« July / August 2009 »

Introduction

The monsoon has passed and the sun is finally out in Goa. The tourists are starting to trickle back to the palm lined shores. There has been lots of activity at the charity with us helping more children than ever.

We hope you enjoy this month's newsletter. If you have any queries or comments, then please contact us via the website http://www.childrenwalkingtall.com/Contact-Us.htm. To provide extra safety to the children we have changed or removed their names in this and all future newsletters.

	Introduction	Go
	What's Been Happening	Go
	Website	Go
	Fundraising	Go
	What Can You Do?	Go
	And Finally	Go

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What's Been Happening

Extended Outreach Work Helps More Slum Children

The doors to The Mango House have been closed to children since the end of June 2009 when an order was received stating that the licence to use The Mango House as a children’s centre was not being renewed at that time. Sadly, this seems to have nothing to do with the care and support provided to the children. All of our inspections have been positive, even glowing at times, and the renewal inspection recommended the licence be extended.

This however has not stopped the work being carried out, and we have in fact extended it and help even more children on a daily basis. Work is now being concentrated in the slums as 'outreach'; obviously, the conditions especially during the monsoon, aren't ideal, but with the backup of staff and volunteers we now provide two school sessions.

As well as providing school sessions for the children we have also increased the number of children fed each day. Originally when the house was open food was provided for those children who attended there, which was always a maximum of 50 children. The Mango House children still continue to receive food, although now it is being served in plastic containers in the early afternoon. In addition to "The Mango House" children we have extended this to all the school going children in the two local slums which has increased numbers to around 85 food parcels each day. Each filled with Saroja's wonderful curries, the menu is a mix of vegetarian and non-vegetarian. Fresh fish on Mondays, chicken on Wednesdays and eggs on Fridays and vegetarian dishes are served on the other days.

In addition we have been asked by a local school to help with food for their remedial classes. The school caters for children from a similar background. Six of The Mango House children attend the school and in total we provide up to 115 meals a day.

Not being able to access the house has hit the children hard and the number of hospital visits and admissions the children have has shot up. We hope that this issue is soon sorted and the doors can once again open for the children.

Sleeping in the doorway of a shop

It is often so difficult to know the living conditions of the children we help. It is common practice for the families to work for the local recycling centres and in return, receive a small patch of land on which to build a shack from bamboo, plastic, cardboard, corrugated iron and anything they find while rag-picking. Some of the parents battle with alcoholism and other addictions which sometimes prevent them from working, or at least is a common excuse given. Alcoholism often ends in arguments with families and their close neighbours. Fights are common and this can result in them being asked to 'move on'. One family in particular live in appalling conditions, their original home was demolished as they were not working or paying rent. After moving they have spent most of the monsoon sheltering under a single piece of plastic sheeting in the corner of a field. During the day they sorted rubbish and cooked within the same 10ft square area. At night the family slept sheltering from the rain in the entrance of a local shop. Their youngest being only 3 years old. The land owner has moved them on again and now they have collected their few belongings and have nowhere, and have to wait for the shop to close to finally get an area where they can sleep. We have tried to help by finding places for them to stay but their parents seem uninterested or unwilling to make the move. House prices are always increasing and finding the money for rent can be difficult for parents who are unwilling to work.

Rag Picking

Most of the families we help are involved in 'Rag-Picking', which gives quite a good income but often there is a fine line between rag-picking and stealing. For some of the children the temptation can be great as they walk round during the day. One such day a group of the rag pickers saw some metal 'rags' in a compound, not daring to collect it during the day they waited till later that night and at around 2am a group of 6 (both adults and children) went to collect the discarded items from someone's compound. While 'collecting' items they were disturbed, and all ran, one girl jumping over a wall topped with broken glass cemented to it. During her escape she sliced her finger tip in two and received a three inch cut on her arm. The next day we got to know the story and saw the injuries. Her finger was a horrible mess and desperately in need of cleaning and stitching. She was taken to Vrundavan hospital, and after a little encouragement she had three stitches put in her finger tip (which was very painful) and another three stitches in her arm. We continued to clean and redress her wounds each day and she recovered well. Getting the children into school is the best way to keep the children off the streets and away from situations like these. Unfortunately there are many elements that distract or prevent them from doing this, family pressure, lack of support from family members and sometimes the lack of government support.

