Give Hope and an Education to 7 Kids in Nepal

Ashok was one of the original group of Ama Ghar kids who came to us from a remote village. He was always big and strong, smart and extremely good-natured, always enjoying time spent with his Ama Ghar brothers and sisters - in fact, by the time he was about 10 he became our official photographer. He was always assigned to carry our single digital camera when we went on outings because he did a stellar job of photographing his Ama Ghar family, whether they were engrossed in a book at study time or hiking a mountain trail.

But Ashok's big breakthrough came when an I.T. company in Kathmandu volunteered to come out to Ama Ghar on Saturday mornings to work with the kids on basic computer skills like word processing, spreadsheets and PhotoShop. Ashok was a natural "computer geek", and quickly became the go-to guy at Ama Ghar when Bonnie Auntie couldn't get her office computer to work, or when one of his siblings was having a problem with a donated computer.

Because we cannot afford to buy new computers, the Ama Ghar kids are dependent on hand-me-down computers that come from our donors to do their schoolwork. These are greatly appreciated, but all of them are running different operating systems and they vary widely in age - which created the perfect opportunity for a smart boy to learn all the things that can go wrong with a computer and figure out how to fix them!

When it came time for Ashok to move into Kathmandu to attend University a couple of years ago, everyone at Ama Ghar was very sad, not only because they would miss their big brother, but because now no one will be able to fix their computer! Ashok is in his third year of a Bachelor's degree in I.T. Engineering, and he's doing very well. He has fulfilled an internship with an insurance company in Kathmandu, and has big plans for next year, when he will graduate.

What an amazing leap - from underprivileged kid to I.T. guru - and it couldn't have happened without the help of generous donors like you, helping us to transform lives every single day.

Links:

• Ama Foundation Website

Our last project report cited our Ama Ghar daughter Manisha as a perfect example of our mission to rescue children from poverty, malnutrition, trafficking and abuse and give them the loving home and education they need to become successful adults.

Since that report, Manisha has taken her first airplane flight to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia to work at the Holiday Inn as the final milestone in gaining her Bachelor's degree in Hotel Management. She lives in an apartment with other Nepali girls who are college students, and the hotel's van picks her up, takes her to work and brings her home, so she is safe but a bit sheltered... which is probably a good thing for a girl who has gone from a small village to the safe atmosphere of the Ama Ghar home.

But slowly Manisha and her friends are learning to use the transit system so that they can see more of this enormous, rapidly modernizing city. They recently traveled from their apartment to an inexpensive shopping mall in Chinatown so that Manisha could buy makeup; she has never worn makeup before, but the hotel management asked her to do so - what an introduction to the modern world! In addition, they went to see the new Hobbit movie and nearly froze to death in the air conditioning - and then the girls saw people dressed in costume as part of a comic book convention.

There is a bit of prejudice against Nepali workers in Malaysia, but when Manisha explains that she is interning as part of her Bachelor's degree and not taking a full time job that could have gone to a Malaysian person, then people have been very kind to her. Her only complaint is that the food is a bit too sweet for her taste, but she and her friends have found Nepali restaurants where they can get their beloved dal bhat!

Very exciting and a little confusing for Manisha, but this is all part of learning about the world outside of her comfort zone. To westerners, this new job and adventure that she has taken on to finish her Bachelor's may seem like normal, everyday life, but for Manisha it is a big stretch and an amazing opportunity for her to broaden her horizons. When she was a small abandoned girl in a remote village, she never imagined that she would be able to live with friends in a big city and be paid for doing a management job.

It's literally a dream come true, and she couldn't have done it without your generosity. At Ama Ghar we promise our children that we will support them in their education as far as their own skills will take them - and thanks to you, we've been able to keep that promise for Manisha. She has become a productive global citizen and living proof that if we work together we can save the world, one child at a time.