Back from Kotdwara with stories to share

A word of thanks for your support.

We had another incredible trip to Kotdwara in early April. We had an amazing time, filled with great reward, adventure, tears and fun ...not to mention surviving some pretty bad food poisoning and forty degree temperatures every day.

Thank you for your prayers and encouragement in all we are doing. We wish that you could have travelled with us ...perhaps you might one day. Amit and Daisy send their love, prayers and sincere appreciation for your generosity and support. If you have followed our adventures on Instagram and have been inspired in any way, might I sincerely ask you to become a regular financial supporter of www.kotdwarahelp.org.

Our trip has once again reminded us of the enormity of what can be achieved through the combined generosity of many of our friends. We have certainly seen lives changed. We have seen some of the most incredible smiles that you can ever imagine and happiness brought to people who live in terrible poverty and appalling circumstances. We have seen the transforming power of education which impacts not just children but also their families and community, simply by coming to learn at school 2 hours a day. We have seen kids looking nourished because of a healthy plate of food at school. We have even seen the lives of our five cooks changed.

Sadly, we have been distressed and brought to tears having witnessed the abhorrent actions of individuals. However, we have seen how good can triumph evil, and how the trajectory of a life impacted by evil can be altered by acts of goodness and kindness, not necessarily by us, but by people in the community who care. We have seen the impact of growing the leadership of youth and seeing them reach out to others. We have seen the incredible power that comes from encouraging people in their faith and also from reaching out to others who don't necessarily share our beliefs, breaking down barriers, building trust, earning respect, and realising that we all so alike and we have so much in common ...a love for our kids, family, friendship, pride in our homes and for our 'patch' (even in a slum), enjoying a meal after a hard day's work, and prayers for a peaceful and happy life.

We have experienced the delight on children's faces watching them eat their first ever Easter egg and we also witnessed the strange but satisfying curiosity that comes from a toddler wearing a pair of shoes for the very first time. We have held hands and hugged friends who have leprosy ...people who have never experienced beyond their immediate family, the simple affection and warmth that comes from human touch.

In all of these things we have seen the power of love, and this has impacted our lives in ways that words cannot express.

We have been challenged by the notion of #smallstepsbigpurpose. We are humbled and overwhelmed that God is opening so many doors and we are convinced that bigger things are on the horizon for www.kotdwarahelp.org.

We arrive back in Sydney with some very exciting plans for the year ahead ...a women's conference, training for both NGO's and local police, further anti-human trafficking initiatives, and plans for a new education centre in a pretty rough part of town ...with the backing of the police commissioner.

To our friends who already support our work in all sorts of ways we pass on a sincere thank you. None of this, would be possible without your help. You really are a part of this incredible story. There are people in Kotdwara who know that you love them. You have made a significant difference in their lives. They thank you. If only you could meet them!

If you would like to be a part of our story, please reply or send us a message and we will show you how you can become a regular supporter. Please extend your generosity for this very special purpose.

#smallstepsbigpurpose

Love Doug, Rowena and Maisy

'Lion' The Movie and Kotdwara - Life by the Railroads of India

If you haven’t seen the movie ‘Lion’ yet, you should. Because it is a true story, it is particularly emotional.

Saroo Brierley has had an unbelievable life. Born and partly raised in an area called Ganesh Talai in India, he was accidentally separated from his family at age five while out with his brother Guddu. Hoping to find his way back, he hopped on a train, thinking he could navigate his way home. But he couldn't. Instead, he strayed farther and farther away, ending up desperately lost at the Kolkata Railway Terminus, rescued by an orphanage and later adopted by a Tasmanian couple.

Miraculously, years later, Saroo finds his way back to his home town Khandwa, a medium sized town, smack bang in the middle of India.

‘Lion’ raises some powerful themes and incredibly important social justice issues that should not be ignored.  The movie tells us that over 80,000 children go missing each year in India and there are over 11 million children living on the streets in India alone.

People have asked me if ‘Lion’ is like the India I know and have experienced. The answer is ‘yes’ without a doubt!

Back in January 2013, my family also got lost in the crowd at Kolkata railway station. It was a frightening experience to lose sight of our son, for a couple of moments that seemed like eternity. I could only describe this railway station like being stuck in a crowd after the fireworks at Circular Quay, Sydney on New Years Eve.