Morning School - 'Outreach' in Slum - By Barney

ABCs, counting, fights and lining up for a break. Sounds like a day at any ordinary school, but this is not an ordinary school, this is morning school! Each week day morning the younger children from both slums come together to learn and also to have a bit of fun. A range of enjoyable and educational activities are planned and organized by the volunteers and Trupti, the Mango House teacher.

Each morning starts with Ali and the volunteers picking up the highly excitable children from the Crossroads Slum, who jump with excitement as the van approaches. We then drive up to the main Karaswada slum, where the slum school is organised, the room is part of the slum and this helps the children feel comfortable as they are not far from their family, it also gives the parents an opportunity to 'poke' their head round the door to see what’s going on and even to join in with the activities. Co-incidentally this seems to happen at the same time as the biscuits and juice are given out.

There are usually only 10 to 15 children who attend in the morning aged between 3 and 6 as the main aim of the charity is to get the children into formal schools once they are 6. There are a few older children, who unfortunately are made to work by parents who also join in and help as teachers' assistants for the younger ones.

The morning is divided into three parts. First we start with some counting activities, in which the children are progressing very well especially one boy who leads the group. Maths is followed by a planned English language activity to improve the children’s vocabulary, which is linked to another area of learning such as art, geography, maths or science. The children really enjoy the 'hands on' tasks and have shown off their artistic side in paintings, songs and bracelet making. This week the children made beautiful boxes that they then decorated with sequins and jewels. After a well earned break for biscuits the children then have some free play alongside the adults. Favourites include the big toy cars, the children offer to drive you to Mapusa, and they make excellent bus drivers! Also the dolls, there are some brilliant mothers in the making.

As well as all the fun we have, we also have to use the ‘masti mat’ (naughty mat) on occasion for those who haven’t quite got the idea of how to behave in school. One day the small toy cars caused a small riot as all the boys wrestled with one another to get the most, rationing was introduced and we now have a 2 car rule, more counting! A few have also needed a little guidance in how to get the toys they want without biting or hitting each other, which requires a little more work with one particular child.

It is easy to see the wonderful impact the morning school has on the children’s learning, self esteem, behaviour and social development. It gives them a chance to see education as fun and interesting and will hopefully give them a better chance once they reach formal school.

Head Burns

Ali was woken up when one of the mothers from the slum came knocking on the Mango House door late at night. We found out that while the family was sleeping one of the children had accidentally knocked over a kerosene burner while she slept. The small burner fell onto a young babies head, the baby at only 4 months old received a large burn covering the top of his head. Ali took the mother to the local government hospital and the baby was admitted for two weeks and treated for burns. This was a huge trauma for the baby, but we are happy to report that after great care from Asilo hospital the baby has fully recovered. The burns were not too deep so it really was only a matter of keeping the area clean and preventing infection.

Seven stitches

The majority of the parents in the slum drink, much of the time they fall over and fall asleep, occasionally though the alcohol brings out their aggressive side, and recently Kavita, a 10 year old girl was unlucky enough to experience the aggressive side of alcoholism. The girls' aunt was wielding a pole with a metal hook at one end, the girl grabbed it as she poked and prodded, the aunt then pulled it and the hook sliced into her wrist and slit her wrist to her palm.

We did not find out about the incident until the next morning over 12 hours later, we took the girl to Vrundavan hospital and although it was very late to have the wound stitched, it seemed to be the best idea. The doctor cleaned it well and had to use 7 stitches to complete the treatment. She was given a strong cause of antibiotics and was told to have it redressed daily. Kavita came to the house every day for a week and took her medicine and had her wound cleaned and redressed. The wound healed well until she went down to the local stream to wash clothes, the next day the wound's stitches broke and became heavily infected. We started all over again cleaning and dressing the wound and eventually it fully healed. Kavita has had more than her share of hardships and even through the toughest times manages to smile. We would like to thank the staff at Vrundavan hospital and also Asilo for the treatment.

Monsoon Fevers

August has seen so many of the children coming down with fevers, this is likely linked to the increase in the number of mosquitoes in the Karaswada area. While the children are in the slum they have little or no protection against the small but deadly insects. Nearly 20 children had malaria tests and several children have required to be admitted into hospital due to severe symptoms. Generally if the fever is not too high we take them to the local hospital or health centre for a malaria test and are given instructions to control the fever with paracetamol and cooling with a wet cloth.

Thankfully the malaria tests so far have come back negative, although one girl at present is still admitted in the local government hospital.

