Omsingh (also known as Om) is a 13-year old boy, and the 6th of his parents’ seven children.  Neither of his parents is educated, and his oldest siblings are have also barely completed primary school, so Om is excited about being among the first in his family to pursue an education in earnest.

Om is currently studying in the 5th grade, and because he is very bright and hardworking, he was transferred from a government school in the slums near his house to a private school on the other side of the city.  His education is sponsored by the Ashraya Initiative for Children, and as a part of this arrangement, Om receives daily meals at the AIC Education Outreach Centre as well.  As his father earns about only Rs 3,000 ($65) per month as a roadside metalworker, the nutritious meals that Om receives make a big difference to his studies and health.

Typically, Om eats a meal at the Centre when he arrives there before school, takes a packed lunch with him to school, and eats again upon his arrival in the afternoon, before sitting down to two hours of intensive after-school tutoring. No doubt having regular balanced meals makes it much easier for Om to concentrate during his rigorous schedule of school and tutoring.

The meals also offer Om’s parents an incentive to keep their son attending school and the Education Centre, which makes it less likely that they will view his education as a drain on their resources and force him to leave school at a younger age. As it stands now, Om talks of wanting to go to college one day, and is on a solid path to fulfilling this dream.

Your gift of a month of meals each,  Srikanth, Jim, John, Jill, and Glen (x8), will ensure that Om continues to receive three balanced meals a day for an entire year. The meals include chapati (flat bread), bhaji (cooked vegetables), boiled eggs, fresh seasonal fruit, yogurt and several other items. Om’s  mother credits her son’s improved health and steady weight gain to the meals that he has been receiving and will continue to receive at AIC.

Thank you,  Srikanth, Jim, John, Jill, and Glen, for coming together to provide a year of nutritious meals to Om.

Sangeeta is the 21-year old mother of two boys.  Her older son is almost 2, and her youngest is just 5 months old.  Sangeeta and her husband have struggled a lot since getting married and setting up their family.  Her husband whittles keys on the side of the road, earning about 50 rupees (just over $1) a day, and Sangeeta sells old clothes and goes out begging occasionally when money is especially tight and she is worried about being able to feed her family.

With the birth of her second son, Vishal, Sangeeta decided that it was time she joined a Mommy-Baby class at the AIC Health and Community Center. At these classes, Sangeeta and the other mothers participate in interactive discussions led by local specialists and health workers 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 babies also engage in hands-on activities to further enhance their understanding of concepts. As she has two children under the age of 2, Sangeeta attends class twice as often – with the 0-12 month babies and their mothers, and the 12-24 month toddlers and their mothers – meaning that she is learning twice as much!

Sangeeta benefits from the attendance incentives offered to the women as well – small toiletry and hygiene items like soap, baby toothbrushes, and baby lotion. On her family’s meager income, Sangeeta would be unable to provide these items for her little ones without the support of the program. Sangeeta feels excited about the information that she is learning and the opportunity to bond with other women. Through these classes, she knows that she is improving her children’s lives and futures.

Thank you, Mike and Suzanne, Lowry, Cindy, and James, for coming together to provide a year of parenting classes to Sangeeta. This will not only help make her raise her children better, it will empower her to be a more useful member of the community.

14-year old Archana is the oldest of five children. Her family is extremely poor, because her father is an alcoholic who spends the majority of the money that he earns working as a roadside metal worker on alcohol. As he only earns about Rs 1500 ($35) a month in total, often only about Rs 500 ($12) is left for household expenses every month. Archana is in Grade 9 and is on track to graduate from 10th grade (the end of secondary school) next year, which will make her the first person in her entire extended family to receive any sort of education at all, let alone graduate from high school!

Archana is an extremely bright student and does well in school, despite the lack of guidance and support from her parents, because she receives daily assistance from the Ashraya Initiative for Children (AIC). AIC sponsors her and her siblings’ education, clothes, transportation to school, tutoring  etc.

