Education, food and healthcare for street children

We are delighted to share the growing, positive impact of your continued support for the homeless children of Kolkata, India.

We are especially pleased to report the progress made in providing the children with safe spaces, daily education, nutrition, loving nurturing & development with the help of increasing awareness and participation of their parents.

Building Safe, Nurturing Spaces

One of the biggest challenges with safeguarding the welfare of these homeless children is to ensure that they and their parents always retain utmost confidence every day in knowing that the children will be well looked after, fed, provided medicare and when necessary, the one-to-one interaction, love, care and counselling, with someone they trust, all in a safe location nearby.

This remains the constant focus of the teachers, counsellors and all our friends at streetchildren.dk, who ensure that the school facility always remains a safe place.

The growing trust amongst the migrant parents’ community is reflected in the daily attendance of 119 children at the school.

For children of migrant, daily-wage labourers, who spend long hours away at work, it is important their parents know that their children are kept safely away from the harsh environment of the streets as well as loved, cared for, appreciated as children and able to play with other children freely and without concern.

Daily Nourishment and Healthcare

Without the school facility, many of the children face very harsh, uncertain futures and usually have little or no assurance where and when their next meal will be.

That’s why with the help of 3 wonderfully talented and passionate ladies who cook delicious meals, the school provides healthy, nutritious nourishment every day, while the use of the school monitors helps to make sure every child benefits.

Education as a Turning Point

Among the many inspiring stories during this last quarter, has been the journey of two sisters, Drishti and Aisha. They joined the Sealdah Station School just about a year ago.

Raised as homeless children, living on the streets by a single mother working as domestic help for many hours during the day, and under the care of two older sisters, Drishti and Aisha have blossomed through their attendance at the school.

So much so, that they are now confident, well spoken, able to read and write and possess a strong work ethic, a sense of responsibility towards their mother and sisters as well as their classmates, many of whom look up to these two sisters as role models.

With continued support and encouragement from the teachers and counsellors, both sisters are now preparing to transition to the local state run school which marks an important milestone in their continuing academic journey.

This is a wonderful example of how your generous support and the efforts of our friends at streetchildren.dk is transforming the lives of these children.

Building Empathy, and Confidence

The children are carefully assessed when they first arrive at the school for their educational abilities, their livelihood circumstances and of course their mental, physical and emotional well-being and health.

They are then organised in carefully organised classes so that no child will feel neglected or unwanted or unable to participate. This is a continuous and foundational aspect of the teachers and counsellors daily efforts.

Using every opportunity such as the recent screening of the movie “Black”, during the World Braille Day, which helped the children understand other people’s vulnerabilities and the children’s need for adopting compassion, understanding, resilience and to seek as well as provide inclusion to others.

Another exercise where the children were invited to build and showcase their waste management models at a nearby Exhibition boosted their creative thinking, confidence, team spirit, and awareness of environmental and social issues.

Parental involvement and exam preparations

An important development during the last 3 months has also been to involve and encourage the parents to take a proactive participation in their children’s welfare, education and participation at the school.

This has fostered greater understanding amongst the parents and despite their incredibly tough daily schedules, especially for their mothers, they are actively helping the children with any homework, attending parents-teacher sessions, and supporting their children at home in a similar nurturing manner.

Looking Ahead

As we enter the next quarter, we remain committed to fostering a safe, caring and supportive environment where the children will receive every encouragement to progress academically as well as learn to enjoy the wonders of childhood without the constant challenges presented by their homeless and street bound circumstances.

We thank you for your continued support and kindness. Even improving and transforming one life is a wonderful outcome of such caring and passionate generosity. Please continue to support and promote awareness of these efforts.

Links:

• Education, Food & Healthcare for 300 Homeless Children