A BBC World News report estimated that up to 100 children and young people are trafficked through the Kolkata Terminus railway station each and every day. A grim statistic tells us that in 2014 India witnessed a 38.7% rise in human trafficking.

https://scroll.in/article/807092/west-bengal-the-epicentre-of-indias-boom-in-sexual-slavery

Saroo’s hometown of Kandwa, is about 1300km away from Kotdwara. It would take you a full 24 hours to travel this distance by train. Both towns look very similar. The main difference I felt was that the producers of the ‘Lion’ made the location a little too tidy. There did not seem to enough litter, pigs, dogs and cows all over the place. Other than this, it all looked quite similar.

Eric Schmidt US philanthropist says of ‘Lion’ – “this movie is a reminder of how important it is to be a global family, and shows that miracles can happen without borders.”

Our work in Kotdwara brings this same reminder. We are a global family bringing hope to others. We see miracles when we see lives changed. Each week we are educating and feeding 180 children, most of whom would otherwise be working on the streets, on trains, begging, fossicking through rubbish or forced into child labour. We are also supporting the local anti-human trafficking police unit and together we are going into the slums and villages to talk about the many scams and dangers they face. The families we help live in terrible poverty and because of this, the kids are at high risk of being trafficked. It is not uncommon to hear of kids sold to traffickers for just $50US! Education is a key to breaking this cycle.

“miracles can happen without borders”

If you were touched by ‘Lion’ and feel compelled to make a difference, please consider joining the story of www.kotdwarahelp.org  

Thanks to technology and ‘Google Earth’ Saroo found his miracle. Thanks to technology we are connected to Kotwdara and I am talking to our staff a couple of days a week. Technology connects families in remote India with us in Australia. This in itself is a miracle that we would never imagined possible just a few years ago.

Your support, involvement, and financial donation is used carefully and has great impact. Contact us if you would like to know more.

Mum and Dad have set up camp along side the railway tracks here at Kotdwara

January News from Kotdwara

Dear friends and supporters

Welcome to 2017. At KotdwaraHelp we are very excited about the year ahead. Our projects have continued with energy and a wonderful sense of purpose. You are part of the story of people whose lives are being changed. You are making a difference by offering hope to children, young men and women and their families. Our programs are impacting the wider community. 

The people who we ‘do life with’ through KotdwaraHelp are very grateful. It is perhaps difficult for us to appreciate the impact of our love, prayers and generosity. I hope that some of these stories and photos will help you to get a sense of the things that are being achieved. Here are some messages of thanks, that have been sent from Kotdwara just this week.

Rupa (top left) is 22 years old  and she is one of the the new intake of students who attend our Computer Centre. Within 6 months Rupa should have the skills to apply for jobs. She is too poor to go to College. KotdwaraHelp is changing the course of Rupa’s life, as her other options would have been very lowly work such as fossicking for rubbish.

Arti (top right) is 12 years old and she says thanks for the education she receives through our City Centre. Her family really does it tough – more than you could imagine. They are too poor to be able to send Arti to school because he younger brother Ayush has a mental disability. Arti says thanks for the opportunity for her to come to ProjectHelp to learn.

Amit (middle right) is 13 years old and every day he proudly wears the sneakers that he was given as a gift last September from Doug's gym in Sydney. Amit is achieving well and he is getting good results at our classes. He loves learning and has a bright future if he continues with his studies and is not forced to work.

Deepali (middle left) is 11 and she comes to our centre as much as she can. She too loves to wear the sports shoes that she was given last year.  Every day Deepali has breakfast at home and then her only other meal for the day is the plate of healthy food she gets at KotdwaraHelp late in the afternoon (6 days a week). Deepali would go hungry otherwise.

Naomi Charles (bottom left) is 40 and she started working for KotdwaraHelp in 2016 as our City Centre teacher and she teaches Hindi, Maths and English. Naomi is married to Mr Subhash Charles and they have 2 kids.  We are thankful for Naomi's hard work and for the love that she pours onto the children she teaches.

Tushar (bottom right ) is 11 and he loves life! Tushar struggles in Maths but he is making good progress. He passes on his thanks for the help is is getting and especially for the food which he loves. He also says thanks for the clothes and stationary.

As we move into 2017, there are so many things that I’d love to share with you. I shall endeavour to do this, over the coming weeks. But briefly...

1. I must update you regarding the Indian Government’s new legislation which has forced the closure of many foreign aide agencies from working in the country. Because KotdwaraHelp is registered as an NGO in India, we have managed to arrange structures for donations to be registered with the necessary authorities. This has been challenging and there is more to do, to ensure that we are meeting the many government requirements.