Severe Chest Infection

Robert was called to the slum one Sunday evening as a child was complaining of chest pains and had a temperature of just over one hundred. We took Sarjan and his mother to the local government hospital, which for a Sunday night was terribly busy. After a long wait it was finally our turn, the doctor requested an X-Ray and blood test, an injection to bring his temperature down and they examined his chest. The X-Ray clearly showed a mass on his chest and Sarjan, after a little bit of persuasion, was admitted. He was given oxygen and a cocktail of drugs.

Sarjan's mother was great during their time in hospital, often the parents fail to stay in hospital and the children end up being discharged. In Indian hospitals it is the responsibility of family to stay with the child and do much of the nursing jobs.

A meal for mother and son was dropped in every night, as Robert and Ali checked in and made sure everything was OK. He was admitted for a whole week and are happy to say he is much better and has now fully recovered.

Volunteer Experiences

Below are a few comments made by recent volunteers of their experiences while working for Children Walking Tall. They have been kind enough to put pen to paper and write a little bit about their time volunteering, I have added extracts from each of their volunteer experiences, for the full volunteer experiences stories then please visit our website.

Casey Deng

Extracts from Casey's volunteer experience....

"My advice to future volunteers is to think about what you know, what your own passions are, and share it with the kids. That is the best way to ensure both of you will have a good time. Children walking tall are a million things that words can barely describe (though I have tried), but above all things it is a happy and safe place for these children to develop and grow in. Thus there is a responsibility for all volunteers to also give as much as they can, because it really is a privilege to share in these kids’ lives."

"If you want a cup that is overfilling with organic healthy juice type of experience, if you like to put your hands to yours wrists not to just gage that you are alive, but to actually feel like to be living, if you like games and can throw your head back in laughter, then Children Walking Tall will be perfect for you."

Rakhee Raval

Extracts from Raval's volunteer experience....

"We received such a warm welcome when we walked through to the dining area from all the kids and the volunteers, it was lunch time when we arrived. I knew in the first 2 minutes i was there that this was going to be an unforgettable amazing experience."

Meiling Voon

Extracts from Meiling's volunteer experience....

"I worked at the Mango House from June 2008 to April 2009 which was one of the best experiences of my two-year stay in Goa. Working with the kids was a great way to get up close with a community that took you in unconditionally into their lives, and at the same time, an opportunity ‘to give something back’ to the country where I lived. But more than all that, it was so much fun getting to know the kids which made the whole experience so rewarding and uplifting."

Jane Fairhurst

Extracts from Claire's volunteer experience....

"My first day - I was overwhelmed by the children. They were so happy, loving and full of fun. There was only one other volunteer at that time and she showed me the ropes. My immediate reaction was that I would never remember what the children's names were or what needed to be done and in what order. "

"The Mango House is run like a big family and is extremely relaxed. This was exactly what I had wanted. The full time staff are so involved with the children and their families and very soon I also felt I was a big part of this. During my three months I was lucky enough to be part of local festivals, beach trips and visits to the park. The children made all of these experiences, ones that I will never ever forget. The motto of the Mango House is to give the children a childhood worth remembering. I know that is what the Mango House is achieving and I feel I was completely part of that."

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Website

Website Menu and General updates

The webiste has had a major overhaul recently when we introduced the new menu system. The menus took a lot of effort and I hope they work across all systems, if you do have any problems then do please let us know. We have also worked hard in creating a more standard look across the website with headers, and subheaders. This has been applied to all old newsletters and all other pages.

Pictures

Moonson Play Time

The monsoon has never been conducive to outside play, but if the rain stops and the skies lighten we take the opportunity to get out side for a game of football, cricket or just a run round the local playing field. There's a lovely piece of land which we have 'adopted', the land ends with a stream and in the monsoon is a bright green from the broad leafed grass that grows there. Unfortunately the football pitch has turned into a muddy brown colour from excessive use, but the children really don't care and it makes those sliding tackles even more fun. The volunteers are just as keen and can be seen giving their all, trying to beat the children at their own game. For the more reserved, small games of tig or skipping is fine to while away the time.

* ( Photos courtesy of Amber Mezbourian )

Monsoon Slum School

Due to delays with 'governmental processes' involved in renewing the licence for The Mango House we have increased the work we do in the local slums in Mapusa.

We are currently running basic slum schools for the non school going children in the morning (the children being mostly under six years old). We then return in the afternoon, give out around 80 'food packets' to the children in the slums and run extra classes for the older children.

