By BALARAJ J M | Project Leader
Project Report due date : OCT 22, 2016
THE CHALLENGE
In the context of providing a sanctuary to disabled children and In answer to the oft raised question of the future of such disabled children after the expiry of their parents, Balajothi has posted on Global Giving’s platform a project to set up a residential facility, titled SNEHA GOODU (NEST OF FRIENDSHIP), which will take care of 150 severely disabled children, to begin with. This facility will be located on approx. one acre of land, in a rural area outside the city of Bengaluru in the State of Karnataka, India. Surrounded by nature and placed in a gated community, under the protective eyes of caregivers, the children can live in peace and happiness, in harmony with nature, without being obtrusive in any manner to society. All they require are the necessities of life, administered with love and care. Surely, society owes them this much as it is not the fault of these children that they are born in this manner.
Why do mentally challenged children need to be helped ?
Irrespective of the nature and level of his or her disability, a mentally challenged child is still a life, as precious as any other normal child, and has an equal right and opportunity to a happy and normal life. However they are helpless to do so and are almost always dependent on others for their very existence and well being.
Here are some indisputable reasons why they need help -
- Their Inability to live independently due to lack of comprehension and understanding of the world around them
- Their Inability to cope with the dynamics of a competitive society, its norms and expectations
- Need for constant attention, protection, care and guidance in all their daily activities, including personal care such as toileting, bathing, grooming, eating and other live sustaining activities.
- With the increase in numbers of the disabled population and with the present hectic living style of modern society we could not hope there will be many siblings who would be willing to take on the additional responsibility of looking after and providing for their disabled kin.
This is a very legitimate and pressing challenge due to the ever increasing numbers in the areas of mental disabilities such as Autism, Mental Retardation, Cerebral Palsy, Multiple Disabilities etc and needs to be addressed urgently.
NEED OF THE HOUR
Based upon the success with ‘Sneha Goodu’ we hope more units will come up at different parts of the State and country, which will provide the much needed respite care in increasingly progressive ways. Replication of such institutions in the long run would surely provide solution in a big way.
This is not the end of this Project but just the beginning. Reports will continue till completion of the project. We have as on Oct 6, 2016, received US $ 89.96 through your donations. Your donation is changing, forever, the lives of underprivileged severely mentally disabled children, providing them lifelong sanctuary and happiness, which is the prayer of all the families of such children. All of us at Balajothi are grateful for your support and encouragement.
THE IMPACT
The impact we hope to achieve will be two fold. Firstly the direct benefits to the beneficiaries in terms of improvement in quality of life, meaningful learning and sustainable activities, disciplined and organized lives under supervision, learning appropriate living skills and a holistic life style, and to top it all, a happy life.
Secondly, on the social front, these children would live under the care and guidance of dedicated caregivers, in a gated community, without being a stigma in civilized society. Finally, it will be society’s call to meet this challenge.
*****
Project reports on GlobalGiving are posted directly to globalgiving.org by Project Leaders as they are completed, generally every 3-4 months. To protect the integrity of these documents, GlobalGiving does not alter them; therefore you may find some language or formatting issues.
If you donate to this project or have donated to this project, you can receive an email when this project posts a report. You can also subscribe for reports without donating.
Support this important cause by creating a personalized fundraising page.
Start a Fundraiser