A troubling incident happened recently to the 18 orphaned children who have been taken in by Ghar Sita Mutu.  In mid-November — in the middle of the night — a gang of about 25 masked men yielding Nepalese swords (khukuri) overtook the security guard and dog and then broke into the House and held swords to the boys’, older girls’, and House Manager’s throats. In addition to the terrorizing, the bandits made off with 85,000 rupees — a lot of money over there — along with items that had been donated to the House like cameras, phones, and a laptop. They also took family gold jewelry from the House Manager who had been collecting items to wear at her upcoming wedding.

Yes, everyone is safe but as you might imagine they are all traumatized. I feel so very far away from them right now and I am so sorry for what they have been put through. It’s not as if they haven’t been through enough in their lives. And now, instead of going forward with programs to further enhance the lives of the children, destitute women, and needy families in Nepal, money received from donors will have to be used to enhance security and replace items. Ugh.

The children and the dedicated staff who live in the House are in my heart today. I hope you will find a place in your heart as well and that you will send healing energy their way.

Ithaca proceeds: $2,600; sister fundraiser in Scottsdale, AZ: $2,600. Still to come, sister fundraiser in Hawaii and undetermined grant from Corning Rotary. Many, many thanks to donors, volunteers, bands, and attendees. The energy at Castaways was as I suspected–infectious..

Yes!…just bagged the music line-up for the 2d Annual Ghar Sita Mutu - House with a Heart Fundrai$er at the number one music venue in Ithaca, NY — Castaways.

Ayurveda returns as headliners (and newly-welcomed co-hosts) (Universal Mind); Mike Ogletree brings the spirit of Robert Burns along from New York City and Scotland (RedRed NY Rose); The Magnetics featuring Jim Barbaro–a long time family friend–graciously accepted a rain check (Mend the World).

If there is power on in the House in Kathmandu, the evening will conclude with a Skype call to the family of children in Ghar Sita Mutu.

I’m also trying to pull off a webcast with simultaneous fundraisers piping in from Washington, D.C., Hawaii, Pennsylvania, and Massachusetts.  (If anyone knows how to do that, please let me know…soon!)

I hope you can join me and my co-hosts, Ayurveda, for an afternoon and evening of:  great music, good energy, handmade products by the women in Ghar Sita Mutu’s skills training program, raffles, and of course the best food and drink available in the northeastern United States.

For more info, additions, and updates stay tuned here or on Facebook, Twitter, and http://www.castawaysithaca.com/

S A V E     T H E     D A T E

I bow to the common spiritual divinity in you. Honor that place in you in which the entire universe dwells. Honor the place in you which is of love, of truth, of light, and of peace. When you are in that place in you and I am in that place in me, we are one.

Namaste, is a common spoken greeting or salutation. Taken literally, it means “I bow to you”. The word is derived from Sanskrit and expresses deep respect. It is commonly used in India and Nepal by Hindus, Jains and Buddhists—many continue to use this outside the Indian subcontinent.

When spoken to another person, it is commonly accompanied by a slight bow made with hands pressed together, palms touching and fingers pointed upwards, in front of the chest. The gesture can also be performed wordlessly and carry the same meaning.

In Indian and Nepali culture, the word is spoken at the beginning of written or verbal communication. However, upon departure only the wordless hands-folded gesture is made.

(Amsterdam)  For lack of a better word, my volunteer stay in the House with a Heart was amazing.  I have found it difficult since my return to the West to effectively articulate all that I saw, shared, smelled, heard, etc.,

I have also found that the whole of the experience can’t be shared in one, two, or even three conversations.  I believe it’s a story worth sharing though so I am working on a photo essay of sorts that will get posted here when it is done.

Be patient; it’s a cathartic work in progress.

 

Besides the children and Beverly’s awe inspiring energy and creativity, what strikes me most about the House is its sustainability. To ensure the children have a nutritious diet, Beverly had fruit trees planted early on and now there is guava, pomegranate, and papaya for the picking. Three organic gardens provide a variety of vegetables and herbs and there is a small rice paddy on the grounds as well (see photo).

