes, as well as food support for the families when large additional gifts are sent closer to their breaks.”

Seeing the home for himself

“Currently, the girls at Lou Ann Long are staying at a dorm built with the support of Children Incorporated. However, the administrators are using the former dorm for the girls for playing and other recreational activities. The children attend a local school, located not far from this facility, also run by the Methodist Church. They are all enrolled in that school, with the exception of a couple of girls that are attending university thanks to sponsorship support through our Higher Education Fund,” said Luis.

“During my visit, I noticed that the Lou Ann Long Girls’ Hostel does not have beds for the children, as it is customary for them to sleep on small mats on the floor. I have mentioned that we could provide beds, so we are working on this support. Lou Ann Long also needs some improvements to the facilities. They mentioned that the building would be better with a touch of paint and perhaps sealing the roofs to avoid leaking. Because of the lack of funding, prevention is not the primary focus for these centers, as they live month-to-month. I will follow up to see what Children Incorporated could do to support these needs as well.”

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How do I sponsor a child with Children Incorporated?

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Shelley Callahan | May 12, 2024En Español

It has been almost six years since our Director of International Programs, Luis Bourdet, has had the opportunity to return to our affiliated sites in India to meet with our volunteer coordinators and sponsored children there. Thankfully, this past October, he was able to make the trip along with our International Programs Specialist, Yefiny Mena, who was seeing India for the first time. They started their journey by visiting the Chandrakal Boarding Home, a long-time affiliated site with Children Incorporated, where sponsored children’s educational needs are met while they are also offered a safe place to live during the school year.

“Knowing that contributing to their child’s education gives the parents a great sense of pride. The home accepts whatever the parents can afford and sponsorship helps to cover the rest, along with other basic needs.”

Luis’ Visit

“In the fall of 2023, Yefiny and I met with all of our affiliations in India and Sri Lanka to evaluate their programs,” said Luis.

“The purpose of the evaluations was to first reaffirm regulations and funding utilization; second, become familiar with the personnel administering each affiliated site in India and in Sri Lanka; and third, visit the families with children enrolled and see first-hand the environment in which the children live. We also wanted to review norms and verify enrollment of listed children, and determine active participation with our program to evaluate benefits.”

“Another important objective was to discuss the plans and potential future development of each center, which included an assessment of any needs and future projections to enhance support for the children and the communities. Whenever possible, we wanted to visit a family or two with children in our sponsorship program, so that we could determine their needs and possibly augment our support,” said Luis.

the Chandrakal Boarding Home

“Founded in 1950 by American missionary Lillian Woodbridge, the home has provided education for thousands of impoverished children, many of whom have since made valuable contributions to their towns and villages in the fields of education, medicine and commerce. Due to the severe poverty in this area, most of the children’s parents are unable to pay tuition each month. Knowing that contributing to their child’s education gives the parents a great sense of pride. The home accepts whatever the parents can afford and sponsorship helps to cover the rest, along with other basic needs. In this way, the children receive an education that affords them the opportunity to break the cycle of poverty and rise above the difficult circumstances that they face.”

“The children express happiness at being accepted at the homes, where they are willingly preparing for education in local government schools.”

“The evaluation of the Chandrakal Boarding Home indicated that the children are present and receiving support from Children Incorporated. All support has to be utilized to sustain the home and provide the children with the educational support needed for them to attend school and complete their education. We learned that our volunteer coordinator Laveena is new, but familiar with the program, as she is the sister of our former coordinator, Omega, and is now in charge.”

“Laveena has worked hard to complete many improvements to the Chandrakal Boarding Home, including upgrading the dorms, implementing electricity alternatives, and completing a new high school building. Children Incorporated also provided funding to purchase cots for the girls, help in implementing a computer lab, and help with many other improvements, along with the steady sponsorship program. Laveena indicated that she is still learning and adjusting to post-pandemic times, but she is doing fine. The children express happiness at being accepted at the homes, where they are willingly preparing for education in local government schools.”

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Shelley Callahan | April 14, 2024En Español

While visiting our affiliated sites in India this past fall, our Director of International Programs, Luis Bourdet, met with Chinna Ramavath, who is now Dr. Ramavath, thanks to support he received from our Higher Education Fund. Today, Luis recounts his time meeting with Chinna while in Guntur in October, in which Chinna caught him up on what his life is like now thanks to support from Children Incorporated.

“Chinna was one of the first enrolled in our program when he was eight years old. His father was a rice paddy worker, making about $50-60 a month for the upkeep of the family, which was very difficult for him to support his family on,” said Luis.

Helping an entire village

Chinna is pictured filling out a medical report with some of his patients in India.

“Chinna and his family lived in St. Francis in Mellavagu, which is a small rural community, about 60 miles away from the city of Guntur. Chinna completed his primary and secondary school in the area. After that, and with the help OF Children Incorporated and his sponsor, Chinna was accepted in the School of Medicine near Guntur. Without this help, Chinna would not have had a chance to even finish primary and secondary school, let alone attend university. He graduated as a doctor and pharmacist, a newly implemented career option at the time in India. He then worked as a government doctor near Guntur, and of course, his salary was a bit larger than his father’s!”

“One time while visiting with Chinna, he asked me what he could do to give back the support he received from Children Incorporated to make his dreams a reality, and I replied, ‘Please help your family, help yourself, and help your village.’ Chinna is now a doctor working for the Indian government near where he grew up, helping his own community. We are very proud of him and all his hard work!” said Luis.

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How do I sponsor a child with Children Incorporated?

SPONSOR A CHILD