As a part of this support, AIC provides daily meals for Archana and the other children in the program.  Archana receives a packed meal to school, eats again when she arrives back at AIC’s Education Center after school, and has the option of taking food home with her after tutoring. Although these nutritious meals are important for all the children in the program, for Archana and her siblings, they have truly made the difference between  good health and malnutrition. As Archana approaches the most important year of her academic career thus far, she is thankful to receive daily meals and knows that she is well on her way toward a brighter future.

Your gift of a month of meals each, Junghwan, Don, Explorers, Sarah (x2), Lowry, Jamie & Jeff, James, Jeffrey, Jerame, Katherine, and Lee,will ensure that Archana continues to receive three balanced meals a day for an entire year. The meals include chapati (flat bread), bhaji (cooked vegetables), boiled eggs, fresh seasonal fruit, yogurt and several other items.

Thank you, Junghwan, Don, Explorers, Sarah, Lowry, Jamie & Jeff, James, Jeffrey, Jerame, Katherine, and Lee, for coming together to ensure that Archana continues to enjoy good health.

Phoolkaur is the 21 year old mother of Deepkaur, her 18-month old daughter. Phoolkaur married her husband at the age of 17, and lives with him and his parents in a small hut in the slums. Her husband has a 4th grade education and works as a part-time caddy at the golf course across the highway from the slum, earning about 3,000 rupees ($65) per month when work is steady.

As a young mother, Phoolkaur has often felt unprepared to have a child, but has embraced the challenges of raising her daughter with the help of the AIC Mother-Baby class at the nearby Community Outreach Centre.

Phoolkaur and Deepkaur attend the weekly classes and Phoolkaur mingles with other mothers, while her daughter plays with toddlers her age under the watchful eye of a designated caregiver in another room. The mothers learn about dietary needs of their children, baby growth and development, birth spacing and family planning, communication and relationships within the family, good parenting practices and many other topics through structured discussions led by local professionals, specialists and health workers.

The structure of the program is as interactive as possible, and the classes often go on fieldtrips to the local clinic to ensure their children are up-to-date with immunizations, or participate in cooking projects to learn about how to make healthy, affordable meals for their children.

Phoolkaur enjoys the sessions, and she has the chance to bond with other mothers of similarly aged children over their shared experiences. She and Deepkaur also receive small gift items (soap, shampoo, etc) for their good attendance, as well as regular access to the on-site doctor to answer all of Phoolkaur’s questions.

Phoolkaur has just learned that she is expecting her second child, so she knows that everything she is learning at Mommy-Baby classes will come in doubly handy soon!

Thank you, Cindy, for providing a year of parenting classes to Phoolkaur. This will not only help make her raise her children better, it will empower her to be a more useful member of the community.

Anup is a student of Grade 8 and a beneficiary of the Ashraya Initiative for Children’s (AIC) Education Outreach Program. His father died when he was just a baby, leaving his mother alone to care for him and his two older sisters. Anup’s mother earns 1,500 rupees ($35) per month working as a caregiver in a government-run nursery program, and Anup, his mother and his two older sisters live in a tiny house in the slums.

Anup’s mother is working hard to save money for her two daughters’ weddings, which means that there is never any money left over at the end of the month. Anup and his sisters have been students of the AIC Education Outreach Program for four years now, and the family has benefited tremendously by the support provided to them through this program, particularly the daily meals.

Anup comes to the AIC Education Centre early in the morning, and eats a hot, tasty meal before heading off to school with a packed lunch in hand. In the afternoon, he returns to the centre for a nutritious snack before after-school tutoring.

Now that he is coming up on taking his 10th standard Board exams and finishing secondary school in a mere two years, this nutritional support is making more of a difference for Anup than ever.

