Providing Education & Training to Women in India

Sneha Bhavan, is a unique home for boys who do not have the luxury of being able to live with their families. This can be due to parents not being able to care for the kids appropriately, trouble the kids have had at home, some have run away from home, and were found on the street or hanging out at train stations begging for change. It houses at this current point around about 84 boys. The Director, and the employees at the home are all volunteers from the church, who are trained in social work; they have spent many years with these kids, looking after the day to day needs of the kids, as well as helping them through any troubles they may have. It is unique to Kerala in the way that it is managed and funded, and there are many other shelters from around Kerala and India, mimicking what Sneha Bhavan is doing.

This summer was our first tour of Duty at Sneha Bhavan, having been to the home a few times, albeit just as a pop in, I was sure that we were going to be in for a real treat, but also something that was going to test our ability’s. The summer camp was designed to help build relationships with the kids and the people involved with the boy’s home. The camp had been split into three sections: English, Sports and Construction. Giving the boys and volunteers a chance to learn, have fun and improve their home. As this was the boys summer holidays, it was a time for them to enjoy themselves, and an opportunity for volunteers to get to know the boys on a different level to that of the classroom. It’s not about just getting involved on a surface level with the kids, but to show them that we are here to be an active part of their development, this was our motivation.

Developing relationships is a key element when working in community development and one that is overlooked far too easily. By working to what the community and partners needs are, can a development process start to take hold. Giving the group ownership of what they have done, more so what we have all done together is much more powerful than a hand out. By getting our hands dirty together we earned the respect of the boys and community, to show that we are here for them, here for the long haul. 

As we come to the end of an era here in Kerala, we can look back on some fond memories of the last 10 months. In July of 2011, we were given a group of 23 orphanage boys and girls, from the age of 6-13 years. All from the State of Manipur (North-East of India) they were caught in a child labour racket. They were not allowed to be put into the school system in Kerala due to insufficient paper work. So the job of providing these kids with an education was paramount. 

Now as we have come into the school holidays we have been able to see the progress in their growth and development over the last 10 months. This has come through watching the kids pull on their first ever sports uniform and football boots, giving them a real sense of being a team, and giving them ownership, something to take care of. Have them reading story books, learning from encyclopedia’s, getting creative with some extraordinary art lessons and seeing them develop an insane love for stickers, something they had never seen before coming here.

There still is no information on what’s happening with the kids at this point. They will need to go to school soon, so fees will need to be paid, books and uniforms purchased. This can only be made possible with the help of donations. We have made a great start, but it is only the beginning of their journey, you can join us on being a part of their journey and future. All this has only been possible through the help of donors both in country and those of you at home.