KARUNEIPURI ORPHANAGE

LESLIE & JANET STEPHEN'S VISIT AUGUST 2007

It was wonderful to meet everyone at Karuneipuri again and we were able to visit almost everyday for two weeks.  The weather was very hot and windy due to particularly heavy rain on the western coast of India. We had a great reception; everyone seems very happy.  All the children remembered and asked about those who had visited from England with us at the end of last year.  There were quite a few new children who had arrived at the beginning of the school year in June. One of them is only four years old but he seemed settled and content.   It was good to hear about the secondary students’ successes in the end of year exams. 

A busy two weeks.

We were able to spend time with the children and staff at Karuneipuri and get to know them much better. The warden and his wife had obviously been practising their English and were much more confident in conversing with Janet as were the senior school girls who all want to visit England!  The younger children are also eager students and enjoyed singing new English rhymes and songs.

   A digital camera from England for the warden was a great hit.  He will make a photo record of children and events and send it to us regularly on CD.  We did plenty of shopping in Trichy.  Our purchases included two CD and cassette players, for use in lessons and at weekends, and new lighting in the boys’ dormitory.  Some wiring and roof repairs were carried out.

   With Moses and Savithavathy Xavier, we spent a day in Tanjavur.  Here we visited Rajamani, a former student of Karuneipuri, at a teacher training college.  She will be completing her course very soon.

   A friend in Trichy has donated a television which the children are allowed to watch on Sundays – Tamil films are very popular.

Our visit ended with prayers and good wishes to everyone in England.

The primary school.

We discovered that very recently the government has introduced a new common curriculum for standards I to IV.  This is based on individual learning and achievement at each child’s own pace rather than whole class teaching.  The teachers had attended training and we spent considerable time in discussion with them.  A big difficulty has been funding the new initiatives.  The government has supplied the teaching cards which defines the levels and content of the new system but has requested schools to provide the other new resources.  As the school at Karuneipuri is an aided school it has received only 2000 rupees for implementation compared to 14000 rupees given to state schools.  Using a generous donation from David and Caroline Cotton we were able to purchase much of the equipment needed.  This included steel cupboards, storage trays, seating mats, books and writing materials. .  The teachers are very positive about the changes and want to do the best for the children and so the new curriculum should get off to a good start. 

Building Projects.

The new bore well donated by Trichy Rotary Club has been dug and is ready to serve the new sanitation block.  Janus John, from Trichy Rotary, and the building contractor accompanied us to Karuneipuri to finalise details for building this new block.  Hopefully more news soon.  We also with them discussed the refurbishment and extension of the kitchen.  Plans are to be drawn up.

The new highway.

Access by car to the orphanage was difficult.  Road building was taking place right in front of the site cutting it off from the existing main road.  It is still not certain how much land will be taken for the new road but the bore well supplying the kitchen and the electricity supply control room will definitely be affected.  A small amount of compensation has been given but will not cover the cost of replacing these essential services.

• Posted by david.cotton on 16/09/2007.
• login or register to post comments

JULY NEWS

CHILDREN
Heavy rains delayed the return of some children who were a long way from the village with their families, but they are all back now. We are delighted to report the recruitment of a lady teacher and warden who will live on the site and specifically help take care of the younger children. The cost, on an “all found” basis is just £12 per month. Your money goes a long way in Trichy.

We are now officially registered as THE BREAKTHROUGH TRUST (INDIA) registered number 1119749, which will make the reclaiming of Gift Aid easier. Following this we have also been able to open a formal Trust Account with Nat West. Unfortunately they will not allow us to simply transfer the existing Standing Orders for all those generous people who are supporting the Orphanage with regular payments. We will therefore be asking you to sign new Standing Orders. In the meantime the existing orders will continue and we will switch the funds over between the accounts.

The new bore hole is in and working. A good supply was found at 250 feet and the pump installation is up and running.

Work on the Toilet Block is underway now that the water supply is in place. Good progress has also been made with the transfer of funds from Rotary Foundation and we hope to hear soon that they have been received in the special bank account set up for this project by Trichy Rotary Club.

Through Reading Maiden Erlegh Rotary we received £900, the profit from the sale of programmes for the Wokingham Woodley & Earley Primary Schools Concert at the Hexagon on June 17^th “Celebrating 60 Years of Music for All”. This is a very generous donation and it is hoped that it can be followed up by establishing contact between some of the children.

Alton Rugby Cub is holding a BBQ and Dance on Saturday 25^th August for the benefit of the Orphanage. Andy and Lisa Hayward and Geoff and Charlotte Morris are organising it and tickets can be obtained through Leslie, Charlotte’s father

A donation has been received to purchase 10 Desks and Tables for the main classroom and these have been ordered.

Leslie and Janet are visiting the Orphanage in July. They are taking with them a Camera for the Warden, so that we can have regular pictures of progress and a CD Player so that the children can listen to stories in English. They are hoping to bring back some profiles and photographs of children who would like to find a pen pal in England.

• Posted by david.cotton on 20/07/2007.
• login or register to post comments

MAY NEWS

The school broke up for the summer holidays at the end of April and most children went home to their families..  The summer is very hot with temperatures in the early 40’s every day. A few children remain at the Orphanage and School starts again on June 1^st. Moses is still looking for another Warden to take responsibility for the younger children.

Until recently there was only one bore hole for the whole school. Early this year the pump was restored to another bore well at the rear of the site and work is expected to start on the new bore hole in the middle of May. This will take 4 to 6 weeks to complete and will be the main supply for the new Toilet Block. It is hoped that this will be finished before the end of June.

All the Rotary Funding is in place thanks to Reading Maiden Early Rotary and we now await permission to transfer the funds to India. This is complicated because of the Indian anti-terrorist legislation but hopefully with the aid of Trichy Rotary Club the paperwork will be completed soon so that work can start as soon as the bore hole is finished.

The various Trust Deeds and paperwork have been completed and we await confirmation of registration from the Charity Commissioners. This will enable us to reclaim the gift aid tax more easily.

Sonning Church has donated more than £1000 and there have been personal donations of £500 of which £250 is being spent on 10 new desks and benches for the main classroom. Local Schools and another Rotary Club have also expressed interest in getting involved. This support is very much appreciated.

• Posted by david.cotton on 08/05/2007.
• login or register to post comments

Children in the Classroom

• Posted by david.cotton on 20/12/2006.
• login or register to post comments