Education & hope for 165 needy children in India

Greetings from Reaching Hand!

Someone rightly said, "Every child can be reached; you just have to stretch far enough." ~ Copyright © 2006 Robyn Sorrell. At Reaching Hand, it is a consistent endeavor to reach out to many more like you to support our effort to reach out to every child we can.

Thank you very much for coming forward to support Reaching Hand with your generous contributions.

The funds contributed by you will help Reaching Hand continue to strengthen and deepen its work with its children.

The New Financial Year beckons with hope, excitement and new energy! The Reatz Team enters the New Year feeling tremendously grateful to each of you who have been an important part of our success in the last year. As we gear up to reflect on the year gone by, we can only feel a tremendous sense of happiness and gratitude for the thousands who have walked the distance with us in the last year and we are hopeful of this continued support in 2012-2013 too. 

The children at New Home are growing taller and stronger. Each of our children comes from pathetic backgrounds and each has a sad story. We cannot do anything about their past but definitely we can brighten their future.

We want to give them the very best, hence we have enrolled them at good English Medium Schools. Equal emphasis is given to studies, sports and extracurricular activities such as music and art with life skills teaching.

TODAY`S DESTITUTES TOMORROW` LEADERS ....is our dream for the children in our care.

Summer has crept in very fast. Our children are of course unaffected. Exams are finally over, staffs were perspiring through the exams while the children were happily mugging and the staffs are still perspiring wondering how the results will be.

Then after comes the result day with lot of surprises.  All the children got very good marks in their respective subjects and passed out with flying colours. We are ecstatic as 12 of our children Sanjeev,Blessy,Pravina,Katini,Sneha,Sazhuni,Leshini  Sivaganesh,Thotsem,Charan, Thomba,Umesh have been awarded the HONOUR ROLL for the year 2011-2012.This is awarded to children who maintain a consistent high percentage through the year in all subjects. Above all what truly amazes is that 70% of our children have full attendance in the School irrespective of their illness in the recent past.

After hearing the exam results, the children were quite thrilled in exploring different outdoor activities such as playing football matches, going for an outing, trekking and attending life skill training.

During the summer vacation like other kids our kids were also attended a Summer Camp organized by PeoplePro a reputed professional training group. The children were taught lessons on life skills, personality development and building leadership through fun modules. Children from various schools attended and our children thoroughly enjoyed their companion and made some good friends.

We must share with you about a friendly football match with one of the corporate team that was held recently with our children. Our boys were absolutely thrilled as they felt they were playing at the Olympics as the match was played in the stadium. They huddled together before the match. Captain Chuimayo led the team onto the field. The team was introduced to the Chief Guest who shook hands with both the teams and wished them to play well.

The announcer had a word with our captain as regards strategy and game plan. At the interval, our staff rushed on to the field with water for our exhausted players to encourage them and finally our boys won 4-3.The Opponents allowed our children some goals but our guys came away feeling they had beaten the Opponent Team. It was a sight to watch our kids play and I enjoyed every bit of it .One of our boys Surya did a back kick and hit a goal. The Goal Keeper was too stunned to move. The entire crowd stood up and cheered him. What a magical moment, that was for our children.

We now have a football Coach who is currently training 17 of our boys. Some according to him are doing extremely well. We are surprised by their natural talent that the children are gifted with.

On 26^th May our children got a chance to visit “Innovative Film City” with 20 volunteers from of a leading financial company, accompanied by staffs. Innovative Film City is one of the best amusement parks in India. It was a long pending dream of our children that they could realized. The children had a very good fun time…playing in water and experiencing roller coaster and different games for the first time. All were opened up and enjoyed like no one is watching them. We really felt very happy by watching their smiley faces and proud moment.

The children were also got the opportunity to be a part of the annual day celebration of one of the corporate in Bangalore. Our children were the chief guest, sat on the front sit with proud & dignity and enjoyed all the performance by the employees. Later on they also jumped in and started dancing, singing, acting and screaming. The audiences stood up and applaud them for what they did. The function got over followed by a delicious dinner.