2. Amit our Project Director, needs a new house and car. Amit rents his house but the landlord is selling it soon. Unfortunately for us, this means we will have to move our office and the location of the City Education Centre (they are all on the same property). We have been given the first offer to buy the house but we need $25 000AUS for the deposit. This is just out of our reach. 

The Indian Government has recently passed legislation to deregister all diesel fuel cars that are 10 years or older. Sadly Amit’s car fits this description.

3.  Little Krish is doing well, but will still need the support of our ongoing finances for medical treatment and rehab.

There is so much more to tell you, but enough for one email. 

We value your prayers and support more than words can express. 

Love Doug, Rowena and the Thomas clan.

www.kotdwarahelp.org 

Donations to;

BSB: 812-170

ACCOUNT NUMBER: 100122703 

ACCOUNT NAME: RM & DJ Thomas INDIA

Please write your name in the reference section

6 Stories of Lives Changed - January 2017

Our Youth Leadership Project and the '100 rupee challenge'

This small idea has turned big, really big!

It all started with a leadership seminar that we presented in Kotdwara in early October. 24 youth from the slums and local churches attended our one day event. Never having done this before, we embarked on a hands-on exploration of key leadership messages. Through games, talks, and hands-on problem solving tasks we looked at things like servant leadership, risk taking, collaboration, confidence, courage, vulnerability, humility and meeting the need that is in front of you. The kids (young adults really) were amazing and couldn't get enough.

Our day finished with this real life challenge.

*You are each given 100 rupees ($2AUD) to respond to a need that you see in your community. You can team up with others, or you can go solo. If you are successful, you will be given another 500 rupees to continue your project.*

We had no idea that is would be so incredibly successful.

One team of youth responded by helping an elderly couple. This man and his wife received a bed to sleep on. They didn't own a bed! The old woman also received a new sari and the old man received new shoes. A few weeks later the youth team repaired their leaking roof, bought them a solar panel and a stove for cooking.

There is another venture that is still in process. One of the youth teams travelled to a nearby town to buy musical instruments at wholesale prices. They are selling these for a greater sum in Kotdwara, to raise the revenue for their project. They haven't even started with the 500 rupee yet.

Another boy Aman, is from the slums and he used his 100 rupees to buy small goods to on-sell in a shop. With the profits he bought 4 sarees to bless women who live in the local Leprosy Mission Centre. This is incredibly powerful stuff!

One of the teams also used some of their profits to travel 50km by bus to visit Krish in hospital. Krish is the little kid whose arm has received surgery. It may need to be amputated. Krish loved his surprise visitors and new friends, and he especially loved the sweets and fruits that they brought to the hospital. This act of kindness had such a powerful impact on those in the hospital who witnessed this, they told a reporter and the story made the local newspaper (see below).

Each of these youth will soon receive a special T- shirt identifying them as the 'Kotdwarahelp Youth Team'. In their spare time, these young adults are keeping busy visiting the slums and villages, helping others, cleaning rubbish and having heaps of fun in the process.

www.kotdwarahelp.org is doing more than changing 'one life at a time'. This work is so incredibly rewarding and I thank you for your support. Can I please ask you to continue to donate to our work. Just a couple of dollars a week goes a very long way in Kotdwara. Be reassured that we use your donation wisely and carefully, and I am very happy to give you further details should you like to know more.

We are praying that the Kotdwarahelp Youth Project really is the beginning of something big and incredibly exciting. ...we appreciate you and so glad that you are part of our story.

Aman Visits the Leprosy Mission House

*I am very happy and excited to tell you that I’ve seen such a great work in front of me. I would like to tell you that Aman a boy from the slums who lives in poverty and scarcity has done an unbelievable and brilliant job. He has completed the Rs. 100 task very beautifully. First he invested that money in his shop and done a little bit of business with that and miraculously he multiplied that amount from that small shop. We all know that his shop is not that eligible or happening that he could earn for his own expenses but still god has blessed his hard work and helped him to manage a certain amount. So he bought 4 Sarees (Indian traditional women’s dress) and gone to Leprosy Mission Centre and distributed the Sarees among-st the women there. What a wonderful work he has done. Even though he lives in vulnerable condition, he helped the poor and socially neglected women. Aman is not medically fit as he has gone through a major surgery before and the doctor has advised him not to do hard work or heavy duties but still his zeal for helping has done a great job within his life.*

God bless this boy abundantly.

