Conference Calls and Shoes

February 25, 2008

Our first attempt at the school sponsorship call didn't go so well. We tried it from the Kidderpore center, where internet is quite unpredictable. Unfortunately, after only 2 minutes the internet stopped working, so all the sponsors could do was talk to the children over the phone. But Sudebi, the Program Manager for Apne Aap, was determined to make it work. So we rescheduled for Monday morning at Destiny, which has a reliable source of internet. The children were so excited to see the American sponsors, and we couldn't help but laugh as they shouted into the computer. When we suggested they say, "Good morning," one very intelligent girl responded, "No, it's morning there - I should say good morning." If you are a sponsor and would like to participate in the next call, please contact Alicia MacGregor to coordinate the time.   

I visited their school that day, and met with the headmasters. They said that over the last year, the children have improved not only in their studies and discipline, but also in their behaviour towards others. I was so pleased to hear this, that after school, I took the children to the shoe store to buy them a new pair of school shoes. They look so much cleaner and serious with their new black shoes and blue socks! It's encouraging to think that they don't have to face discrimination from their classmates, because their classmates don't know that they live in a red light district, or that their mothers are still in prostitution. Instead, they go to a well-respected school and have friends from other parts of the city.