Short Summary
Children's Paradise is a unique school in Pokhara, Nepal, supporting both mainstream children and those with learning disabilities; autism, ADHD etc.
There is very little support and education for children with these conditions in Nepal. Often the children are not accepted in school or society and are left all day, sometimes in a locked room, with no interaction with other children or adults.
I've worked with people with learning disabilities, in England, for the last 10 years and want to share my skills with the teachers and families here in Nepal, giving them hope for the future of their children.
At present, the school supports the children with learning disabilities alongside the typical pre-school children, great whilst the child is still young, but not an ideal situation as they get older (8-9 year old children alongside 2-3year olds). I want to support the principal in developing the school by creating a 'day care' provision for the older children with learning disabilities and teaching them life skills to enable them to hopefully become independent in the future.
What We Need
On a temporary basis, we will start daycare from the principal's own home (a rented building). To resource this, I've estimated we need £1,500. This will enable us to purchase the following:
- Arts and craft materials; paper, pens, scissors, paint etc
- Individual personal hygiene products (to teach children independent self care)
- Sensory items, bubbles, balloons, musical items
- Toys and games, puzzles, balls hula hoops etc
- Gardening items (to learn farming skills)
-
Ride on trike, see-saw.
The Impact
In Nepal, people with disabilities struggle to be accepted in society and this results in their families being marginalised too. Firstly, there is little education about their child's needs but also they are often blamed for the child being the way they are; they are accused of having 'a bad spirit'.
Unlike western countries, there is no financial support/aid. Often children miss out on vital doctor's appointments, because the families can't afford the expense or indeed understand the importance of them.
My hope is to show these families and wider society that these children can achieve and contribute to society; that they have value.
Alongside the daycare, I hope to provide monthly parent support sessions. The purpose of these sessions would be two fold. To help break down the isolation parents feel, letting them know they are not alone, but also to act as teaching sessions, helping them understand more about their child's condition and providing emotional support in the challenging task of parenting a child that's not valued in their society.
This is a small project, but for the children and families involved it will make an amazing difference to their lives and their enjoyment of life. It gives them a clear message that they matter, they have value, that they are worth caring about.
Those of you who know me are aware that I have grown up as part of a fostering family for 28 years, so have lived with children who've experienced labelling, rejection and loss. For 10 of those years, I've also worked with people with learning disabilities and my heart is to bring warmth, acceptance and love to those who are often overlooked or rejected by society. I've seen first hand how consistent care and encouragement can help someone move from a position of loneliness and despair to starting to believe in themselves, accepting that they too have the right to dreams and striving to reach them.
That's what I long to bring to these children and their families - that belief that life really can be different and worth living.
Risks & Challenges
As with all crowd funding sites, you have to trust that the money you give will be used in the way described, but as so many of you already know me from work, church, social activities etc, I hope you have the confidence that I will ensure the money is used with integrity and wisdom.
At present, the school has few resources and the day care will be starting from scratch, so it will be slow progress for a while, but follow the blog on the Children's Paradise webpage you can see where your money is being spent and also follow the individual stories of the children.
We'll certainly face some challenges in establishing this project - not least from the families themselves, who may be understandably fearful of the emotional cost of bringing their children out in public and taking them to the school. Then there's the people who'll think that because I'm a white tourist that I'll have lots of money to spend and who'll hope to fleece me when I buy items for the children.
I'm on a learning curve too, being a young woman in a different culture working with the bare minimum of Nepali language skills and still learning what's acceptable here and what will alienate people. However, I'm also sensible enough not to try and do this on my own, so I'll take advice from people here and abroad that I know and trust, people with a good understanding of Nepal, its society, disability, social justice and implementing new start social care projects. I'll take time to reflect on what I see and hear and share it with those people and seek advice before makiing decisions.
Knwoing you're entrusting me with your money is an awesome responsibility and I want to make it work well in this situation, so I'll treat it with care and respect, recognising what it has cost you to earn it and understanding that you want to see it used effectively. I'll keep simple, but transparent accounts and ensure you receive quarterly reports of how it's been spent and the difference it's made.
Other Ways You Can Help
If you can donate, even just a small amount, that would be fantastic but I understand that for some this is not possible. However, you can still help this project, please share this page, talk about it with friends, get the word out there.
Do you want to see the work in action? Well, Children's Paradise welcomes volunteers, so check out the website for information on volunteering in the school or daycare. I look forward to meeting you! :-)
Folks, whatever you can give willl make a difference and I send you a huge thank you from the bottom of my heart
X x