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Jungle Help

*Today (10th October), we were gone to spend some time in Kadarganj (Gujjar Centre) with the centre kids. We also took some local volunteers to be a helping hand in educating the kids. These volunteers are the same youth who has successfully completed the Rs.100 and Rs.500 task. They are very energetic and vibrantly bright youth and came up with new ideas and activities. The centre kids were very happy when they ‘we got taught new Hindi songs and few games. We also enjoyed the company of good jungle kids when the volunteers shared few stories and motivational sessions. The Gujjar kids learned good things in regards eco-friendly subjects and social activities. The youth then separated 5 groups and managed a campaign for cleaning the garbage (Plastic and Toxic Waste) from the village and told the kids about the eco-friendly factors. Then we also met with some wildlife friends like deer and land turtle and we took some group photos too. We also distributed food and chocolates and spent nearly 5 hours with them. We visited the ill children too one of them is Aarif son of Muhammad Safi, the volunteers prayed for him and shared some cherished moments. Aarif is a physically disabled child who cannot talk or move in his own but he showed warm smile when the volunteers met him and asked him about his likes and dislikes and for toys. Then we visited a little girl named Khanu daughter of Chamma, this little girl is suffering from some weird kind of viral and tuberculosis. She is also suffering from Typhoid and Malaria, we all prayed for her and she was very happy to see the volunteers because they shared good moments with her. The doctor has said she will recover soon but she needs intensive care and our support as well. The volunteers showed affection and passion towards this little girl.*

Helping Krish

Helping Krish

On my recent visit to India I met 7 year old Krish for the first time. This little kid broke his arm when he fell down from a railing. Unfortunately he fell victim to an alleged unscrupulous ‘phoney’ doctor who treated him for a small fee and made his injury far worse. Krish has become the centre of media attention. On the 12th of October his story was featured on ‘Good Morning India’. A translation of the news item follows;

*As per the news flash the little boy Krish was suffering from a severe problem, the public is giving all the credits to the organisation Project Help because no one has stood in the favour of this poor boy and only Project Help came up to help him with social and general awareness. A boy named Krish is suffering badly from gangrene and infection due to one unauthorised and fake doctor. The boy is being helped by this organisation. He stays at kashirampur Malla, everyone is saying that it is very unfortunate to see Krish’s arm amputated permanently.*

*According to the Director of Project Help Ps. Amit Samuel said that the government should stand with this boy, but due to slang work of the government, Project Help stood up to help him. Even the Head officers and ministers are quiet and stayed back instead of helping Krish’s devoured family, it’s an unfortunate thing. Project Help made an effort towards this family and comforted them that they are not alone; Project Help is standing with them and help them in every possible way including finances also. In other hand the Head medical Officer Dr. Manish Agarwal (Pauri Gharwal) has said that he got this news through news papers and immediately took the action and informed this whole scenario to the chief Medical Officer (Dugadda Uttrakhand).*

The following update reports have been written by our friend and charity partner, Amit Samuel.

Krish aged 7 - needs emergency medical advice and attention

9th *October*

*I am feeling very sorrowful to tell you that one boy from our slums center is going through a sever painful situation . His name is KRISH and he is 7 years old. Few days before , he was playing with his friends and accidentally fell down from the railing and got his right hand broken. At that time his parents were at the work so the neighbor took him to an untrained and illegal practitioner for the treatment. The neighbor were illiterate and it is the worst dark patch on Indian society that most of the poor people are illiterate very severely.so that man put a bandage with some lime on his hand and due to reaction from lime and his arm sweat he got gangrene in his hand. Than His parents took him to a doctor and he advised them to amputate that childs right hand. His family is grieved and that boy is crying since he got this news. When I talked with KRISH, his tears were not stopping and I felt very sad. So I want you to pleasepray and think about him. Doctors haz also said that if this child gets a good and immediate proper medical help may be in delhi or in dehradun , his armcan be saved. But not sure 100%. *

12th October *As I have told you before the story of Krish a boy from our slums center, today me and my wife were praying and discussed with the doctor about this child. Krish needs an immediate help, the doctor of bijnor hospital has advised to admit him immediately because his hand is not working at all, his veins and nerves are totally damaged and the gangrene has reached to his bones. We have to admit him today in the hospital and the Doctor is saying to submit the admission fees that is rs. 15000/- advance today itself. Kindly pray and support.*

14th October

*First Surgery of the poor boy Krish has been done successfully but the doctors have said that it is very hard to say that will his hand work properly? The surgery was gone 6 hours last night and the doctor said that his veins and bone tissues have been destroyed by the lime reacted gangrene so badly that his hand will never have sensation in it again. But somehow they have managed the structure of his hand to be at the right place. Doctor has also said that his hand will never work properly. And now the doctor is advising the second plastic surgery in which they will cover the wound from his imputed skin. Poor Krish is in a critical situation. Please pray and support this poor kid Krish.*

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Please let us know if you can help Krish. We will keep you informed of any further updates. Donations can be made at www.kotdwarahelp.org

or by using the EFT details below.

