Featured Project: Hamare Bachche, Mehsana District

by Joe Frye

Tuesday October 13, 2009 at 9:19am, EST

A train ablaze, a city in chaos, women widowed and children left orphaned. Many children were witness to this terrible violence as massive riots broke out in the city of Godhra India in 2002. When all was said and done more than 1,000 people were dead, the brutality and horror of the events left impressed in the minds of the community’s children.
Meet Hamare Bachche, a project that literally translates to “our children.” It is aimed at helping the children of the riots rehabilitate after the loss of one or both parents.  This program will help these children return to school and get their lives back on track. Read more.

As a result of the riots, these children lost their chance at education and means of support, both financially and emotionally. Hamare Bachche helps children between the ages of 3 and 18 get enrolled in schools so that they can receive an education.

Ed, from Edgewater, MD understands the critical importance of an education. “I know from personal experience that education is a worthy pursuit - a pursuit that will pay dividends, not just to the recipients, but to the community as a whole”.  He knows the children of the Mehsana District need special attention and care to help them cope with the trauma they face daily, and uncover opportunities for their future.  Through 1Well, Ed partnered with the Mehsana District community to make a difference and help restart the children’s lives.

The Hamare Bachche projects will cover the cost of education, trauma assessment and counseling, and other necessities including room and board, health care, and special programs to help children be just that, children, who can once again smile, laugh and learn.  “My parents also taught me the value of hard work and that life would present me with opportunities,” Ed writes, “opportunities that others would not have and that previous generations of my family had not been granted.” By taking on the Mehsana Hamare Bachche project Ed has seized an opportunity to help these children. So far he has helped 11 students get an education, giving them the skills they need to be self-reliant and the ability to seek out opportunities.

Interested in becoming a 1Well Citizen Philanthropist? Get involved! Ed took the opportunity to become a Citizen Philanthropist and is making a real impact on the lives of Mehsana’s children.  You too can make a difference in the children’s lives, partner with Ahmedebad and help provide healthcare, education and counseling for 60 children affected by violence.