The conditions aren't ideal especially due to the monsoon rains but the children love taking part and joining in with the activities. It's not all hard work as there's always time for a game of football and cricket!

* ( Photos courtesy of Amber Mezbourian & Barney)

Slum School Beach Trip in Goa

We managed to sneak in a beach trip in the last month, we had planned to take all the children during one of their holidays from school, unfortunately, the weather was not being co-operative. In the end just the morning school (youngsters) were taken to the beach. The beach itself was empty and the children could run around to their hearts content. We were very lucky with the weather s just as we started to leave the clouds and rain took over. The children were able to search for crabs, build sand castles and play in the shallow water.

* ( Photos courtesy of Amber Mezbourian & Barney)

Exhcange Rates For Goa / India

You can now find out the exchange rate for Rupees without leaving the Children Walking Tall website. We have an inline converter that is automatically set to UK Pounds and Rupees. If you want to check the rate for US Dollars or Euros then just change the selector. Money Converter

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Fundraising and Donations

A meal for the children

We would like to thank Subha Anand who is originally from Tamil Nadu. Subha got in contact with us and wanted to organise a meal for our children. He arranged a lovely veg thali containing, rice, dal, 3 veg dishes, puri, pickle, rice pudding and pedeas (Indian sweets), the meal came to The Mango House in large metal containers where Subha, helped by staff and volunteers packaged and distributed the food in the slums. The children loved the food and we would like to thank him for his kindness.

Thank You to Everybody

We would like to thank everybody who has helped to raise funds and awareness over the last two months. It is becoming increasingly difficult to write details about all the donations we receive due to the amount of work involved. If you are kind enough to arrange an event for Children Walking Tall and would like your event to be included in the newsletter, then please write a small paragraph about how the event went and who was involved and send it to us by email. The newsletters are very time consuming to put together so this would be a great help to us and allow more time to be spent helping the children.

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What Can You Do?

Add a Link to our website

India Childrens Charity - Donate, Volunteer

Do you have your own website, blog or have a say on a company website? If the answer is yes then please add a link to Children Walking Tall. We have a collection of links that you can use, or if you want something designed for an offer, 5% goes to charity, or £1 for every order goes to charity then do let us know and we will make a link that fits your website.

Join our Facebook Cause

Join the Children Walking Tall Charity Cause on Facebook

Children Walking Tall now has a facebook cause we you can add to your profile on the social networking site Facebook. Unfortunately we can not link in to the donations side of the facebook application as this is restricted to charities based in the US/Canada but it does allow people to support us by joining and sharing us with others.

If you are on facebook then do join our cause and become part of the group to show your support. You will join others who also want to support us and it's a great way to keep in contact with volunteers (old and new) and to keep up to date with the charity.

Monthly Sponsorship

The charity has grown so much since it started, making it more important than ever to keep a solid base to work from. With this in mind, we are looking for people to give monthly donations so that a core fund can be relied on each month. Currently, people are donating from £2 to £40 per month. This money would help towards feeding the children each day by providing a morning snack, a main meal for lunch, and a second snack in the afternoon. It would also help provide vitamins, health care and allow money to be set aside to pay rent, electricity and the water bills every month.

For more Information : http://www.ChildrenWalkingTall.com/Donations.htm

Spread The Word

An easy way to help Children Walking Tall is to just spread the word - just let more people know about what we do! If you've received this newsletter by email, then simply forward it to your friends; otherwise send a link to our website, as this and our older newsletters are always available on our website www.ChildrenWalkingTall.com

EBay For Charity

We have registered with MissionFish to allow us to receive donations from eBay sales. You can now sell an item on eBay and donate from 10% to 100% of the final sale price to support our work with street children in India. All you have to do is set up an account; find all those items that are tucked away under your bed and sell them on ebay. If you have something to sell, and want to support Children Walking Tall at the same time, then please select Children Walking Tall to receive a portion of the selling price. Visit Ebay for charity (Children Walking Tall) for more information

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And Finally...

Newsletter By Email

If you have received this email by mistake, or wish to change your newsletter subscription then please fill in the online form on our website ( www.ChildrenWalkingTall.com/Newsletters.htm ).

Many Thanks from everyone at Children Walking Tall.

Contact Us

Children Walking Tall
'The Mango House'
H.No 148/3
Near Vrundavan Hospital
Karaswada, Mapusa
Bardez, Goa

Web : www.ChildrenWalkingTall.com
Tel : (0091) 9822 124 802