Send three Indian girls to school
Donation protected
Hi All,
I’m pleased to launch a campaign to support the schooling of three Indian girls from a disadvantaged background. I met the family in the slums of Kathmandu, Nepal, in 2010 and formed a lasting friendship. The camp of Indian immigrants was dwelled by body burners (Hindu funeral organisers), professional thieves (nicked mobile phones from tourists), shoe polishers (fixed umbrellas too), (child)beggars and kiosk keepers (sold noodles and chilli-flavoured toothpaste).
I met Neelam who was the smallest three-year-old I had ever seen, with a popping belly and ribs sticking out. Sister Simran was one and a half years old. Mother Nitu stayed at home with the children when father Dhurumvir went out to polish and fix shoes. I spent much of my three months in their cosy mud and canvass hut.
The farewell was heart-breaking but we kept regular contact by phone. I wrote freelance newspaper articles about my experiences in Nepal to collect money for Neelam’s schooling. She had turned four and with the help of some readers who got in touch, we sent her to preschool. Since then, the support network has expanded to cover three siblings from the same family who now lives in Rajasthan. A lot of kind people have helped the girls for six consecutive years!
The girls currently live in their grandad’s house with their extended family. Neelam is now 10 years old and goes to the Indian 5th grade. She’s followed by Simran, 9, who’s the second best in her year-III class. Radjini, who I’ve never met because she was born shortly after I returned to the UK, is now six and goes to her first class after pre-school. The girls also had two little sisters, Kamal and Khushi, who both died as babies in 2013 and 2016. Kamal died of malnutrition and Khushi had a fever. The youngest girl, Varsha, meaning rain (which is a wonderful thing in Rajasthan’s desert), is a few months old and healthy.
I'd be very grateful for donations of any amount. Payments can be made with card securely. The costs of schooling are £448 per girl (£1.2/day), covering all costs for the whole 2017/18 financial year. I've seen a letter from the school listing the tuition fees.
I’ve made ahead start with a bake sale at work and rolling over donations from last year, and I was able to send £600 already. From that money, Dhurumvir has already paid
- two sets of school uniforms for each girl (costing about £30/child)
- belts, ties and two sets of shoes (totalling £15-20/child)
- additional classes, which are compulsory because illiterate parents can’t help with homework (£250 coveting all three)
- £60 towards a school bus
Me and the family would be grateful if you could kindly help with
- the remaining school bus fee (another £225 or Rs.18,300 covers all three girls)
- tuition fees (£430 or Rs.35,400 covers all three)
annual charge of the school (£37 or Rs.3,000 covers all three)
- GoFundMe and Stripe money service take 7.9% commission so I’ve reserved another £54 to cover transfer costs.
In total, we’ll still need £746 to ensure all girls go to school this year too. Your help is invaluable in achieving the goal and any amount would help. If you’re not in a financial position to support the girls, I’d be grateful if you could share this in your social media channels. Expanding the network is essential and your help appreciated.
I need to send the remaining moneys to Nitu by the end of April. As usual, I’ll post a list of donors (you can donate anonymously if you wish) and receipts to the website once I’ve sent the donation.
For further updates and pictures, please see ‘updates’ under the picture.
Many thanks for your support! :)
Best wishes,
Anni
I’m pleased to launch a campaign to support the schooling of three Indian girls from a disadvantaged background. I met the family in the slums of Kathmandu, Nepal, in 2010 and formed a lasting friendship. The camp of Indian immigrants was dwelled by body burners (Hindu funeral organisers), professional thieves (nicked mobile phones from tourists), shoe polishers (fixed umbrellas too), (child)beggars and kiosk keepers (sold noodles and chilli-flavoured toothpaste).
I met Neelam who was the smallest three-year-old I had ever seen, with a popping belly and ribs sticking out. Sister Simran was one and a half years old. Mother Nitu stayed at home with the children when father Dhurumvir went out to polish and fix shoes. I spent much of my three months in their cosy mud and canvass hut.
The farewell was heart-breaking but we kept regular contact by phone. I wrote freelance newspaper articles about my experiences in Nepal to collect money for Neelam’s schooling. She had turned four and with the help of some readers who got in touch, we sent her to preschool. Since then, the support network has expanded to cover three siblings from the same family who now lives in Rajasthan. A lot of kind people have helped the girls for six consecutive years!
The girls currently live in their grandad’s house with their extended family. Neelam is now 10 years old and goes to the Indian 5th grade. She’s followed by Simran, 9, who’s the second best in her year-III class. Radjini, who I’ve never met because she was born shortly after I returned to the UK, is now six and goes to her first class after pre-school. The girls also had two little sisters, Kamal and Khushi, who both died as babies in 2013 and 2016. Kamal died of malnutrition and Khushi had a fever. The youngest girl, Varsha, meaning rain (which is a wonderful thing in Rajasthan’s desert), is a few months old and healthy.
I'd be very grateful for donations of any amount. Payments can be made with card securely. The costs of schooling are £448 per girl (£1.2/day), covering all costs for the whole 2017/18 financial year. I've seen a letter from the school listing the tuition fees.
I’ve made ahead start with a bake sale at work and rolling over donations from last year, and I was able to send £600 already. From that money, Dhurumvir has already paid
- two sets of school uniforms for each girl (costing about £30/child)
- belts, ties and two sets of shoes (totalling £15-20/child)
- additional classes, which are compulsory because illiterate parents can’t help with homework (£250 coveting all three)
- £60 towards a school bus
Me and the family would be grateful if you could kindly help with
- the remaining school bus fee (another £225 or Rs.18,300 covers all three girls)
- tuition fees (£430 or Rs.35,400 covers all three)
annual charge of the school (£37 or Rs.3,000 covers all three)
- GoFundMe and Stripe money service take 7.9% commission so I’ve reserved another £54 to cover transfer costs.
In total, we’ll still need £746 to ensure all girls go to school this year too. Your help is invaluable in achieving the goal and any amount would help. If you’re not in a financial position to support the girls, I’d be grateful if you could share this in your social media channels. Expanding the network is essential and your help appreciated.
I need to send the remaining moneys to Nitu by the end of April. As usual, I’ll post a list of donors (you can donate anonymously if you wish) and receipts to the website once I’ve sent the donation.
For further updates and pictures, please see ‘updates’ under the picture.
Many thanks for your support! :)
Best wishes,
Anni
Organizer
Anni Jylhä
Organizer
