Gift an education...Make a life !

Dear Patrons,

As mentioned earlier, Isha Vidhya has procured two school
buses out of funding raised through GlobalGiving - one for
Cuddalore school and one for Villupuram school!

Before Isha Vidhya schools were started in these two areas,
several children had been forced to drop out of the school,
as their parents had been unable to afford private transport,
which was more expensive than the transportation provided
by the Isha Vidhya schools.  Public transport was not adequate,
dependable or convenient, but fortunately, the Isha Vidhya
school bus service offers several advantages:

• Transportation is now provided at a far lower cost and
  optimizing routes reduced travel time
• The children travel in relative comfort and safety, compared
  to public transport and the children have been able to arrive
  at school in a timely fashion.
• The children are picked up at their doorstep, which ensures
  their safety.
• The teachers also benefit from utilizing the bus, as significant
  time is now saved in their commute. Thus, the teachers are
  able to better balance their time obligations between their
  families and the school.

The Cuddalore school bus is operated by Mr. Palani and Mrs. Vijaya
and benefits 75 children. It makes 2 trips each in the morning and
in the evening.  6 villages in the radius of 6 kilometers from the school
are covered by this bus.

Impact story from Cuddalore school:

Thilipanraj's parents were from C.Pudupettai, a Tsunami affected
village. When the child was 2 years old father went to a Gulf country
as a daily wage labor. Their family was in the hope of better life
with the father getting a decent income even though it was a labor
kind of job. Unfortunately, within a month he met with a boat
accident and returned to India. He lost his legs and couldn’t earn,
thus family depends on his wife salary alone. With the meager
income, she couldn’t able to spend for the education of her son.
After knowing the background, scholarship is provided to the
student, as now he is getting a quality education and as a kid, the
journey through school bus is safe and secure.

The Villupuram school bus is operated by Mr. Senthilkumar and
Mrs. Lakshmi, and benefits 59 children and 14 staff. It makes 2 trips
each in the morning and in the evening.  9 villages in the radius of
23 kilometers from the school are covered by this bus.

Shares Sandhiya of 10th grade from the Villupuram school:

"It had been a daily struggle to attend school due to the distance and
rush in the morning hours as government bus facilities are very limited
to our village. But, through School bus, I am able to travel with my friends
and save time. The journey is such an enjoyable thing as we use to play
few games. KG children are very happy with the new school bus. I am
very thankful to Isha Vidhya and in the future; I will lend my support to the
society in all possible ways."

We are attaching the fabulous pictures of both the school buses for
your view!

If you would like take part in this effort of contributing to the school
infrastructure, please consider a recurring donation every month for
a small amount. Funding little by little makes a huge difference all put
together!  The link to start a recurring donation is:

http://www.globalgiving.org/projects/ishavidhya?show=recurring

The great news is that if you make a recurring donation between
July 12th 18:30 PM IST and July 13th 21:29 PM IST, your first
recurring donation upto $100 will be doubled, provided the recurring
is maintained for at least 3 months.

We thank you from the bottom of our heart for everything that you
have done for Isha Vidhya. We look forward for your continued
engagement!

Best Regards,

Links:

• Recurring donation link

Some students of Tuticorin Isha Vidhya school joined the
World Environment Day celebration at the Tirunelveli Collector’s
office. The function was organized by 'Project Green Hands', an
environmental outreach project of 'Isha Outreach'.  The administrative
head of the Tirunelveli district, the Collector of Tirunelveli, was the 
Chief Guest. Special arrangements had been made for the selected
students and staff to reach the venue on June 5th, as the Tuticorin
school had not been opened after vacations.

Saplings were planted by the Collector, general public, Isha volunteers
and the students. The saplings were made available by the Tuticorin
Isha Vidhya school's nursery.  Project Green Hands assist the Isha
Vidhya schools in forming and maintaining the nurseries.

Palavesam, 8th-grade student shares:
“We went to Tirunelveli to plant Saplings at the Collector’s office,
It was a very proud moment for me to be standing next to the
Collector and pouring water at the saplings. I was very excited and my
mind was rushing with so many thoughts… We planted Neem trees,
Jamun, Guava, Banyan, Cheeku, and other saplings brought by Isha
Volunteers and Project Green Hands. The day went very well, we were
4 boys and 3 girls in our group and all of us planted saplings at the
Collector’s Office. There is no water in and around Tirunelveli and we
are aware that our resources are depleting, activities like this make us
involve in a proactive way."

Shanmuga Priya, an Arts and Crafts teacher shares:
“We normally do the Tree planting activity at School, this time we
commuted to Tirunelveli by the School van which was arranged
for this purpose. The students were very happy and it was like a
picnic for all of us and to meet the Collector was also a special
moment for everyone, something beyond our imagination. The
students along with Isha Volunteers, Project Green Hands, the
Staff members and the Collector’s presence made this event
very memorable for me.”

Environment is an important part of the studies and practice at the
Isha Vidhya schools. We encourage you to get in touch with us if
you would like to know more information about the environmental
sciences studies at the Isha Vidhya schools by emailing us at
global.giving@ishavidhya.org

Note: No last names or surnames of individuals are used in this report.

Links:

• Isha Vidhya @ Global Giving