Your gift of a month of meals each, StayPositive, Steve (x2), Ayla, Gregory, Tushar (x2), Shona, Kowsilliya, Leslie, Tom, and Rajeev, will ensure that Anup continues to receive three balanced meals a day for an entire year. The meals include chapati (flat bread), bhaji (cooked vegetables), boiled eggs, fresh seasonal fruit, yogurt and several other items. Anup’s  mother credits her son’s improved health and steady weight gain to the meals that he has been receiving and will continue to receive at AIC.

Thank you, StayPositive, Steve, Ayla, Gregory, Tushar, Shona, Kowsilliya, Leslie, Tom, and Rajeev, for coming together to ensure that Anup continues to enjoy good health.

Just over a year ago, Chameli took a huge step by convincing her husband to allow her to join the AIC Basic Tailoring class at a nearby community center. Since that time, she completed the Basic Tailoring course, moved up to the Intermediate Tailoring course, and has now completed that as well! Although there was no Advanced Tailoring class in existence for them to move up to, Chameli and the other ladies in her group put in a request for a class to be created so that they could continue to learn and develop their sewing skills. Inspired by their passion and motivation, AIC created a new class, and Chameli is excited to have just enrolled in the AIC Advanced Tailoring class!

Chameli  has already begun making clothes (salwar kameezes and children’s dresses) for family members, and feels that completing the Advanced Tailoring course will truly complete her foundation in tailoring so that she feels comfortable offering her skills to the outside community to earn additional income for her family.

Chameli’s husband, who was reluctant to let her join the class, grudgingly admits that Chameli and the whole family have benefited from the class, and that supplementary income would greatly benefit the family, as he earns only 2,000 rupees ($45) per month working as a roadside iron worker.

With four young children to support, his income is never enough. Chameli is gaining the confidence and experience she will need to open up her own small business through her daily participation in the Advanced Tailoring class.

Your generosity,  SwipeGood, Dwayne and Terese, Dennis (x2), and Anil  (x2), , made it possible for Chameli to enter the Advanced Tailoring class, where she will learn more challenging techniques and skills, and will be equipped to take  orders for custom-made outfits, in preparation for one day being able to begin her own tailoring business.

Thank you, SwipeGood, Dwayne and Terese, Dennis, and Anil, for coming together to bolster Chameli’s motivation and persistence.

Twenty-five year old Tulsi struggled to conceive for several years before seeking fertility treatment from a local non-profit health program. Shortly thereafter, she found out that she was pregnant with her daughter, Neha, now almost 4. Two years later, she was thrilled to discover that she was expecting again, and one year ago, gave birth to her second daughter, Priya. After her initial fertility difficulties, Tulsi feels so grateful to be a mother and is a very attentive, doting parent.  Naturally, she jumped at the opportunity to improve her parenting skills by joining a Mother-Baby class through the same health program that provided her initial fertility treatment.

Tulsi enjoys the sessions because they are interactive and engaging, and she has the chance to bond with other mothers of similarly aged children over their shared experiences. Tulsi brings Priya with her so that she has an opportunity to socialize and play with educational toys under the watchful eye of a designated caregiver during the discussion portions of the class and participate in the hands-on activites with her mothers during the rest of the class.  During the interactive, hands-ons components, she and the other babies and toddlers  gets to participate in the class as well, whether by taste-testing a nutritious snack the women are learning to cook for their children, or accompanying their mothers on a field trip to a local health clinic for immunizations.

The classes also ensure that children like Priya are kept up-to-date with their vaccinations and check-ups. They also have regular access to the on-site doctor to answer all of Tulsi’s questions. With all of this support, Tulsi feels much more prepared and confident that she can foster an enriching, engaging environment for them at home. The class also serves as a support group for the women, who have created their own little community and offer each other assistance and friendship as they navigate motherhood together.

Tulsi and Priya also receive small gift items (soap, shampoo, baby toothbrush etc)  as a reward for good attendance and to encourage good hygiene habits. Tulsi is thankful for these gifts, as her husband earns a mere 1,500 rupees ($35) per month as a roadside key-maker, and she would have difficulty providing these items to her daughters otherwise.