The kids had one of the best ever summer vacation this year as they could experience many new things and explore new possibilities in their life by exposing themselves to the world. Every good things end up with a sad note as we could see in their faces after getting to know about the school opening date.

Now it’s time to look forward and prepare our children for the next academic year. A new beginning with a new academic year, new books, new uniforms, new shoes, new bags, new friends, new teachers, new hope, new aspirations, new dreams...NEW HOME CHILDREN are absolutely thrilled to be back at School.

It is our prayer and desire that all these children should have a joyous childhood, because before they came to New Home they only knew struggle, strife and hunger and now they have happiness, hope, aspiration, dream and conviction.
 

Thanks for standing with us......enabling the children move forward to take on another academic year.

Do check out our latest updated and sign up for our monthly newsletter at www.reachinghand.org. We would also love to hear from you about how else you can support us and how we can build this community of supporters. 

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Reaching Hand is a registered Charitable Trust started in 1996 to work with vulnerable children, marginalized women & deprived families empowering them to lead a life of hope, self-worth and dignity. It envisions an empowered future for all by acting as a catalyst for social change. Empowerment of children, women & families from weaker sections of society through quality education, health care and skill development is the key focus of Reaching Hand.

About NEW HOME - A child protection and care centre

Homeless and impoverished orphans in rural & urban Bangalore are in need of care and education. When children lose their parents to an illness like AIDS or in accident working in the construction sites or because of alcoholism, a relative generally takes in the child and cares for them. When no relative is able to care for a child, they are forced to live on the street and for that child, all hope is lost. Life is hard enough for a child when steps into the street. Poverty in childhood is a root cause of poverty in adulthood. Impoverished children often grow up to be impoverished parents who in turn bring up their own children in poverty. In order to break the generational cycle, poverty reduction must begin with children.

Bangalore has an estimated 75,000 street children among that 85% are orphans. There are a combination of those on and off the street and those who are completely abandoned. They usually live in groups in self-dedicated areas of Bangalore. All of them are subject to severe kinds of exploitation, physical, sexual or financial. Substance abuse, high-risk sexual behavior and non-availability of basic services are issues of immediate concern. We believe that if a child receives adequate and timely services & intervention then they can kick the habit, and become sensitive. Our frequent interactions with the Department of Women and Child Development (DWCD) and the advocacy of our work with developmental agencies have led to the development of a strong, collaborative relationship with the government.

The children of New Home; are from broken homes, without or with single parents who is financially destitute, or because of weak or non-existent relationships with parents or step parents. They all need security, nurturing, guidance, and protection as they prepare for responsible adulthood and productive citizens.

Currently, Reaching Hand has two child protection and care centre both for boys and girls separately. At present the Home has 21 girls & 25 boys among them 7 are orphan, 8 have  single parent and rests 30 are vulnerable. The children of New Home range from 6 to 12+ years of age. They attend English medium schools, and are encouraged to participate in extracurricular activities such as sports, music, dance and even access to computer peripherals. The houseparent and staff help the children with homework; direct them toward responsibility and high ideals of love, discipline, support and example as well as guiding them through teenage struggles.

The goal of the Homes is to nurture, guide, and inspire children to be honest, have a healthy self-image, and become productive citizens of country by hold fulfilling jobs, care for their fellow man and live a life of dignity and pride.

The children of New Home had an absolute year as they could continue to reflect all the happiness that they have got throughout last year.  We are very happy to see children getting excellent opportunity to celebrate their childhood which would not have been possible without the support of donors like you.

All our kids thoroughly enjoyed their Christmas Vacation. They attended a Christmas party where they had a blast, with fun games and lots of eats. The organizers were all out to give our children a great treat.  They returned back with lots of gifts. A trip to KFC was the icing on the Cake during this celebration time.

