Polio Drops of Life!

Dear TRIFC & Rotary Friends,

We have had so many remarkable experiences on this trip it's difficult to pick one to write about! Eric Postle and Brittany Barker (and the other Rotarian volunteers from other clubs) have been super volunteers pitching in wherever needed.

The other day we took 32 children with disability camping overnight with tents, songs, games and plenty of music and dancing! I'll share more about that experience in another post but this time I wanted to share something very close to every Rotarians heart....giving the drops of life to insure that no child anywhere in the world need ever suffer from the crippling disease of polio.

Our group participated in Nepal's national polio immunization day and walked throughout the old town of Dhulikhel handing out leaflets and visiting two stations of volunteer women who were giving the drops and putting the 'purple-pinkie' die on each child's little finger to indicate they had received their immunization.

It was such a moving experience to actually participate in this annual event and to see how involved the local Rotarians and Rotaractors are in the campaign. Dhulikhel Rotary President Ashok Shrestha led the way with his Rotary/Rotaract team close behind! Eric, Brittany and I all gave the polio immunization drops to waiting children....it was so moving to look into these children's eyes and know that they will be safe from polio forever! That is a great feeling indeed and Rotary is the organization that is getting it done! Yours in Rotary,
-Rob.

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The Picnic Spot

The Group headed north to Dhulikel stopping first at Bhaktapur, the City of Devotees, the 2nd of the 3 palaces we were going to visit. It is the most preserved of the palace grounds and restoration has been going on for the last 4-5 years. I wish that the guardians of Kathmandu and Patan Durbar Square would undertake a similar project. We had a fun time looking at the temples and shopping for a few souvenirs plus lunch at the Nyatapola Restaurant right beside the Nyatapola Temple ( 5 story pagoda style temple build by the great Mala King).
This was only a precursor to the wonderful weekend we were going to have at Dhulikel.

The grand plan this year was to take all the children at DNC plus the college students camping on the grounds at Picnic Point, an open area in the heart of Dhulikel. Everest Tours was going to set up tents and prepare the meals to be served at a covered area nearby. Rotaractors were going to arrange for games and music to be piped in. As you know, our DNC parties are never ever complete without dancing!

Donna Eggan also had a special treat for the children! She cut out and brought with her fleece material cut up and ready for making “sit-upons” by knotting the cut up edges a ½ inch apart. We added a square  ¾ foam in between 2 pieces to add cushion and softness as well.  The entire pillow was 10” x 10” when done. This provided a nice interaction between the younger kids and the volunteers, especially when it got pretty hot to run around the park.

Another surprise fun treat was that Doug Kyes brought face paint and started adding beautiful face art on the children. Doug and Sonja Kyes are one of many sponsors and they were with the group that visited in 2008 and have been a loyal supporter all these years. They will get to spend some time with their sponsored kids, (they have 2) when they visit with us in Pokhara for 2 days.  There was such a long line of kids that petty soon Pushkar, DNC’s resident artist started face painting as well. The pictures tell the entire story.
But the best part is that the children had a blast and for the Volunteers, well … the day with the children hit the right spot!

The Gifts Bags are a HIT at DNC!

Day 1/2 Photos

 Visiting Puja, walking around the Buddhist Stupa, Good Times and Deep Emotions!

Table Tennis Comes to DHC

TRIFC is proud to have been able to purchase two table tennis boards for organizations in Nepal.  One of them is pictured here....children with disability at DHC center are now able to get some great exercise as well as have fun at the same time!  Table tennis is excellent physical therapy for children with disability and I could tell right away that many of them had some great skills!

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Memorial for Bujana...

Last week there was an emotional memorial service at the Disabled Newlife Center (DNC) for Bujana who passed away at the age of 13. This was an opportunity for all of the children to say goodbye to their cherished friend, as the cremation ceremony I wrote about earlier took place very quickly after she passed away and most were not in attendance. Eyes filled with sadness, remembrances, words of inspiration and encouragement. I also spoke to the group about how Bujana lives on within our memory. This is true of all that have passed before us, isn't it?

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Spinal Injury Rehab Center Program

Recently, I attended the 10th Anniversary Program for the Spinal Injury Rehabilitation Center (SIRC).  I came to the event with my good Rotary friend- Padam Lal Maharjan and his wife, Kalpana.  Also along for the day was Ms. Sharada Adhikari who works for the Helen Keller Foundation here in Kathmandu.  She is another talented, remarkable woman with blindness.

There were many people with disability in attendance and many wheelchairs with engaged onlookers there to celebrate the wonderful work this center has provided over the past 10 years.  We parked in a big field nearby the center and stepped out of the car amidst numerous goats and chickens!  The center is close to the highway, yet it still seems quite rural as you drive up the hill for a couple of minutes.

When we entered the courtyard I was so surprised to see our friend and sponsored person with disability, Rakesh Gwachha.  Rakesh has a condition called 'brittle bone disease'; his bones are too weak to support his body and he sits about two feet tall.  He was smiling ear-to-ear when he spotted me....I pulled him out of line and wheeled him down to be with me during the program.

Also in attendance were numerous classic Volkswagen Beetles!  They were part of an international road rally to raise money for SIRC.  I've attached a nice photo of Rakesh sitting in the driver's seat of one of them.  One of my Rotary friends- Prabhu Bhandary was kind enough to let Rakesh have that experience.

One of the USA/Nepal Disability Awareness Campaign's Rotary Matching Grant projects involves this center where they have trained people with disability to assemble 100 wheelchairs for disability.  That project is with the Rotary Club of Itahari and Rotary Club of Pokhara Fishtail.  The main international partner is the Rotary Club of Renton.  

Remarkable work done by a remarkable organization benefitting people with disability!

Distinguished Guests

Rakesh at the wheel!

Rakesh and Rob!

Prabhu Bhandari and his Beetle!

Rakesh and Sharada

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