Namaste! Today was our final day of class with very interesting discussion topics! After class we had the opportunity to visit an NGO called Jamghat. Jamghat has three different programs designed to educate and help children who would otherwise have nothing. The first program we visited was a girls home. The home housed 10 beautiful young girls and also served as their school. These girls receive education, counseling, theatre experience, and the opportunity to live life like a child! Growing up in the United States I had always had my own bedroom and everything that I ever needed. I walked into the room where these 10 girls slept and shared their dreams and it broke my heart. The facility was great but the realization that these girls feel like princesses because they have their own bed under a roof humbled me. They are so thankful with so little that they have been dealt with in life. I intruded on their class time and had them tell me what they were working on and what they found the most exciting thing to do everyday. I expected them to say their favorite thing was their theatre group or playtime yet they responded that they love to study! It was so encouraging to see everything that this organization has done and the lives that they have changed. Three of the girls wanted to dance with me so I hummed “Waka Waka” by Shakira and we did the recognizable dance from the music video. Next we drove to the boys center that was created for the same purpose. The boys were in a more formal class setting and had many books in English scattered on the table. I glanced into another room where I found 5 young boys all under the age of 6 years old. They were playing a popular board game in India and they quickly taught me how to play. These boys were full of energy and loved to demonstrate yoga stances and karate kicks for my camera.
The other center that the organization has is a day-time play center. Fifty kids attend this center while their parents go to work. These children live in the street as well but return to their parents at the end of the day. We asked the workers of the organization how they choose the children that they have to live in the foster centers. They replied that the students they have were the most extreme situations out of the daytime center and many of them asked them to live there. Some children their parents have died while others their parents have simply given them up for hopes of a better life. Dr. Gawande very wisely asked how much it would cost every month to house and teach one child. He did this so we would realize the comparison of how we live our life everyday. The figure was surprisingly higher than I imagined. For $1,000 a month a child is housed, fed, and educated. They responded that they insist on providing quality service for these children and is reflected in their extremely high success rate. The organization is completely amazing and inspiring. There are still millions of children in India who are homeless and in need of an education and their childhood.
Sarah Saunders, MPIA 2012 and Sarah Broussard, MPSA 2011
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