Education & hope for 165 needy children in India

“Optimism is the faith that leads to achievement. Nothing can be done without hope and confidence.” – Helen Keller.

New Home has successfully weathered the first year of the pandemic through optimism - for growth, support, and for the future. 

Sharing these updates from our children’s home:

NARRATIVE ON KEY HIGHLIGHTS: 

The recovery from the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, though challenging, was an eventful journey for all at New Home. The children and staff positively adapted and grew through the process. They now await to welcome the new year along with its opportunities and ventures.

CHILDREN’S UPDATES:

• Nadhiya had an appendicitis operation (1st July). She was admitted in the hospital for a week and went home to her mother for 10 days after discharge.
• Bindu had a mild injury on her finger. Her X-ray was normal
• Tanu was taken to Mobility India (4th Aug) to repair / re-adjust his prosthetic leg to reduce pain and compression on the knee joint
• Anand was taken for 3 Audiology consultations with Anusha and John (audiologists) to assess his hearing aid and progress in speech and hearing. Annie (boys home staff) gives him a 30-minute audio and speech session every day and Kugakali (LIA teacher) helps with his academics
• Janavi (7 years old) is given additional dietary supplements of an egg and fruit as we noticed her growth rate was comparatively slower than the other children

With the change in weather, 18 children fell ill with cold and viral fever. It started with just a few children and spread to the others, including 6 staff members. All were given multivitamin tablets and homemade “kashaya” (immunity boosters). Remedial classes are carried out for a couple of students - Gopal, Ganesh, Revathi, Hema, Anand and a few others - as necessary. An educational debate, in the form of Mock Trials (a CWC requirement) was conducted to help with increasing public speaking confidence.

ACADEMIC UPDATES :

Two of our children (Ganesh and Gopal) have registered to appear for their 10th grade Board Exams in this academic year. Tentatively, the NIOS exams are scheduled in March 2022. Four of our graduates received their 2nd PU results in this quarter and got very good results. (Katheni - 90.5%, Dayanand - 83.5%, Sneha - 80%, Sarasu - 79%)

The Principal of Lighthouse International School interviewed and admitted eight children from New Home. All were admitted in pre-primary as they could not speak in English and it would be difficult to cope with in a higher class. Four children surprised us with how quickly they picked up the language and have now been promoted to 1st grade. The First Unit Tests of Lighthouse International School were carried out online in September. 

Currently, the school is running with the support of laptops, projectors and internet dongles / hotspots borrowed from New Home. Four new TVs were purchased and installed in the classrooms. The school partnered with Sony to provide computer training sessions to all the staff who oversee the online classes. Wifi challenges continue in the school but are manageable. 

Three new teachers have started staying on campus to oversee classrooms and conduct remedial classes after school hours. They are - 

• Narasinha - Kannada teacher
• Kugakali - Pre-primary teacher who joined on 26th August and will start counseling in the coming months
• Ashley - Math and Home Science teacher who joined on 30th August

CWC VISIT :

CWC and DCPO Unit inspectors visited the campus in September. They carried out intensive inspections of documentation, staff interviews, visited all areas of campus, reviewed individual child files, etc. The CWC staff worked with lawyers to ensure that we are maintaining all required documentation, and all criteria for four separate homes (7 - 11 years, 12 - 15 years for boys and girls) were met. New Home met all requirements to be certified as a FIT Institution and is awaiting response on the license renewal.

EXPANSION PROJECT :

The expansion of New Home (Boys Dorm) and the LIA additional classrooms, costing 67 lakhs, is being supported by Grace Memorial Fund. The school is set to be furnished for 15 lakhs. A foundation strong enough to construct an additional floor in the future will be laid. After the inauguration of a new unit with minor alterations, the senior and junior boys will be moved, to meet CWC requirements.

GENERAL ACTIVITIES :

• All committee meetings are held as per schedule
• During the Santhosa Samsara meet, sex education sessions were conducted for boys of 12+ years
• Outdoor and indoor games, art and counseling sessions were also organized
• A session on “caring for difficult children” was provided for Mentors.
• The movie HEALED - Biopic of George Ebenezer was screened for all

Various important days and national holidays were celebrated by all at New Home. Founders Day was celebrated by planting eight new trees, Independence Day by hoisting the national flag. Wellwishers celebrated their birthdays / anniversaries and other events by sponsoring lunches, cakes, and snacks.

CAMPUS UPDATES :

Monkey Bars are being installed in the playground as a measure to redirect the energy of hyperactive children from destruction to sports and outdoor physical activities. New Home’s organic farm saw excellent harvest in July, August and early September with tapioca, ladies finger, brinjal, bottle gourd, spinach, tomatoes, custard apples, rose apples, papayas and guavas.

