Heal: Health & Education for all

AUTHOR Rosie Thomas will discuss her latest book The Kashmir Shawl and how her love of travel and adventure has inspired much of her writing, in a talk to be held to be held as part of the Oundle Festival of Literature, at St Peter’s Church, Oundle on June 21 (7.30pm). Profits from this event will go to HEAL.

Once she was established as a writer and her children had grown up, Rosie discovered a love of travelling and mountaineering. She has climbed in the Alps and the Himalayas, competed in the Peking to Paris car rally, spent time on a tiny Bulgarian research station in Antarctica and travelled the ‘silk road’ through Asia.

Author Rosie Thomas

While researching her latest book Rosie travelled the same routes as the ancient pashmina trade, crossing the Himalayas from Ladakh to the Vale of Srinagar in Kashmir.

The Kashmir Shawl, winner of the RNA Epic Romantic Novel Award 2012, is described as an epic tale of bravery, courage, and great love, spanning three generations.

Rosie is one of only a few authors to have twice won the Romantic Novel of the Year Award by the Romantic Novelists’ Association, in 1985 with Sunrise, and in 2007 with Iris and Ruby. Other well-known bestsellers by the same author include Sun at Midnight and Constance.

HEAL are delighted that their charity was chosen to benefit from this event, with all proceeds going direct to their projects for providing education and shelter to severely underprivileged children in Andhra Pradesh, India.

Tickets for the talk, priced at £7 and £5, are available from Oundle Box Office (tel 01832 274734) and online at www.oundlefestival.org.uk. Any queries, contact Helen Shair at oundlelitfestival@hotmail.co.uk or telephone 01832 274134.

Here is a brief synopsis of The Kashmir Shawl:
Newlywed Nerys Watkins leaves rural Wales for the first time to accompany her husband on a missionary posting to India. Deep in the exquisite heart of 1940s Kashmir lies the lakeside city of Srinagar, where the British live on carved wooden houseboats and dance, flirt and gossip as if there is no war. But the battles draw closer, and life in Srinagar becomes less frivolous when the men are sent away to fight. Nerys is caught up in a dangerous friendship, and by the time she is reunited with her husband, the innocent Welsh bride has become a different woman.
Years later, when Mair Ellis clears out her father’s house, she finds an exquisite antique shawl, a lock of child’s hair wrapped within its folds. Tracing her grandparents’ roots back to Kashmir, Mair embarks on a quest that will change her life forever.

‘A spellbinding tale. Beautifully written, honest and compassionate…a delight from start to finish. Thomas’ portrayal of a young wife struggling to cope with life in wartime Kashmir, her husband’s indifference to her and her attraction to a charismatic mountaineer is beautifully written, touching and believable.’
Daily Express

‘A superbly researched and vivid evocation of wartime Kashmir and Ladakh – and fascinating, too, on how the pashmina shawl makes its way from the Himalayas to our high streets.’
Daily Mail

The Kashmir Shawl is published by Harper Collins and available in paperback, price £7.99.

FROM a very young age, Koteswara Nayak worked as a shepherd boy, helping his father in the fields of rural Andhra Pradesh.

Coming from a very poor tribal family, he was expected to help his parents and, like many children from such impoverished backgrounds, Koteswara Nayak and his sister did not attend school.

But when his parents found they could no longer afford to feed him, they reluctantly agreed to allow HEAL to place him at their Children’s Village in Guntur where he would receive not only shelter and health care, but an all-important education – the key to youngsters from such poor family backgrounds escaping India’s grim poverty trap.

Koteswara Nayak never looked back and when 13 HEAL children recently completed their Junior Inter Public Examinations, all passing with good marks, the former child labourer stood second in Guntur City with a stunning 98% pass mark.

HEAL Junior Inter students, including Koteswara Nayak, pictured centre alongside Mrs Marudwathi

Studying maths, physics and chemistry, the one-time shepherd boy achieved a remarkable 461 marks out of 470 and is being hailed as an inspiration for the other children under HEAL’s care.

“Mr Nayak’s success has become a great motivating factor for all the HEAL children,” said Children’s Village administrator Mrs Marudwathi. “When his parents were unable to feed him, HEAL took him under its wing and after that he gained a lot of confidence and did not look back for anything.

“This kind and timely support brought a wonderful change in his life and he has expressed his grateful thanks to HEAL and his generous sponsor from the UK. And it should not be forgotten that 13 more children from the Village appeared for Junior Inter and passed with good marks.”

In the case of Koteswara Nayak, and many others, it can be seen how the poorest children’s lives are being transformed by the teachers and carers of HEAL in India, and by the generosity of sponsors in the UK and elsewhere.