*BSB: *812-170

*ACCOUNT NUMBER: *100122703

*ACCOUNT NAME: *RM & DJ Thomas INDIA

Please write *'Helping Krish' *in the reference section, and also include your name

Thank you so much.

Making Headlines in India

Making Headlines in India

This month, two of our projects have made the news in India!

News Item #1 – Our work makes the local newspapers

On 27th September we held an event to celebrate our first year of www.kotdwarahelp.org (also referred to as Project Help). The event was attended by politicians, members of the local police department, leaders of other community social work projects, KotdwaraHelp Board members, pastors and community leaders from different faith backgrounds. For the first time ever, we created an opportunity in Kotdwara for like-minded people, all who have a heart for their community, to gather and encourage each other. Commendations were given to various social work projects.

Another highlight was to see the many proud parents who attended to watch the various dance and music items presented by the children and youth who participate in the many KotdwaraHelp projects.

Doug gave a speech (translated of course) and encouraged everyone in the packed auditorium. Amit and Daisy Samuel were applauded by the crowd for their passion, vision, and hard work serving the poor in Kotdwara. We look forward to holding our second Annual Event in September 2017. We eagerly anticipate that in coming years we will need to hire a larger venue, and that it will be filled with any more people who serve Kotdwara and work hard to ensure that not only, the town becomes greater and stronger, but also the nation of India.

Below is a translation of the newspaper article

*In the annual function of Project Help Kotdwara many Social working guests were honored for multiple purpose and for what they are doing for humanity on their level. In this function the students of Project Help presented some cultural programe. On this occasion Rev. Father Pious who is the Director of "Karuna Organization, Mrs. Ester Dass the Incharge of Brigade of Hope Organization and Mr. Yogendra Gundai who is the Incharge of Anti Human Trafficking Unit of Police Kotdwara were Honored deliberately by Project Help Organization*

*In this function Pastor Amit Samuel the Director of the Organization told elaborate the Journey of Project Help and how it works social. In this occasion some of the honored guest from Australia Mr. Doug Thomas, Mark, Gulliver, Tom Russell were present there.*

News Item #2 - ‘Good Morning India’

Yes it’s a fact… KotdwaraHelp was a feature story on ‘Good Morning India’ which highlighted the plight of one of the slum kids who attends our school. Seven year old Krish, is presently in hospital and his arm may need to be amputated because his broken arm was treated by an illegal doctor. The poor kid’s broken arm was bandaged and treated with alkaline lime powder which then infected his arm, resulting in severe painand gangrene to the arm and bone. Unless he received immediate surgery his arm needed to be amputated.

The television item investigated the problem of phoney doctors who exploit the poor, with untrained and dangerous medical practices.

We are very pleased that some good news has come out of this terrible story. Krish’s prognosis is hopeful thanks to the generosity of many people who last week, donated enough funds to pay for his surgery and ongoing medical expenses.

Also, we are delighted that our work has brought a serious issue to the social consciousness of India.

See our story ‘Helping Krish’ for the full story.

New Sneakers New Goals

Thanks DK Studio for a gym workout in India

This is a quick word of "thanks" to all the members of my gym 'DK Studio' in Coogee, who throw their used and unwanted sneakers into the box at the studio. I have just returned from India and I must share with you the story of your shoes.

Your old sneakers have put a huge smile of the face of many kids and teenagers! These kids have absolutely nothing. The poverty they endure is heartbreaking. They live in the local slums and remote jungle villages where life is incredibly tough. Many of these kids do not have shoes to wear, let alone comfy sneakers. After lugging two huge bags full of sneakers to India (via Africa) I was able to personally deliver them to some kids. I wish you had have been there to see the look of surprise, delight and happiness on their faces.

