Hope all well with you guys?
No photos with this one, way too difficult without my mate Adam the photographer. He is sending them to me on a disk which should help!
In my last email I think I talked about the health of the girls. I mentioned that when they arrive at the Charity they are generally unwell and living with illness often born of poverty, anaemia, TB, HIV D+V. All the girls are tested for TB, HIV and have routine bloods.
Luckily the local Government Hospital is very good. In India the quality of the government Hospitals varies greatly. When I worked in India before the local Government Hospital was terrible and often cruel to the patients. I was looking after people who had HIV, but it’s different here which is a great relief especially as the Government Hospital is mostly free, we have to buy some meds and blood. For interest blood is generally donated by family members but as most of the girls do not have family it’s brought from the Red Cross which sells ‘safe’ blood, i.e. tested before its administered.
As you know the girls who live in the Charity are aged 5 to 18. The referall criteria has a priority entry for girls who have no family at all, then girls who have a single parent, normally their Mum. At the start of the Charity the co-founder Radica visited the train station and slums to let people know about the Charity but now people bring girls via word of mouth because locally the charity is known to be good and uncorrupt. There are 20 girls waiting to come and live here but space is too limited to offer more than 26 places. The Charity wants to expand to 50 places next year, so that’s me fundraising for ever and a day!
I think I mentioned that the Charity is looking at how to support the girls after they leave at 18, and in India this is about making sure they have work but also supporting them to get married. In India being married is socially vital for women. The only people who don’t get married, as far as I can tell, are holy women and men. Radica has built contacts with the local charity that cares for boys so that she can make marriage alliances for the girls ready for when they leave. I am bringing back with me the local paper’s matrimonial ads, they are brill. My favourite is ‘ tall bride wanted 5 foot 2′ !
I am thinking about replying to one from a dobhi ( that’s a man who runs a laundry to you and me). I like the idea of getting me clothes done for me, if he can cook too and doesn’t mind a white 43 year old he is the one for me!
Just one last thing, which is to say that the girls and the charity workers are more grateful than I can say for the money and the thoughts that have gone into giving the money. The little girls think its amazing that people in the UK are thinking of them and wanting the best for them and say hello to all the Aunties and Uncles (that’s what every one over the age of about 25 is called)
This might be the last e mail as I am going to take some of the A/L as A/L and travel, shop and eat something other than spice!
Happy Christmas and a brill new year to ALL and again thank you for thinking of the future of the most delightful, cheeky girls.