Economic deprivation and an inadequate education infrastructure mean sending a child out to work from a young as five or six is an all-too-acceptable option for rural families in particular. More than half the children in Andhra Pradesh drop out of school before finishing seventh grade.

Child labour in rural India

Many stay at home to help their parents make ends meet by performing manual labour, while others are often exploited, lured away with promises of good pay, only to find themselves trapped in big-city sweatshops working 12 to 16 hours a day and living in filthy, cramped conditions.

Laws to protect children and ban the use of young workers are largely ineffective, but HEAL continues to offer help to hundreds of needy children and a new safe haven called Paradise Village is currently under construction near Vijayawada. The school there will open this summer and is designed with the aim of helping up to 10,000 children escape the crippling Indian poverty trap by 2020.

Even simple HEAL initiatives such as free books, bags and equipment for primary age children, a free mid-day meal and the provision of shoes are found to pay huge dividends in improving school attendance in underprivileged rural areas such as Guntur, Kanuru and Bhadrachalam, where parents often cannot afford to send their children to school.

HEAL founder Dr Satya Prasad Koneru handing out school bags to schoolchildren in Andhra Pradesh

And it is hoped that success stories like those of Koteswara Nayak and his friends will continue to inspire more sponsors to come forward and give these children the chance to reach their true potential in life for the benfit of them, their families and their communities.

To find out how you can sponsor a child from as little as £11 a month, please visit our website at: www.heal.co.uk/sponsor-a-child.html

AN adventure-loving family from Australia admitted they simply couldn’t resist the challenge when they became the latest recruits for UK-based charity HEAL’s major international fundraiser, Cycle India 2014.

HEAL (Health and Education for All) has raised £220,000 from three previous Cycle India events in 2008, 2010 and 2012 and already has cyclists from India, Great Britain, Germany, United States and Australia signed up for 2014.

All monies raised go to help HEAL’s projects in rural Andhra Pradesh, southern India, where the charity offers many hundreds of impoverished, abandoned and orphaned children education and health care, as well as a roof over their heads. The charity, set up by UK medical practitioner Dr Satya Prasad Koneru 20 years ago, will shortly open the doors to its most ambitious project yet, HEAL Paradise Village, which will become home to one thousand needy children over the coming years.

Participants in Cycle India 2014 will stay at Paradise Village, near Vijayawada, and meet with the first intake of children, as well as visiting existing projects such as HEAL Children’s Village at Guntur.

When Australian Ben Pratt, 27, was looking for a new challenge after taking part in a 200km charity cycle ride in Perth, he came across Cycle India and quickly signed up, along with friend and work colleague Prateek Dua.

Excited by the prospect of a 400km bike ride along a stunning coastal route from Mumbai to the popular tourist destination of Goa in west India, Ben soon shared the details with mum and dad Stuart and Shirley … and they were hooked!

Stuart and Shirley Pratt, from New South Wales

“What can I say,” says Shirley, “we’re Aussies, and we love challenges. Stu and myself are both in our 50s and live in a little country town in New South Wales called Quirindi. We moved here about 18 months ago, as we now have a beautiful granddaughter to care for.

“Ben, however, lives in a remote area of the Kimberleys in western Australia, about 5,000km from us, so we are unable to catch up with each other all that often.

“We went to visit Ben in February and one afternoon we started to talk travel. He told us all about Cycle India and we just thought we could combine everything – travel, give to a charity, meet wonderful people, and have some family time as well … there were only positives as far as we were concerned. So for us from that point on it was ‘let the challenge begin!’.

“Stu and I have always loved travelling and have already done a few challenges along the way – trekking Fox Glacier in New Zealand, jumping out of a plane, trekking with the gorillas in Rwanda – all these exciting adventures were done with our daughter and son-in-law, so it’s going to be wonderful to be doing something with Ben.

“He competed in a bike ride last year to raise money for a cancer charity. At the time, he was living in Ayers Rock in central Australia, so training in 45-degree heat was very challenging, to say the least. It was extremely testing at times but when you have the reward at the end it, it is all worthwhile.

Ben Pratt, who signed up for Cycle India 2014, along with friend Prateek Dua

“The bike ride of over 200km in two days was held in Perth and it was a huge success. He enjoyed the challenge so much, he started looking further afield for another one to do, this time overseas, and that’s how Cycle India became his next challenge. His friend Prateek worked with Ben at the time and, coming from India, he also became very keen to do the bike ride.

“Ben loves riding, as does Stu, although he hasn’t ridden for many years. I never had a bike as a child, so I will definitely have my ‘learner plates’ on, but I’m ready to give it a go for the kids, or maybe walk some stages and help out at feeding stations along the way.”