Playing to their heart`s content they could not even think about getting back to School, but they reluctantly marched to School wondering why all the good things in life have an abrupt end. We encourage every children to follow their dreams and we shape their dreams by creating opportunities for them. About 15 of our children are also undergoing Football Coaching. Some of our children are also learning the keyboard and guitar. It is our desire that they excel in the area of their talent .We try to equip them in every area so that when they get out into the world they are in no way inferior to the other children.

Recently their School conducted a Spelling Competition. They had to learn a whole long list of words and spell it out. Some of our kids decided not to take the trouble but few of them took it seriously and won the Competition. Our Little Chaitra is thrilled because the other kids got only certificates while she got a story book and certificate.

An Inter School Athletics Meet was conducted by KPMG, at Kanteerva Stadium recently, wherein 124 Schools participated. Chuimayo, Charan, Punith, Bharat and Umesh won silver medals in the under 14 and under 10 categories.

As if this was not enough, Chuimayo and Monisha did us proud again by winning silver medals at the Star Trek Inter School Meet recently. We Praise God for their fantastic performance and  and we are more and more convinced that they are Leaders in the Making. Positively thinking....maybe one day our children may represent India at the OLYMPICS!

The First round tests are over and the shocks and surprises in marks are happening (Hindi and Kannada marks are always a shock). Most have done well in the respective papers.

Chuimayo our 13 year old child was diagnosed with epilepsy, about three years back. He was on medication since. Recently after an EEG Scan the doctor said he could discontinue his medicines which is a great relief especially for him, since he simply detested taking it. We thank God for this healing.

One of our boys Surya (12 year old) managed to get into his Green House Football Team. Their team has won the finals, and we are all happy for him. All of them ask us for prayer before they go for any match, and sometimes it is very difficult to console the losers. I presume they will learn to accept failures also as they move on.

Monisha won the Elocution Competition conducted recently in School. Our little Sarala all of four years was a very shy child till last month. Suddenly we see a different girl...she has become very confident and is presently teaching the 5 and 6 year olds some dance steps she picked up in School.

The other day it was Blessy`s birthday. Four children sleep in a room and on that day the girls of Blessy`s room would not open the door. Finally when they did the three girls came out in a row followed by the other girls in a single file and Blessy stood last. Each came out into the Hall and as Blessy entered they screamed HAPPY BIRTHDAY and sang for her. They even decorated Blessy`s room too.

It is fun watching them grow ... and there is always so much to write about.

Manjunath is improving in leaps and bounds. Every time he comes home from the Special School Hostel we see him getting remarkably independent. His teachers are also very happy with him. Asha Kiran Special Needs School had their Annual Day where Manjunath is studying. Most of the Staff decided to be there to encourage our Manju. He was overjoyed when he saw us. All the children did their best. I truly salute the teachers for not only managing the challenged children but also getting them to act. It must have been a herculean task.

Manjunath was WISDOM in the play and every time he came on stage he made sure we were looking at him. Needless to mention that our eyes were glued on him. We came away feeling so thrilled, as we thought of the progress he has been making over the years. As we travelled back together with Manjunath, It was a wonderful sight to see him pampered by all the Staff in the vehicle.

Reaching Hand is dedicated to provide protection and care to the children who are neglected, abused, or in need of a home and family.  We care for these children without regard for race, religion, culture, national origin, or financial or social status. Many of our children have experienced such severe degrees of abuse that they face difficulty in adjusting to a “normal” home life. Our approach to children starts with a fun filled counseling and carried away with an affection love.

The children are attending their annul exam and we hope that by next report we will be surprising you with their results. Please uphold them in your prayer.

Continue to encourage us in our journey through your support so that we can able to make difference in their lives by giving them the best thus making productive citizens so that they can live a life of self worth and dignity.

Links:

• http://www.reachinghand.org/articles.php