"You are braver than you believe, and stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think" - It's a quote of Christopher Robin. The pandemic made us believe that we are braver, stronger and smarter as the mankind continue to soar high above the circumstances. We at New Home, continue to soar high with the help of our donors like you. Here are few updates about our Children during this pandemic.

Narrative on key highlights:

The second quarter of 2021 carried the weight of the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, we’ve come out successful on the other side of Lockdown 2.0 with all the precautionary measures taken to keep the virus at bay. We continued with most of our regular activities online with the resources available to us. All our children and staff at New Home are safe and healthy.

ACADEMIC UPDATES

1. Board Exams - This year we had 4 children preparing for the 12th grade Board Exams. However the exams were cancelled, and they go down in history, along with all the 12th graders across the Globe, as the first batch of children who have graduated school without an exam.

2. Home School - Lighthouse International School reopened and started classes online. Since we did not have all the necessary resources at once we started in phases.

* 6th graders started first on the 3rd of May.
* In the following weeks, we gradually increased the number of classes to include all the children.
* The last grade to join was the pre-primary on the 22nd of June.

3. School and Technology - Currently the school is running on laptops, projectors and internet dongles / hotspots borrowed from New Home and it’s staff.

* We were able to purchase 1 new TV. We require 7 more for each classroom, so children don’t crowd around a single laptop.
* New Home staff are currently overseeing and taking pictures of classworks, class tests and homeworks for the teachers.

4. The Graduation Ceremony - One of the big events in this quarter was the Graduation Ceremony for Dayanand, Sarasu, Kateni and Sneha, held on the 2th of June. Most of them have been part of the home 13 - 14 years, joining the home at the tender age of 4 and 5 years.

* The children organised dances, songs and speeches about the four graduates.
* They created 4 memory videos with pictures from the time the graduates joined the home until now.
* The Trustees and staff spoke of their memories with each of the four children.
* No visitors were allowed on campus but well wishers, and guests joined online via Skype.

Apart from a few technical glitches with audio, the events went very well. Each of the graduates will be dearly missed by the children and staff.

* Dayanand - Had a huge positive impact on the younger boys. He was very good at his studies, motivated and ambitious. He played the role of an Acting Mentor for the boys along with Prem during the lockdown when we were short of staff. He left on the 30th June to stay with his mother in Bangalore city.
* Kateni - was most unique. No other child has shown consistency in excellence as she has. Over the years, she has topped her class and received awards of good behavior almost every year. She left for Manipur on the 11th of July, back to her family.
* Saraswati - the creative one. She loved to make the children laugh, was the go-to-person to organise dances and skits for all events. She draws beautifully and made cards for most of our sponsors. She left for Mangalore on the 30th of June to stay with her guardian.
* Sneha - the genius. She was excellent in academics as well as co-curricular activities. She struggled with emotional baggage for a while, but with the help of counsellors she is coping very well now. She left to stay with her sister in Bangalore city.

GENERAL ACTIVITIES

* Paul Raj sponsored a Quiz Competition with Rs. 10000 cash prize and a Trophy. Kateni (senior group) and Dilip (junior group) won the 1st Prizes.

* Awards for Best Behaviour have started again to motivate children with behavioural issues to improve. Gopal and Nadhya were awarded for the month of May.

* The children celebrated Mother’s Day on campus, but were quiet on Father's Day to respect the demise of our Founder.

ONLINE ACTIVITIES

* Another quiz was conducted online and we are happy to say that the New Home children topped the NLF Teens Quiz Competition.
* NLF Teens sessions continue online every Sunday.
* Guardians of Dreams sessions - two hours a week continue every Saturday.
* Counselling sessions happen online everyday. The Counselor plans to stay on campus a few days a month to help guide children with behavioural issues.

STAFF UPDATES

* Jaison - The boys mentor, left at the beginning of the second quarter.
* Two new mentors - Annie, Sekar and their child joined New Home on the 10th of June. They started work on the 17th of June after a 7 day quarantine period.
* Prem - Boys mentor left on the 1st of July.
* Janice - The counsellor stayed on campus for a week. She was quarantined until her COVID negative report was received.

CAMPUS UPDATES

1. Electric cost reduction measures

* Reduced the sprinkler usage in the farm.
* Strict monitoring of borewell motor (two) operation.
* Monitoring water consumption in the staff quarters through meter reading.

2. Drains and pipes - Blocked drainage pit near the staff quarters

* Removed blocks
* Cleaned
* Cemented with outside labourers

3. The Kitchen Garden - has been doing well, with organic fresh green leafy vegetables and fruits for the nutrition of our children.

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