Health Help International

Projects in India

Asha Kiran Ashram (Rays of Hope House)
Newport and Strathaven Scouts have done a superb job raising money, which we have been busy spending on the construction of a home for children with mental disability.
The building work has gone very well, and is nearing completion - the walls have been completed, the roof is on, and the final flooring and plastering is under way. A grand opening is planned for 23rd August.

Pastor Santosh in fromt of the building

The local government is showing great interest in this project, since it is the first of its kind in this part of India. It will be a great testimony to the love of God in action.

Dayabhaven orphanage
Many of the children come from quite traumatic backgrounds. They do seem to settle in well, and to become a lot happier after a year or so, which is a great testimony to the care that they receive. Five new children have joined the home recently.

Children at Dayabhaven enjoying a meal together.

Pastor Bovas has also been busy during the long school holidays, which in India are in May / June time. He has been running two Bible schools in villages where there had been none previously, using materials provided by the Newport and District Christian Education Council (NADCEC), and for which he raised the funds himself. He hopes to run more schools in the autumn and Christmas breaks.

A number of supporters give us £10 a month to provide a place at the orphanage for a needy child. We are very grateful to these – it makes a huge difference to the lives of these youngsters.

Thanal House
Looking after more than forty women, many of whom are severely disturbed, is a formidable task. Sam and Valsala do most of the work on their own, with some help cultivating the land. Their daughters Shyni and Shalini also help when they are home from college.
When we visited India in January, we were able to see the new house in operation for the first time. It is a huge improvement on the old place – light and airy, and the ladies are much happier there.
We have arranged for a part of it to be walled to enable the women to wander around safely outside.

We were also able to give them a day at the beach, complete with ice creams and pony rides for those who wanted them. Shyni showed them how to make sandcastles, and soon there was a regular fortification.

Shanti Bhavan – House of Peace
Shanti Bhavan is a home for destitute people in Thiruvananthapuram (Trivandrum) which is run by Rani and Johnny, a lovely Christian couple.

With very limited facilities and very limited support, they look after some 30 to 40 people, mainly men.
Your generosity provides two large (70 kilogram) sacks of rice each month – a much needed contribution to the running costs of the home. A generous supporter has also provided the money for the house to be re-roofed. This work has been completed, making the house a lot better, and water-tight.

Tom Sutherland
As well as these major developments, our core work of helping the sick and destitute of India continues. We send out a regular contribution to Tom each month to provide medicines, treatment for heart problems, and anti-rejection drugs for kidney transplant patients. We are also providing support for a day centre for the elderly.

Every month Tom sends us a list of extra needs. Typically the amount needed is about £500 a month. In India, the normal male wage is only about £3 a day and women earn far less, so such treatments are way beyond what they can afford.
Your contributions are, literally, a matter of life and death to them. Because you are so generous, we are able to meet many of these requests.

Thank you!