HEAL founder and president Dr Prasad said: “I was very excited to learn that we will be welcoming a group of cyclists from Australia to Cycle India 2014 as this comes at a time when we are close to finalising the creation of a new arm of our charity, HEAL Australia.

“This event will be a chance to bring together not only supporters from HEAL USA, HEAL India and HEAL UK, but now HEAL Australia and other countries too.

“It promises to be a truly multi-national event and those who will benefit are the children in India, who will be given a chance of a brighter future by receiving an education which will allow them to stand on their own two feet.”

Cycle India 2014 volunteer organiser Jem King is already in talks with another group of potential cyclists from Hong Kong and is delighted to see the fundraising event attracting so much global interest this year.

“We are thrilled to have our friends from Down Under on board for 2014 and I’m hoping other like-minded Aussie cyclists might consider signing up as well,” said Welsh journalist Jem. “We’re aiming to assemble a group of around 30 cyclists for the ride from Mumbai to Goa. After all, the more participants, the more money HEAL can raise to get kids off the streets, out of the rubbish dumps and slums and into school where they belong.”

To learn more about Cycle India 2014, next year’s itinerary and how to register, go to www.heal.co.uk/about-cycle-india.html or get in touch via our contact page at www.heal.co.uk/contact-us.html

ONE fundraiser is determined to go the extra mile for HEAL when he takes part in a long-distance event this June.

“This race promises to be an epic adventure,” says police officer Paul Harris. “It goes beyond marathon running and into the realms of ultra-endurance racing.

Paul Harris sets off on a training run

“It is called ‘The Wall’, running 69 miles along Hadrian’s wall, spanning from Carlisle Castle to the Gateshead Millennium Bridge. It’s a big, elite event and I’m so pleased to be running for HEAL.”

Paul has never even run a marathon, so how does he think he will cope with a race almost three times as long?

“Well, the time limit is 24 hours, but I’m personally aiming to complete it in 16,” he says.

The Wall ultra-run alongside Hadrian's Wall

“Having never run a marathon, this means some serious training and a massive amount of time and dedication. I run four to five times a week and have already clocked over 250 miles in two months.

“I want to earn as much as possible for HEAL as I feel it is a very worthy cause.

“I have obtained a text donation number, text WALL98 and then the amount to 70070, and anyone wishing to support me can visit my HEAL fundraising page at www.justgiving.com/Paul-Harris26.”

The Wall, which was held for the first time last year with 800 people participants, takes place over a mixed-terrain route that incorporates both on and off-road sections and some stunning countryside.

To learn more about the event Paul will be taking part in watch this short video at www.youtube.com/watch?v=V8U6wDbhpRY

HEAL founder and president Dr Satya Prasad Koneru recently returned home to the UK after spending time overseeing the Paradise Village development and remains confident that the school will be ready for its first intake of children later this year.

“I am satisfied with the rate things are taking shape,” says Dr Prasad. “I had two days of meetings with the architects and the rest of the team in Hyderabad and Vijayawada. I am more happy now and everybody is content with the new designs.

Building work progresses on the primary school

“There has been some redesign work, such as changing the main roof to a flat roof to allow us to install the panels for solar power. It is a big financial layout, but all part of our commitment to an eco-friendly environment at Paradise Village.”

HEAL hopes to attract support from a specialist solar power company interested in funding or part-funding the cost of installation, estimated to be in the region of 2.7crore (£325,000).

“Our vision for HEAL Paradise Village is that it will be fully self-sustaining and embrace green technology wherever possible,” says Dr Prasad.

“As for the construction work, we aim to complete the whole primary school building by the end of June 2013 and are hoping to start the academic year with 100 children.

“Dorms should be ready by the end of this year and until that time some of the classrooms will be used for accommodation and offices.

“We will have 16 classrooms, an arts room, a computer lab, staff room, library and a laboratory. In addition, there will be a lobby/gallery, head teachers office, as well as three outdoor classrooms. It is a very large building which will also house stores and laundry on the lower ground level.”

Site manager Mastan Ann reports that work on the dorms has been started and landscaping is going ahead with bougainvillea plants and 150 coconut trees providing a green-wall boundary.

“Each coconut tree will produce hundreds of fruit and each fruit contains a litre of coconut water which contains sugar & minerals, so the children will be able to have a healthy glass of coconut water every day,” says Mastan.

Meantime, while the construction is being carried out, HEAL India’s educational committee will be responsible for buying furniture and stationary and recruiting well-qualified teachers in the coming months.”

A GOOD time was had by all when more than 100 people attended a recent HEAL fundraising
dinner and dance at the VIP lounge in Edgware.

