 | | October 2017: Happenings@Home | Thank you for your feedback on last month’s newsletter. It’s great to have your ideas! This reveals your interest in our work, which motivates us to keep going; to get our message out there. Thank you so much! Well, let’s get to our quick roundup for October, which we hope you enjoy reading. Remember, you have an open invitation to visit our home anytime. We look forward to meeting you! In the meanwhile, check our website for information on our programs and sponsorship options. | Daan Utsav is India's own festival of giving, celebrated each year from October 2-8. It’s also known as the “Joy of Giving” week. Millions of people from all walks of life come together during this week to give their time, money, resources and skills back to society! At Sri Arunodayam, we make it a point to celebrate Daan Utsav because it’s a great time to teach our children that there’s more joy in giving than in receiving! Feeding the poor
From the 2nd to the 8th, our young adults and caregivers cooked and distributed hot meals to the homeless in Kolathur and Red Hills. Both the givers and receivers shared warm and happy moments together. | Community Giving Program with help from the Koyambedu vendors
On October 5th, generous vendors at the Koyambedu market donated a whopping 650 Kgs of vegetables (yes, all in a single day!) which we distributed to homes in Chennai like CHILD, Paathai, Aruvi and Samarpana. We took this campaign to the vendors who were more than generous to the cause. Kudos to these simple folk who freely gave despite the current economic condition. They are blessed givers indeed! | What goes around comes around! While we were busy giving to others, others gave back to us. In an act of kindness, Karpaga Vinayakar Dental College conducted a free dental check-up for our children on October 6th. This program was organised by the Lions Club of Korattur. | Rejoicing in the light!
Diwali is always a fun time for kids, especially ours! It’s a festival they wait for all year round. The new clothes, the crackers, the fun and games, chatting with visitors, sumptuous food and so much more! Our children had a blast! The day started early at 5.30 am with the customary ritual of the children getting an oil massage and a warm bath. All through the day, meals and snacks were sponsored by kind donors – including the children’s new clothes! The highlight of the day was a lovely cracker show from 5 to 7 pm – and the crackers too were donated by kind benefactors. We had a lovely day because of these wonderful people who make it a point to commit themselves to the welfare of our children year-on-year. That’s how we celebrated Diwali. In fact, we expose the children to all festivals, teaching them to enjoy multiculturalism with the deepest respect. | Memory saves the day! Basuvaraj is 24 years old, mildly retarded and blind. Around 4 years ago he was found abandoned at the Chennai Railway Station and ChildLine sent him to us. We trained him under our special education program and later enrolled him for vocational training as a boarder at the National Institute of the Visually Handicapped (NIVH). He went missing from there one day, and the Police were not able to trace him. Two weeks ago, he called us from the same railway station he was picked up from 4 years ago! Luckily, Basavaraj remembered our phone numbers and that’s how he got back. A long-lost son is back home now and we rejoice! | | THE 'FANTASTIC FIVE' AWARD | Association of Builders for Chennai Development honor Iyyappan, our Founder The Association of Builders for Chennai Development honored Iyyappan on the 22nd October with this award in recognition of his service to special children. Dr. Kanaga, the first female Neurologist in Asia handed the award to Iyyappan. The good, 87 year old doctor has dedicated her life to the poor and the downtrodden and she still actively renders free medical services to the poor. Our little girls performed a Bharatanatyam dance at the event which enthralled the audience who witnessed their newfound skills! | They deserve a Birthday too! We don’t really know the exact birth-days of the children with us because they’ve all been abandoned. Documentation provided at the time of entry fixes only an approximate age. Yet, we firmly believe that every abandoned child is entitled to celebrate his/her birthday just like other children. So, we celebrate the day that they entered our home as their birthday! We commenced this practice in October, rejoicing with the children for the wonderful gift of life! (If you’d like to sponsor a child’s birthday, call our office at the numbers below.) | Other events in October ▪ On October 2nd, Jus Drums (School of Percussion, run by Chennai's well known percussionist Murali Krishnan) visited the home for a 2-hour session with the children. To say that they were enthralled is an understatement! The children enjoyed the rhythmic beats and some are showing an inclination to this art form, which is exciting for us!
▪ Prayatna – our vocational center’s products were on display at the Battle of the Buffet (BOB) event on the 1st and 2nd, at Anna Nagar Tower Park on the 8th and 15th and at Amazon’s campus on the 9th and 10th. The products were well received much to the delight of the children! Read more about Prayatna, here.
▪ On October 27th we conducted a quarterly psychiatric review for 39 children on psychiatric medications. These children are living with serious medical conditions and are regularly monitored so that appropriate adjustments can be made to the medicines they take.
▪ As part of their CSR initiative to honor an orphanage each year, Hotel Ambassador Pallava invited our children for a special variety entertainment program and buffet dinner on October 10th. They even organized the children’s transportation, and every one had a wonderful time.
▪ Our home was packed with students this month! 57 from NIFT (Taramani), 25 from Eurokids (Kolathur), 22 from National Public School (Gopalapuram), 88 from Vivekananda Vidyalaya (Mathur and Ayanambakkam), 25 from Amrita Vidyalayam (Virugambakkam) and 148 from Good Shepherd Convent (Nungambakkam). The students distributed provisions, toiletries, snacks and other items to the children, for Diwali.
| ▪ | On October 2nd, Jus Drums (School of Percussion, run by Chennai's well known percussionist Murali Krishnan) visited the home for a 2-hour session with the children. To say that they were enthralled is an understatement! The children enjoyed the rhythmic beats and some are showing an inclination to this art form, which is exciting for us! | | ▪ | Prayatna – our vocational center’s products were on display at the Battle of the Buffet (BOB) event on the 1st and 2nd, at Anna Nagar Tower Park on the 8th and 15th and at Amazon’s campus on the 9th and 10th. The products were well received much to the delight of the children! Read more about Prayatna, here. | | ▪ | On October 27th we conducted a quarterly psychiatric review for 39 children on psychiatric medications. These children are living with serious medical conditions and are regularly monitored so that appropriate adjustments can be made to the medicines they take. | | ▪ | As part of their CSR initiative to honor an orphanage each year, Hotel Ambassador Pallava invited our children for a special variety entertainment program and buffet dinner on October 10th. They even organized the children’s transportation, and every one had a wonderful time. | | ▪ | Our home was packed with students this month! 57 from NIFT (Taramani), 25 from Eurokids (Kolathur), 22 from National Public School (Gopalapuram), 88 from Vivekananda Vidyalaya (Mathur and Ayanambakkam), 25 from Amrita Vidyalayam (Virugambakkam) and 148 from Good Shepherd Convent (Nungambakkam). The students distributed provisions, toiletries, snacks and other items to the children, for Diwali. | | Want to donate to any of our projects? Click here.
Until our next update, stay blessed! | Sri Arunodayam is a secular organization with zero tolerance for discrimination against children, whether on the basis of caste, creed, religion, status, color, or gender orientation. | Sri Arunodayam Charitable Trust Tel: 91-44-26511450 / 803; Mobile: 91-9444915803; Email: iyyappan@sriarunodayam.org https://sriarunodayam.org/ | | |