There is a solar panel on the roof to heat water (on sunny days) for dishwashing and a rare Nepali hot shower. All clothes – including school uniforms – are passed down from child to child and when they no longer fit the children here, they are distributed to needy families in the local community. Candles that are made by women enrolled in the Ghar Sita Mutu training program are reused; when a candle burns down, the melted wax is collected and used to make more candles. The list goes on and on but the bottom line is: nothing goes to waste here and Beverly thinks of everything.

So if you have any doubts about the good that is being done with money you have already sent or are planning to send to support Ghar Sita Mutu, know that pennies (or rupees) are pinched here—and they are pinched very hard.

As promised, more photos are posted.  However, due to many things happening here at the House,  “Teenage Angst & Other Universal Truths — About Children” is gonna have to wait.  I don’t know, maybe that post will never get written.  The more I think about it, I think the subject says it all.

I’m sorry for the cumbersomeness of getting to the photos (through Flickr) but it’s the best I can do for now.  I hope you will take the time to browse the pics — these are some very Kute Kathmandu Kids.

Dear readers,

In order to better understand the dire situation of children in Nepal, we need volunteers like Colleen to provide us with a descriptive accounting.  But in addition to getting info from an embedded volunteer, we need cold hard facts.  Below is an informative (if not dismal) excerpt of a 2006 fact sheet from the Child Workers in Nepal Concerned Center (CWIN-Nepal):

• The child mortality rate of children below 5 years of age is 61 per 1000 births. (1)
• Children below age 16 make up 40.93 percent of the total population. (2)
• 40% of Nepali children suffer from malnutrition and are affected by diseases associated with it. (4)
• 24,000 children died of diarrhea in the past year.  (10)
• Child labor contributed to 6 percent of Nepal’s total domestic production. (2)
• 12,000 Nepali girls are sold in India every year. (8)
• Out of all marriages, 34 percent are child marriages. (7)
• There are approximately five thousand street children in Nepal. (3)
• Physically disabled children make up 1-8 percent of the total population. (2)
• 475 children were killed in the recent armed conflict in Nepal; another 24 were killed in separate political incidents. (3)

Source: (1) Nepal population and health survey 2006, (2) National Planning Commission, (3) CWIN, (4) Ministry of Women, Children and Social Welfare 2064, (7) UNICEF, (8) ILO, (10) Health department CWIN National Resource and Information Centre

Click here to read the full Fact Sheet…..

So what might a typical day in the life of a Nepali child look like?…

• 1.7 million children suffer from malnutrition and other related diseases today.
• 33 girls were sold for marriage to India today.
• Children between ages 5 & 15 will have worked for an equivalent of 5 million dollars worth of production today – for little or no salary.

This is why I am very happy to report that all children at the Ghar Sita Mutu House have gone to school today, none have been married out, and all have had enough to eat.  Hats off to Beverly Bronson, Founder & Director of House With a Heart!

Kind regards,

Andre

First of all, thanks to all who have sent positive comments on my posts.  I hope they are as informative for you as they are therapeutic for me.

Zo, the questions are starting to roll in and so far they have been the same.

Q:  What do the children call you?

A: Auntie - pronounced the British way; Mummy - only when they make a mistake; Popcorn - when I call them Peanut

Q:  Can we sponsor a child ourselves?  Perhaps a child who is not in the House?

A: Well, yes, you can but not through Ghar Sita Mutu.  There are other non-governmental organizations (NGOs) that you can search the internet for if sponsoring a child outside the House is what you prefer to do.  But neither I nor Beverly can vouch for the integrity of these organizations as there is a problem in Nepal with NGO corruption.  However, I can vouch for the fact that this is not the case in the House; Ghar Sita Mutu’s books are squeaky clean and there is not an ounce (or gram) of fat in this program—every Rupee is well spent and accounted for.  I know this because I just typed up and went through FY ’07-08 expenditures.

Getting back to sponsorship, Beverly has run such a program in the past but has dropped it from her repertoire of services; not because she cares less but primarily because:

1. It is an administrative nightmare for her to hound sponsors every year when it’s time to pay for school and/or hostel fees.  She has found that sponsors are quite responsive when they first begin their sponsorship but as the satisfaction and excitement of “doing something” wanes, so does the ability to send sponsorship money on time.  As Beverly put it, people don’t realize that just like in the West, when the bill is due, the bill is due.