Aman (pictured) is a young man who we have supported for a couple of years. He started life with a sad story that now has a very happy ending. He was born with a condition called .... which basically means he had an external bladder. His trousers were always wet, he could not control his bladder. He was teased and in a poor way with constant infections and bad skin conditions. Last year he had surgery, and we supported the payment of his ongoing treatment and rehab. He had to travel once a month, 10 hours each way by train to Delhi to get this help. Aman is recovering well and he now leads a normal life with the prospect of ultimately getting a job. Last week he participated in a leadership seminar that I ran for local kids, and he is really growing in confidence as a leader who influences his mates. Last week was the first time in Aman's life that he ever has worn a pair of enclosed shoes.

A few other amazing things to share with you... * The kids also have never had socks, so I bought some for them too. * No-one in this town has a shoe size over a 9. We are still looking for homes for people with big feet. There are some kids whose sneakers are too big for them, but there was no way they were letting go of them! * I also managed to set up a youth program with a guy who owns a gym in town. He is going to give free membership to at risk teenage boys who tend to get caught up in alcohol and drugs by about age 14 (if not earlier). We teaching these about personal goal setting. It's incredibly exciting to empower these kids who a sense of hope for the future.

Over the past 2 years my wife Rowena and I have set up 5 "schools" where now approximately 200 kids attend for 2 hours, 6 days a week. Our charity is able to employ a sports coach to help these kids enjoy games, improve their fitness and to learn through this new experience. We also feed these kids a healthy meal each day. I am super thankful for the support of my awesome gym 'DK Studio' at Coogee and Bondi, that they have been part of this story.

When your shoes travel to India, not only have they been faithful in helping you to work-out, they are now making a difference in a young person's life. My guess is that these kids will hold on to them for a lot longer than you did!

I will be heading back to India in 2017, so if you have old sneakers sized 9 or smaller, please pass them on.

Can You Help Please?

On my recent visit to India I met 7 year old Krish for the first time, and I also saw Rakhi, one of our teachers who I have known for a number of years.

Both need urgent medical care and attention, and sadly both are too poor to receive this. We are asking for your prayers for these people and to ask if you would please consider making a special donation to help them.

The reports below have been written by our friend and charity partner, Amit Samuel. He and his wife are personally visiting both families to help support them. Sunjay's wife, Rakhi is not well. She fronted up for work a couple of days after her miscarriage, and she was clearly in considerable pain. We were not convinced that she is receiving the follow-up care that is necessary.

Please feel free to forward this email to people at your work...perhaps you could do a little collection or fudnraiser. 100% of all funds raised will go directly to these people.

Please let me know if you can help. Donations can be made from our website, or via the EFT details below.

www.kotdwarahelp.org

*BSB: *812-170

*ACCOUNT NUMBER: *100122703

*ACCOUNT NAME: *RM & DJ Thomas INDIA

Please write '*Krish & Rakhi help' * in the reference section, and also include your name

Thank you so much. Love Doug and Rowena

Krish aged 7 - needs emergency medical advice and attention *I am feeling very sorrowful to tell you that one boy from our slums center is going through a sever painful situation . His name is KRISH and he is 7 years old. Few days before , he was playing with his friends and accidentally fell down from the railing and got his right hand broken. At that time his parents were at the work so the neighbor took him to an untrained and illegal practitioner for the treatment. The neighbor were illiterate and it is the worst dark patch on Indian society that most of the poor people are illiterate very severely.so that man put a bandage with some lime on his hand and due to reaction from lime and his arm sweat he got gangrene in his hand. Than His parents took him to a doctor and he advised them to amputate that childs right hand. His family is grieved and that boy is crying since he got this news. When I talked with KRISH, his tears were not stopping and I felt very sad. So I want you to please pray and think about him. Doctors haz also said that if this child gets a good and immediate proper medical help may be in delhi or in dehradun , his arm can be saved. But not sure 100%. *

Rakhi needs urgent ongoing medical help and TLC

Dear brother Doug,

*We are full of sorrow that one of our employees wife Rakhi has lost her newborn child. His Name is Sanjay Singh and he is working very positively with us as a teacher in our Jungle Center. We pray for this grieved family. All this has happened due to poor Govt. Services Mr. Sanjay’s wife got laboured in the night and there was no help to take her to the hospital at the right time. She walked from the jungle 8km to Kotdwara to get to the hospital there. She was very poorly by then. Nearly 48 hours later they then got managed to reach Bijnor Govt Hospital. The surgeons did the surgery but till that time, but it was too late. The child had died. We are very heartfelt for Mr. Sanjay’s family. May God mend their sorrows as soon as it can be.*

*"Because of the LORD's great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. I say." *Lamentations 3: 22-24