Sangeeta wants to be a better mother

Last year, Sangeeta gave birth to her fifth (and last) child, Ritesh. She and her husband now have two boys, ages 12 and 1, and three girls, ages 10, 7 and 5, whom they support with a combined monthly income of only about 2,500 rupees ($55) per month.  As a woman who has had no formal schooling herself, it has taken Sangeeta a while to develop an appreciation for the merits of education, including helping her children get off to the best possible starts to bright futures from an early age. However, after seeing all of the other women with young children in her community taking a proactive step for the sake of their children by joining the Ashraya Initiative for Children’s Mother-Baby class, Sangeeta decided to give it a try. Every other week, she brings Ritesh for a class with other mothers and their babies. At these classes, Sangeeta and the other mothers participate in interactive discussions led by local specialists on a wide range of topics designed to improve their understanding of their children’s nutritional, developmental, health-related, emotional, social and family-related needs. The mothers and their children also engage in hands-on activities to further enhance their understanding of concepts. Although she was reluctant at first, Sangeeta now sees the merits of the class, and has become an active participant, thereby ensuring that Ritesh and her other children have brighter, healthier futures.

Thank you, Akiko, Alice and Brad, Bill and Colleen and Erik, for coming together to give a year of parenting classes to Sangeeta. With the new skills she is learning, little Ritesh will start life with a head start over other children from his background.