2. Sponsoring a child outside Ghar Sita Mutu takes money away from Ghar Sita Mutu.  At this point, and keeping in mind it is mid-October, Beverly has enough money to get the House only through the end of this December.  What’s the saying, she lives on a wing and a prayer?

Q:  How can we best help?

A: Contribute money to Ghar Sita Mutu—now, later, always.  And do so with the belief and trust that Beverly will allocate your money where it is needed most—whether it is in or outside the House.  By now you are all probably familiar with the basics of what she is doing here—providing a home for abandoned children, training impoverished women in a skill so that they can provide for themselves and their families, and teaching literacy to children and women outside the House who have no other place to learn.  That is what I knew as well—before I got here.

But then I started walking the streets of Kathmandu with Beverly.  Well, at least we try to walk the streets.  She constantly gets stopped along the way– people thank her, they update her, or ask her for help.  And if she isn’t being stopped, she is stopping to check up on a child, woman, or family.  She does so much for many outside the House.

Although there is no official outreach program within the Ghar Sita Mutu organization, let there be no mistake, there is a very active and helpful unofficial one.  Beverly distributes money, food, clothes, and goats to needy families.  She has paid medical bills, put children in school and hostels and she has helped women escape terribly abusive marriages.  The list goes on and on.

So, if you really want to help, my suggestion is, send money to Ghar Sita Mutu–$10 a month, $25, $50—whatever is in your means to give (donations are tax deductible).  Another way you can help is to turn your friends, family, and co-workers on to the work Beverly is doing in Nepal.  Send them her website; get them involved with this blog.

Let’s have a little fun with this folks.  Let’s see how many people in how many countries we can get on the blog.  Maybe we can make it around the world, eh?  You all know for yourselves how compelling a story this is or I wouldn’t be here.  So, let’s share it with others.  Get involved, get turned on, have fun!

Q:  Can we adopt a child from Kathmandu/Nepal?

A: Sure, it is possible but again, not through Ghar Sita Mutu.  Beverly is legal guardian for all of the children here in the House so they have a Mummy.  You couldn’t rip a one of her children away from her.  However, it might be entertaining to see someone try but my money would be on Beverly.

Adoption can be worked through other agencies in Nepal and as is the case with many developing countries’ adoption systems, the process can be long, arduous, and costly.  However, if you are truly committed to adopting, I would encourage you to give it a shot.  You might start with Destitute and Orphan Children Safeguarding Foundation – Nepal (sorry, I don’t know the website).  The children I have seen—on and off the streets—still have an endearing light in their eyes and a smile to greet you in spite of the horrific conditions they live in and with.

Happy Dashain to all.  May you begin every day with gratitude for the blessings in your life.

ADDENDUM TO: How can we best help?

As I mentioned above, Beverly gives wherever she sees a need and whenever she has money. A real-time example:

The other night, one of the children, Kamala, was in terrible, terrible pain.  It was finally decided she needed to get to a hospital.  So that you will understand some of the complexities of living in a place like this, before going on with the point of this story, let me share with you that the nearest hospital was called for an ambulance but they didn’t answer the phone.  Another hospital was reached but they only have one ambulance and of course, that one was out on a call.

Instead of waiting, Deepak (our cook) was sent to fetch a taxi down the road. We all pitched in, got Kamala downstairs and loaded her into a cramped taxi for a long bumpy ride with Mummy and the House Co-manager, Rogina.  Rogina went along to serve as a runner; a runner is needed over here because you have to settle your bill before being seen and someone has to go get the medicines, etc. — no bedside delivery over here.

The good news:  Kamala was treated and released for an impacted bowel — ouch.

The bad news:  While at the hospital, a woman was brought in unconscious from a severe knife wound to her head; her abusive husband had attacked her.  She was left in a hallway on a stretcher with no blanket and only her young son to keep her from falling off the stretcher.

Since this was a private hospital and she had no money, she was to be transferred to an even more dismal government hospital.  Even there, she would need Rs1000 (approximately $15) just to get admitted.

And back to the good news and the point of this particular story:  Beverly gave the woman (through her young son) Rs2000 so that she could receive the treatment she so desperately needed.  It is most likely that Beverly will never see this woman again and the woman will never know who most likely saved her life.  And this, folks, is just another reason why giving to Ghar Sita Mutu is the right thing to do.