The stats are horrifically sad and pay testament to the dire need of awareness for these struggling communities. Over 300,000 farmers have committed suicide in India in the last 15 years alone and Wardha in one of the hardest hit areas.
The accumulated debt isn’t simply erased on the death of the farmer, it is passed onto the wives and children that remain and becomes their burden to repay. With only income from farming they are left with little opportunity to pay down this debt. This is where Doug’s come in…..!
Doug’s are made from scrap cotton collected from local factories and made into clouds by the wives of the farmers. Each one unique. They are not only a symbol of the weather but one of hope, each with its own silver lining.
The women are trained and given the materials needed to make the clouds and they are paid for everyone they produce. They make the Doug’s in their spare time to create income that assists to pay down the debt and provide healthcare and education for their families.
100% of profits from this project are feed back into these communities to help support local projects………that’s a win win win!
You too can help this community heal by supporting Doug’s. They are perfect item to have by your register and at a low price point make the perfect impulse purchase. Your customers would be delighted knowing they have helped service a need in community struck with such tragic economic hardships.
I wear my Doug proudly as a hair tie. How will you use your Doug?
]]>A journey starts with a single step and at the time I had no idea I would end up here……..writing this blog to tell you all about this amazing place called Dr Grahams Homes. The school was founded in 1900 By reverend Dr John Anderson Graham. He was at the time a missionary of the church of Scotland. It has homed, fed and educated underprivileged children for almost 120 years. That alone is an amazing feat.
The place is something to behold and on a scale that is almost unfathomable if you have not seen it with your own eyes. Its like stepping back in time. Grand in scale with a sprawling campus over 500 acres while being humble and somewhat basic.
In 2005 I traveled to India for the first time and that is where my personal relationship with the school, culture and people of India truly began and I fell in love with the vibrancy and energy of this kinetic place. I was hooked.
At least once a year since that first visit in 2005 I have visited the school and myself and my second husband Craig currently sponsor four children at the school. As a family we have also funded special projects at the school like hot water systems in home cottages for the children. Did I mention facilities are still basic in some ways and in much need of assistance to bring them up to a standard you or I would consider livable.
The school is academically recognized by the Indian government as a Christian school, but the school is completely independent, and its only income is derived from school fees and sponsorship money donated by us and others like us.
With around 1400 students you know the school is a huge undertaking in unto itself, but there are also the boarding cottages spread around the campus that are supervised family style with paid staff acting as Aunties and Uncles to the approx 360 sponsored wards creating a feeling of an extended family. This is sometimes referred to as the “children’s city”. There are seven girls’ cottages and 10 boys’ cottages and a couple of hostel style dorms for the older senior students. The cottages have names and I currently sponsor children in Barissa and Lucia King cottages. Lucia King cottages holds a very special place in our hearts as this is were the youngest children start there Dr Graham's Homes life.
Once a year they partake in a competition to see which cottage has the best garden. They have an immense amount of pride in all they do be it education, sports or the appearance of themselves and their cottages.
I would encourage anybody remotely interested in visiting India to do so. I would implore you to take the time to seek out Dr Grahams school and see this for yourself. The experience is almost impossible to communicate through written word. The contradictions are always there with every visit. Basic living but such joy at the small things. It’s hard to reconcile internally how having so little can still produce such joyous youth. But these children are the lucky ones. They are the ones not forgotten. They have the opportunity education can provide and that is a gift for the underprivileged in India.
As many times as I have departed, I will always miss the cry…….Aunty Aunty Aunty and long for my return from the moment I leave.
]]>It is located in the center of the poorer urban neighborhood of Tangra. They provide much needed and underfunded assistance to the disability community in the form of accommodation, workshops, day care and outreach support. All vital services that would otherwise not be available to these amazing individuals.
As part of the workshops run at Asha Niketans they create candles, tie-dye, batik and paper craft products. At Skyira we have chosen to sell “giving hands candles” on there behalf. These candles perfectly symbolized how support can be as simple as a giving hand. The candles are designed to have 100% of the product returned to the earth. No plastics or anything not biodegradable.
All profits from the sales of these gorgeous candles go back to support Asha Niketans Kolkata to help them provide the many essential services they do.
You too can support the Asha Niketans community. The giving hands candles are the perfect item to have by your register and at a low price point make the perfect impulse purchase. Your customers would be delighted knowing they have helped a community service provider and all the good work they do.
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