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Buddha's Smile
School Newsletter
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HELLO FROM
RAJAN
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Here
I am writing to you from India. For those of you who don't know
me, my
name
is Rajan Kaur Saini and I run Buddha’s Smile School in
Varanasi, India.
It’s a school for needy and helpless Dalit children who cannot
afford
an education.
Currently there are 220 children aged 6 to 14 years in my school. We
teach them English, Hindi, Maths, Social Study, Science, Moral Science,
General Knowledge, Craft, Drawing, Music and also Sanskrit.
When they first arrive they are often barefooted, dull and passive. As
a
mother of two it always makes me sad to see them this way. But after we
provide
them with one meal a day and help them with their medical problems,
slowly they start to pay attention in
their studies and become alive and happy. Their minds
begin to open and they start seeing the world -- all of our lovely
children will one day shine like the Sun.
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WHAT HAS BEEN
ACHIEVED, SO FAR?
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Our
most important achievement over the past 4-5 years has
been to steadily increase the number of children who attend BSS. Four
years ago
when Amistad
International started helping us we had 60 children. Today we
teach and care for 220 children. Many of them came to us skinny,
unhealthy and illiterate, but are now healthy, well fed and eager to
learn.
This year, we have 14 children who will move to a Government
secondary school. Everyday they will come to BSS for tuition and
encouragement. We are looking for long term sponsors to help them
continue their education and
hopefully break away from a life of poverty and begging forever.
If you
are interested in helping please send us an email.
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AMISTAD
COMMITS FUNDS TO BUILD EXTENSION
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Amistad
International, a USA based 501(c)3 non-profit organization is our
major sponsor. With their help we have achieved amazing things. Over
the last few year via their many supportes and most notably Ann Down and the Good
Works
Institute, BSS has been able to grow and take on even more children.
Amistad's funding is now providing a Kindergarten and Primary
School
education for 220
underprivileged Dalit children. Their support includes: All salaries
and
day-to-day running costs, a large proportion of our medical costs and until February 2008 the ability for us to feed
220
children and their teachers one wholesome meal a day thanks to generous
grant from The Flora Family Foundation.
Amistad
has committed to helping us expand BSS and build two further
classrooms, stairs, a shaded playing areas and a well and pump at a
cost of about US$20,000. The well will start being dug shortly with
construction of the classrooms beginning in May 2008.
We cannot thank Amistad and their supporter enough. They have
helped us
grow with regular funds and also helped us with advice when we have
needed
it. We are
so
indebted to them for their kindness, their support and their
understanding.
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A GIFT FROM NORWAY
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Geir Davidsen receiving
NOK 15,000 from Etne Sparebank (Bank)
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Until
recently BSS had no vehicle and relied on hiring auto
rickshaws for its transportation needs. A vehicle was required at times
of a medical or other emergency and on a day-to-day basis to purchase
goods from the local market and to help ferry the children to and from
school.
Geir Davidsen
from Etne, Norway has
single-handedly raised the funds needed to
buy
a
vehicle for BSS through
his community fund
raising efforts in the Norwegian town of Etne.
Geir, we want to thank you and your family and everyone from Etne
including the newspaper Grannar and Etne Sparebank who donated NOK
15,000. What you have accomplished has made a huge and highly
significant difference and I wish you could have been in Sarnath
yourself to see the happy smiling faces and the magnificent Tata Bus
your funding has made possible.
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L'ARCHE DE DOLANJI TO FUND 220 MEALS PER DAY
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For
many month we have been extremely worried that the food funding was
ending in February 2008. Then a miracle occurred: A visitor from France
(Edith) told a French association, L'Arche de Dolanji, about us and after much correspondence
and a visit to BSS, they have have decided to begin
sponsoring a daily meal for all 220 children from March 2008
These meals are are
extremely important for the children's ability to learn and remain
healthy.
This is a wonderful gift, thank you L'Arche de Dolanji.
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THANK TO OUR ANGELS
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On
behalf of the children of Buddha's Smile School we'd like to say a big
thank you to our 2007 angels:
Karen Kotoske from Amistad
International; The
Flora Family
Foundation; Ann Down and the Good Works
Institute; Donna and Larry Peters; Miriam Sicherman and Michael Rose;
Peg and Bill Wagner; Geir
Davidsen; Gita
and Vipin Kothari and all their wonderful friends; Dr. Vesna Wallace; Brownyn
Finnigan; Vanessa Turner; Prof. Jim Duerlinger; Lee Ann Bethel and Marcia
Field; Joanna Fernald; Melanie Boyd; Nancy and Larry Bunn;
Dr.Sunny
Rathore; Connie Williams; Merelie Whited; Susanne Howarth; Janet Davis;
Troy Elander; Wally
Hastings; Linda Meeks; Jane Anderson; Markus; Leila Toiviainen; Alfredo
& Anel;
Angela-Claire Cole; Liane Fahr; Dr Al Haj;
Sandrine Buoro; Paul and Francine Bernier; Forrest Fleischman; Amy
Symons;
Dana Kornberg; Jane Sill; Sofi Cullen; Tifin Calcagni; Miriam
Sicherman; Edith
Houdan; Jay Garfield and Monique, Jacqueline, Chantal,
Isabelle and everyone from the association L'Arche de Dolanji.
Thank you so much,
Rajan,
Sukhdev, Daisy and Rosy
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WHAT NEXT? |
The most
important project for the future is to ensure we
achieve regular support for the older children. We will be developing a
sponsorship program to help
fund each older students as they carry on with there education under
our
supervision in selected Secondry Schools. The sponsorship fund will
be manged by us and will provide for their further education and other
daily
needs, like clothes and food and medical and in some cases
accomodation. To find out more please send us an email.
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Buddha's
Smile School is a free, non-denominational, private school
catering exclusively
for underprivileged children from Varanasi, UP, India If you have
questions about
BSS or this newsletter, please email John Holman
Buddha's Smile School
sa 15/129 k-1
Maiwaya Road,
(near Tibetan
Institute)
Sarnath, Varanasi,
Uttar Pradesh 221007, India
Newsletter and communication services
provided free of charge by
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productions pty ltd, Sydney, Australia
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