Working with Women in Punjab

On the occasion of the new year, at our newly established Fatehgarh Centre on the border of Pakistan, we invited the mothers of our 100+ students and other women to learn about menstrual health. Based on questions raised by some of the mothers, the discussion also focussed on their concerns for their children’s wellbeing, and ways that we can assist them to help their children to make good life choices, to understand the difference between right and wrong, and to not fall pray to peer pressure and bad company in a community where drugs and alcohol are easily accessible.

At the meeting we also blessed the women with a small gift which they were delighted to receive.

Madhu is changing for the better

Madhu is a daughter of a poor Hindu family. She is 7 years old and studies in class 3. Her father's name is Dhyan Singh and her mother's name is Jayavanti Devi. Madhu has two younger sisters and a younger brother.

Both of Madhu's parents work as labours. They both leave for work in the morning, after that Madhu takes care of her sisters and brother, as well as getting herself to and from school each day. Madhu is a very playful girl.

Madhu's living condition is not very good as her father drinks alcohol every day and is addicted to gambling. Madhu's father sometimes fights with her mother in his drunken state. Her mother is also addicted to gambling. When her parents fight with each other, Madhu and her siblings have to starve that night. Her father wastes his earnings in either alcohol or in gambling. He does not seem to care for his children.

Madhu has been attending one of the Project Help Jungle Village centres for the last 3 to 4 years. In the beginning she used to fight with the other students, use bad words and rarely attend. She would mostly be very rude and ignore her teacher. But now she has changed. She attends the centre regularly and whenever she is ill she informs the teacher about it. She don't use bad words anymore and now doesn't fight with anyone. She is doing well in her studies and tries her hard to learn new things. She takes part in the extra curricular programs held in the centre specially dancing. She is now friends with everyone.

Madhu's mother is very thankful to Project Help and says that the whole village community is changing because all of the children can now access a good education in their locality. This education is changing the future of the children from one where there is no hope, to one filled with possibility and promise. Many kids like Madhu and working hard because they want a better life, than what they now have. While it’s slow and gradual, this is evidence of a community transformed by education and a sense of purpose.

Meet Iccha

Ichha’s Story

Ichha is a daughter of a very poor family. She also has two older brothers. Her father, Manoj, works as a junk dealer and her mother, Aarti, works as a utensils hawker. The condition of her family is not well as her father is a drunkard. Due to which, there are many fights in the house. And sometimes he would beat his wife and children in drunken state. Ichha's mother is also not well. And they live in a rented cottage near their Grandmother's house.

Ichha has been attending one of the Project Help centres regularly for the past six months. She is very good in studies and also very punctual. She also has a habit of helping others. Iccha is 7 years old and she also attends studying in class 2 at the local Government Primary School. Her favourite subjects are maths and Hindi. She also likes to sing. 

Ichha loves to attend the Project Help Centre. She learns a lot of new things here. What she learns certainly extends the poor quality of education received at her local school where she does not learn English. One of the things that she now learned is to greet everyone with a "good morning" which is very delightful to hear.

Iccha’s parents are greatly indebted to Project Help, saying that they teach such good habits and given her greater confidence. They are very thankful to Project Help India and they say they pray for the directors and teacher’s family that they may always be happy.

Thanks for keeping us warm and safe this winter

Check out the smiles! These gifts we very well received by the children.

All of our Projects are situated in Northern India, with many at the foothills of the Himalaya Mountains. Not surprisingly it gets very cold in winter (often below zero degrees) in the city of Kotdwara, and especially in the higher altitude areas where our jungle centres are located. Houses in the slums and villages generally have no access to heating, only a primitive small fire that is also used for cooking. The smoke and fumes from these fires can be toxic and dangerous because of the fuel and rubbish (plastics and refuse) that are used to fuel the fire. Deadly house fires in winter are also common.

The children who we educate come from very poor families, most of whom have the most basis of belongings. As well as limited access to adequate heating, it is not uncommon for many children to not even have a change of clothes. If they are lucky their clothes are replaced as they outgrow grow them. Some children do not have shoes. At Project Help, our staff keep an eye on the children’s health and wellbeing, making sure that they have adequate warm clothes in winter.

This year, we made the decision to provide each of our students with a warm blanket. We have no doubt, that these blankets would be used by most of the family - as many siblings and other family members would share the same (again, very primitive) beds. There are generally no mattresses - just a knotted rope bed base, or they sleep on the floor because their homes might be too small.

We thank our supporters for your kind donations - because you have made this possible. The kids were delighted and they have definitely been more comfortable during the recent cold winter nights.

A New Year's blessing for Rehan

Rehan is 13 years old and he attends our Disability Centre on a daily basis. His mother, Shahroz, is a housewife and his father, Shahnawaz is a labourer. They are incredibly poor. Rehan is unable to walk so his mother carries him to our centre. For much of last year, Rehan’s mother frequently asked if it was possible for us to provide her son with a wheel chair. So in this new year Amit and Daisy gifted a wheelchair to Rehan. Rehan is overjoyed to receive this gift and his parents were incredibly grateful.