Rakhi and Ash

Organisers husband and wife Ash and Rakhi Dhanani said that all proceeds from the night
would be presented to HEAL and that a lot of awareness was raised of the charity’s work in
helping provide shelter, healthcare and education to underpriviliged children in India.

Guests arrived to a champagne reception and canapes and were then taken into the main room
where they watched an eye-catching performance by Love The Beat School of Dance.

Next came a presentation all about HEAL from Rakhi and Ash, before a buffet dinner and then
lots of dancing.

“From the feedback that we had everyone had a great night!” said Rakhi. “And in addition to
raising approximately £650, we created a lot of awareness of the great work being done by
HEAL.

“As well as the money raised on the night, one of our friends has said she will be making a
donation of £200 and although some people could not make it to the event, they have told us
they will also contribute directly to HEAL.

“Furthermore, one person who attended our event has informed us that he has decided to
sponsor a child and we had lots of interest from others, so hopefully our event will prompt
a few more people to sponsor children.”

For more information on how to make a donation or sponsor a child with HEAL please visit our
‘how to help’ page on our website: http://www.heal.co.uk/how-to-help.html

THERE has been much excitement at the HEAL Children’s Village in Guntur recently.

The Annual Day Celebrations at Sri Venkateswara Bala Kuteer were greatly enjoyed as usual, with many HEAL children receiving prizes and participating in cultural programmes.

Annual Day Celebrations

Last year Mrs Rohini Kakani and Mr Srikanth, former students at the school, instituted cash awards for students finishing top of their class at the HEAL Village. Each of the award winners was presented with Rs1,000.

“We feel proud of our children,” said HEAL Village co-ordinator
Mrs Marudwathi. “Following our Annual Day Celebrations we had news of more susccess to share as we celebrated the birthday of HEAL founder Dr Satya Prasad in a joyful atmosphere.

Prizewinners with their awards

“Miss Mamatha, the first child at HEAL Village, is completing B.Tech within a few months with good scores.

“Miss Yasaswini, in her second year at Polytechnic studying electronics and communication engineering, stood at the top of her class for the second year running with 90% pass rate.

First HEAL child Mamatha

“Yasaswini came to HEAL along with her little sister after the death of their father. All through her studies she has been first in the class and scored 100% in maths in her 10th Board examinations. Her younger sister Sri Latha, who is completing 9th class this year, is also first in her class.

“Mr Harsha Vardhan came to HEAL along with his younger sister and widowed mother. He, also, has been first throughout his school study. We admitted him into a three-year civil engineering course at Polytechnic.

Successful student Harsha with Mrs Muradwathi and HEAL children

“He has been first in class in each of the three years – a wonderful achievement. He appeared for ECET (entrance into engineering) and got qualified with a good ranking.

“He gained admission into second year B.Tech in a reputed engineering college and at the end of his first semester he stood top with 93.7% among all the branches of his class in the college.

Yasaswini, who is top of her class in college

“We feel so proud of our kids. They tell us that their dreams have become a reality just because of the support of HEAL.

“And no doubt their successes will inspire all the HEAL children to dream for a brighter future and work hard to reach their goals.”

To learn more about how to bring hope and change to a child living in poverty by helping them achieve their full potential, please visit the Sponsor a Child page on the HEAL website.

HEAL founder Dr Satya Prasad Koneru was delighted to attend a special fundraising evening in Boston, Lincs, where all money raised will be used to sponsor a young person through their higher education in Andhra Pradesh.

Many of the children in HEAL’s care, who are growing up to become young students, would like to go on to further education in order to help secure their futures.

'World of Colours'

Teachers within the HEAL Children’s Village school at Guntur assess those pupils who they believe are capable of going on to successfully further their education.

For £48 per month a student’s education can be sponsored through HEAL for 1-3 years at a higher educational facility.

Geetha Ramana, who organised the fundraising event in her home town of Boston, was keen to get involved in this programme and has asked Dr Prasad to put the money raised, £1,500, towards a child’s higher education.

During the fundraiser, children participated in a ‘World of Colours’ display and an attractive silk painting was auctioned off.

Geetha Ramana and her husband auctioned a silk painting at their fundraiser

“Both of my children have gone to university now and I know how very important higher education is for those young people in India,” said Geetha, who moved with her husband from their Andhra Pradesh home to the UK 16 years ago.

“I first met Dr Prasad and became aware of HEAL about 11 years ago when I attended one of the charity’s India Nights in Peterborough and I have been going every year since then.

“When I heard all about the new HEAL Paradise project I decided I wanted to do more than merely attend India Night and so in 2011 we held an event for more than 150 people in Boston and raised £3,000.

