Send a Child in India to School for a Year

‘I owe my success to the Shiksha Kendra (Seva Mandir’s Bridge School) and my teacher. Without them, I would not have achieved what I did today’. These are the words of Kokila, an ex-student of one of Seva Mandir’s Bridge School, who graduated from 12^th Standard with one of the highest marks in Udaipur District. However, 7 years ago, just enrolling into a government school seemed like an unreachable dream.

Kokila was a student in one of our Bridge School located in her home village in the remote rural and tribal area of Kherwara, around 80km from Udaipur city, where the average daily wage per-capita is just $0.70. Her parents struggled to look after their large family of 6 children, supporting them through subsistence agriculture. In our working area, many girls are kept home from school and instead perform household chores. But Kokila didn’t let this deter her - she was determined to get an education.

Kokila excelled and she passed through our Bridge school with flying colors.

Since 2007, more than 12,500 children have graduated into government or private schools from the bridge schools, but even with her success, Kokila’s family’s poverty prevented her from going any further; they just could not afford to pay her school fees. For Kokila, it felt that all was lost. Her education had given her basic literacy and an understanding of maths but most of all it had started a flame inside her to learn more.

Our Bridge School teacher saw that longing inside her and he was determined to get her back into education. He made regular visits with her parents, trying to persuade them to send her back to school. Eventually, her efforts paid off and they agreed. Kokila was soon enrolled into a local government upper-primary school.

7 years later, Kokila has exceed all expectations – even her own. She is now studying in her third year of university in Udaipur and, even though she is not sure what will come next, she has become an inspiration to the girls from her remote community.

Just as with Kokila, it is vital that we support children and ensure that they receive a quality education and your donation can help us do just that.

We are happy to share that we are participating in GlobalGiving’s September Little by Little Campaign which will last 5 days, from from September 12, 2022, at 00:00:00 EDT to September 16, 2022, at 23:59:59 EDT. All eligible donations of up to $50 USD will be matched at 50% for the duration of the campaign. Therefore, every donation will have deeper impact and will enable us to reach out to more children in need. It takes only $60 to send a child to school for a year. We do hope that you will extend your generous support towards education of less privileged children.  

Thank you,

Atul Lekhra & the Seva Mandir team

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Links:

• Seva Mandir's Website
• Seva Mandir's Facebook Page
• Friends of Seva Mandir USA