High Praise for Project Help India

Amit Samuel and his brother Amrit, accepting the award on behalf of our dedicated staff team.

It was a great honour and privilege that our Director Mr. Amit Samuel was invited to Dehradun by the National Commission for Minorities for their organised event on the occasion of ‘Minorities Rights Day’. This day is observed annually on 18 December to promote the rights and raise awareness of minority communities in India.

This event was hosted by the Chief Minister of Uttrakhand, Mr Pushkar Singh Dhami, who said that Project Help is highly regarded as an organisation that continuously cares for needy children and people, and has continued to excel and deliver a valuable service to the community after the pandemic. He thanked us for supporting and enhancing the social priorities of the Uttrakhand State Government.

“A kind gesture can reach a wound that only compassion can heal.”

Chief Minister, Mr Pushkar Singh Dhami

To all your supporters around the world, we thank you for this and want you to know that is your award too! Congratulations! Without your support we could not reach and impact many marginalised and needy children, families and their communities.

We are proud, pleased and delighted.

Gratitude is Riches Complaint is Poverty

“The smile on their faces was above all the barriers of society” - said one of our staff.

It’s now Summer in the Southern Hemisphere. Here in Sydney the weather is perfect …the sun is shining and it’s a beautiful day. This morning, as I focus on the many things that I am grateful for, my mind is filled with a fresh sense of positivity, hope, and optimism for the day and the season ahead. I’ve decided that this summer I will make it my priority to focus on the good – my health, my body, my mind and spirit will only be better for it. This will be a season where mindfulness and gratitude will go hand in hand.

One of the greatest keys to our happiness is to be grateful. Will Arnett, a Canadian actor, said it like this…

“I am happy because I’m grateful. I choose to be grateful. That gratitude allows me to be happy.”

Give away your life - you’ll find life given back

Jesus described the importance of making mindful decisions to determine positive life outcomes…

“Don’t judge people, jump on their failures, criticise their faults—unless, of course, you want the same treatment. Don’t condemn those who are down; that hardness can boomerang. Be easy on people; you’ll find life a lot easier. Give away your life; you’ll find life given back, but not merely given back—given back with bonus and blessing. Giving, not getting, is the way. Generosity begets generosity.” Luke 6:37-38

‘International Day of Disabled Persons 2022’

Yesterday, Saturday 3rd December was the ‘International Day of Disabled Persons 2022’. At Project Help India we celebrated this with cake, presents, singing and dancing. We are thankful for the 14 kids who attend classes five days a week. We are thankful for their unique gifts and beautiful personalities. These kids make our lives richer …it is indeed a privilege to help and care for them, to learn alongside them and be inspired by their courage, their determination and resilience in the face of incredible challenge and daily adversity.

We are also incredibly grateful for the many people whose kindness and generosity makes it possible for us to fund our Disability Centre. This week we used some of your funding to buy each of our students a warm jumper …it’s starting to get cold in India and these kids are growing fast – they need new clothes for Winter. The kids were delighted!

Thank you also to our Project Help team and Disability Centre teachers who also made this possible.

Thank you from the bottom of our hearts. May this new season for you be filled with gratitude and happiness.

PS. It was Doris Day who said “Gratitude is riches, complaint is poverty.”

Exciting Days Ahead

13 year old Sukhwinder has never been to school before ..until now.

Over the past few weeks we have been telling you about our new centre which is situated in a very remote district close to the India-Pakistan border; Venturing Further Than Ever Before – A New Centre

We are excited to have nearly reached our target of $2500 which is what we need to cover most of the costs required to provide 12 months of very basic education for 100 kids.

To date we have raised $2179 which leaves us with a small shortfall of $321. Thank you to those who have donated over the past 2 weeks. Your generosity has made it possible for us to help this very poor community. We are excited about the days ahead and we can certainly now start to develop strategies for working alongside families and how we might support them and establish a presence in their community over the long-term.

As mentioned last week, we anticipate that we will soon have over 100 children enrolled. This is significant, as most have never had the opportunity to go to school before. From what we understand there are too many children and not enough teachers at the local government school, therefore many kids are simply turned away. When the river floods during the monsoon season this school is also closed.

13 year old Sukhwinder has never been to school before ..until now.

Sukhwinder Kaur's Story

Sukhwinder (pictured above) has a heartbreaking story. She never received love or affection from her parents and was abandoned as a toddler. Her father became drug and alcohol dependent and the mother was frequently beaten for giving birth to a girl. She therefore fled the scene many years ago, never to be seen again.

Sukhwinder now lives with her grandparents. Her mental health has been impacted by her upbringing. We know from experience that the daily love and care that she receives from our centre will start a long healing process for her. Kids like Sukhwinder can be very resilient and poverty makes them tough. We pray that her life will be filled with new purpose and hope.

$321 to go....

Can you help us to fully reach our target please? Perhaps your regular church giving is not presently happening OR perhaps you would like to make this tax deductible donation as a Christmas gift for someone who "has everything". Maybe your business can help? The Project Help India story is all about making the world a better place, especially for kids like Sukhwinder. This is a wonderful way for you to really have a huge impact with your giving.

Thank you for your compassion and support.