Thank you, SwipeGood, Arun, and Erik (x2), for coming together to gift a year of vital parenting classes to Tulsi and to help Tulsi become an excellent mother.

Jyoti is the mother of two young children – her three-year old son, Ashish, and two-year old daughter, Neha.

Her husband, the sole breadwinner, works as a painter earning  around 5000 rupees ($100) per month, depending on the season.

Not long ago, Jyoti heard about a weekly Mother-Baby class being run at the nearby AIC Health and Community Outreach Centre. As many other women from her community were also attending, Jyoti decided to sign up for the class.

The Mother-Baby class is designed to teach women about the dietary needs of their children, baby growth and development, birth spacing and family planning, communication and relationships within the family, good parenting practices and many other topics through structured discussions led by local professionals, specialists and health workers.

Jyoti enjoys the sessions because they are interactive and engaging, and she has the chance to bond with other mothers of similarly aged children over their shared experiences. Jyoti brings Neha with her so that she has an opportunity to socialize and play with educational toys under the watchful eye of a designated caregiver during the discussion portions of the class and participate in the hands-on activites with her mothers during the rest of the class.

The classes also ensure that children like Neha are kept up-to-date with their vaccinations and check-ups. She and Neha also receive small gift items (soap, shampoo, etc) for their good attendance, as well as regular access to the on-site doctor to answer all of Jyoti’s questions. With all of this support, Jyoti feels much more prepared and confident that she can foster an enriching, engaging environment for them at home, despite the fact that neither she nor her husband completed primary school.

Thank you, Subash, for providing a year of parenting classes to Jyoti. This will not only help make her raise her children better, it will empower her to be a more useful member of the community.

Suman is one of her parents’ eight surviving children. So many mouths to feed has meant that Suman has been forced to sacrifice a great deal for her family, and spends her days selling clothes on the side of the road to contribute to her parents’ income of only 2,500 rupees ($55) each month. Six months ago, however, Suman decided to take a step that would shape her future for the better: she joined the AIC Basic Tailoring class. After six months of attending the class daily and learning from the very patient, engaging tailoring teacher, Suman was more than ready to move up to the Intermediate course with all of her classmates. Your generosity, Bill and Colleen (x2), Pradeep, Peter and Mahendra (x2), made it possible for Suman to enter the Intermediate Tailoring class, where she will learn more challenging techniques and skills, and will start to fill orders for custom-made outfits, in preparation for one day being able to begin her own tailoring business.

Suman is grateful for the opportunity to learn something new, while also making new friends and enjoying time to herself away from the chaos of life on the streets and the stress of her home environment. And last but not least, she always enjoys the daily meals provided to the tailoring class participants, especially since she comes directly to the class from a long morning of working on the streets.

Thank you, Bill and Colleen, Pradeep, Peter and Mahendra, for helping Suman learn a skill that will make her economically independent.

Now that she has had the experience of raising her boys, as well as time to mature and grow into a woman instead of the scared teenager she was when she initially became a mother, she sees her young daughter, Sonal, as an opportunity to start again. So that she can raise her daughter with as much wisdom and support as possible, Maya also decided to join the AIC Mommy-Baby class, which meets on a weekly basis. The class is designed to teach women about the dietary needs of their children, baby growth and development, birth spacing and family planning, communication and relationships within the family, good parenting practices and many other topics through structured discussions led by local professionals, specialists and health workers.

Maya enjoys the sessions because they are interactive and engaging, and she has the chance to bond with other mothers of similarly aged children over their shared experiences. She and Sonal also receive small gift items (soap, shampoo, etc) for their good attendance, as well as regular access to the on-site doctor to answer all of Maya’s questions. With all of this support, Maya feels much more prepared and confident this time around!

Thank you, Howard (x2), James and Mike and Suzanne, for coming together to provide a year of parenting classes to Maya. This will not only help make her raise her children better, it will empower her to be a more useful member of the community.