“This year we raised another £1,500 and I have been discussing with friends how we can come together to sponsor a child for three years through their higher education.

Children helping needy children in India

“I am going back to India in February to visit my mum and dad in Hyderabad and when I return to Boston I am planning to hold a coffee morning.

“I want to keep doing these events every year and see this as a long-term commitment to HEAL and the children in its care.”

For more information on sponsoring a young person in higher education please visit http://www.heal.co.uk/sponsor-a-child.html

A GROUP of international students are on the verge of creating a social enterprise scheme aimed at helping impoverished young people in rural India to grow their own food on a commercial scale.

The London-based students, who are drawn from far and wide across Europe, South America and Asia, came up with a proposal to enter into partnership with HEAL (Health and Education for All) after they heard about the charity’s ambitious plans to create a new self-sustaining village, near Vijayawada in Andhra Pradesh.

Construction is already under way on Paradise Village, which will become home to hundreds of severely disadvantaged and orphaned children, giving them shelter, healthcare and an all-important education as part of the ever-growing HEAL family.

The £3million project will comprise of a state-of-the-art, eco-friendly complex of buildings, including – in addition to the main school – health facilities, a vocational training centre, a school for the blind, a care home for the elderly and edible plantations and gardens.

The village, according to HEAL founder/president Dr Satya Prasad Koneru, is designed to create “a safe haven where children can be nurtured and realise their full potential, creating a self-sustaining and mutually beneficial community based on the pursuit of happiness through the common good”.

Dr Prasad, a Peterborough-based GP who founded the charity 20 years ago by donating his former family home in Guntur to create a school for needy children, said he was impressed with the students’ proposal to grow food on a commercial scale as a volunteer pilot project at Paradise.

“The village is leading the way in construction, using recyclable materials and ‘green’ technologies for electricity, water, sewage and edible plantations, so I felt that their idea fitted in perfectly with the Paradise project,” he said.

An artist's impression of the school block at the HEAL Paradise Village

“Such a social enterprise, which will involve using grow bags to produce natural, wholesome food such as mushrooms, tomatoes and aubergines will help our children become self-sufficient, as well as involving the local villages.

“I was delighted to meet with such an energetic, bright and enthusiastic group of young people and look forward to developing a fruitful partnership with them. The added benefit of their scheme is that profits will be re-invested back into the project.”

Hult International Business School student Raiana Chowdhury explains how the scheme was born: “Myself and Max von Luttichau initiated the idea of mobile farming a year before we made this group.

“The aim of the enterprise is to educate children and young people how to grow their own food in an alternative way, provide them with essential material needed and see them grow together with the project.

“The food grown through our ‘bag farming’ method may then be used by the local people for trading amongst each other, which we hope will lead to community formation and an additional sense of belonging.

“Vegetables will be grown in recyclable bags, using a minimum amount of soil, water and solar energy and can then be sold in the market or traded within the local community and surrounding villages. Unsold produce will not be wasted, being used as the primary element to grow more new and fresh vegetables.

“We went along with fellow Hult students Maria Camilla Sierra, from Colombia, and AnaMaria Meshkurti, from Albania, to meet with Dr Prasad to discuss our collaboration. It was an honour to meet the founder of such a wonderful charity and we were highly interested to learn more about the HEAL village and the Paradise project. We look forward to working closely with him in the future.”

For more information on the HEAL Paradise project visit www.healparadise.org

THE stunning VIP Lounge in Edgware, Middlesex, will be the venue for a Charity Dinner & Dance to be held in aid of HEAL on Friday, February 15.

The VIP Lounge in High Street, Edgware

A night of good food, entertainment and dancing is promised by the event organisers, husband and wife Ash and Rakhi Dhanani, with all profits going to help HEAL’s work with disadvantaged children in Andhra Pradesh.

The VIP Lounge in Edgware High Street boasts impressive modern facilities and is a popular venue for banquets, weddings, conferences and formal dinners.

For the ticket price of £35, guests will be welcomed with drinks and canapés from 7pm-8pm, followed by entertainment from the ‘LoveTheBeat’ dancers, a buffet dinner and dancing.

“It should be a wonderful evening and anyone wishing to attend can get in touch with myself or Ash directly to buy tickets via email, facebook or telephone,” says Rakhi.

“We very much hope people will come along and support our fundraising dinner/dance, with 100 per cent of the profits being donated to HEAL, who are committed to providing shelter, support, education and healthcare for needy children in India.”

To purchase tickets please email ashkievents@gmail.com or telephone Ash and Rakhi on 07540 306714 or 07894 080030.