Meeting Ramesh

“Are you really the Nirmala Gyawali, from the Nepali TV and radio programs I’ve heard?”, asked a student at the Dharan School for the Blind in South-Eastern Nepal.  “I have always dreamed of meeting you!  My name is Ramesh.”

That was our first introduction to an extraordinary young man who lives and studies at one of the few schools in Nepal that have only children with blindness, not integrated, inclusive schools which most blind children attend.  This school has about eighty children living within the school compound and attending classes.  The school seemed to be a very nice environment for the children.  The school grounds were neat and well cared for and the classrooms weren’t fancy, but they were functional.

We were in this part of Nepal to meet three Rotary clubs with partner projects helping people with disability and also to visit the Purwanchal Deaf School where, the following day we were going to take the entire school of 55 kids out to a park for hiking, lunch and games.  Longtime friend, Ms. Nirmala Gyawali (a woman with blindness, who has been on many Nepali TV and Radio shows promoting disability awareness) and her sister Sita wanted to make a short visit to the school for the blind to see how it was running and how the children there were doing.

We met many children at the school that afternoon but the one who stood out for me was definitely Ramesh.  Born with a birth defect that kept his eyes from being formed, with only skin covering where the eyes would have been, his appearance was so different and, initially, a bit unsettling.   However, as is always the case, appearances are only skin-deep and within that young man is a sharp mind, an engaging personality and an inner-vision.

“Tell me about Seattle, Mr. Robert….what is it like there?”  asked Ramesh as we sat surrounded by other students in the boy’s dormitory. 

His English was polite and clear.  Ramesh asked many questions about my photography business, my family and what I looked like.

“What is your age, Mr. Robert?” he asked.

I replied that I was 52 years old.

“Oh, you don’t sound that old at all” he replied with a bit of a twinkle in his voice!

Our conversation went on for another 15 or 20 minutes and then I needed to catch-up with the rest of our group and head off to the hotel.  As I was led out of the dorm room by a number of kids with blindness, suddenly Ramesh asked, “Mr. Robert, how tall are you?”

“Check it out for yourself!” I told him. 

Then he and the other boys reached up and up until they got to the top of my head and “oooh’d” and “ahhh’d” at my comparative height (FYI….I’m 6’2”).  Another kid put his arms around my waist to see how big around I was.  It was an interesting and special experience for me as I thought to myself how curious I would be if I didn’t have sight and how much I would want to know a person’s physical shape to help me make a mental picture of them.

As we crossed the open field between the buildings I saw a boy kicking a soccer ball and then running after it.  The ball was wrapped in a noisy plastic bag that made a distinct ‘rustling’ sound every time it bounced on the ground.  He didn’t have vision, but his hearing was acute as he strongly kicked, then deftly ran precisely to where the ball landed and bounced to a stop.  Another new concept to me: what an ingenious, low-tech way to make an easy-to-find ball for the blind!

Ramesh had a final, difficult question for me. “Mr. Robert, what opportunities will there be for my further education after I finish my high school?”

That was a tough one…I though carefully about my response.  I didn’t want to promise anything I couldn’t deliver or to raise his hopes too high, but I also didn’t want to discourage this bright young man either.  I said, “study hard and do well on your final exams, then let’s see what is possible.  If you do well, I’m sure there will be opportunities for higher education.”

Many of the boys and girls gathered to say goodbye to us after our short but sweet visit.  I know we will return next year to see how they are all doing and how we might be able to provide help. 

Life is about investment and return.  This is true for ourselves and our personal lives, as well as in our financial lives.  We invest time, energy and sometimes money in ourselves, our family and our friends.  For example, we invest in golf lessons hoping that will ‘pay off’ in a better overall game.  If I was giving financial advice, I would say that making sure Ramesh gets a great education is an investment deal that can’t miss.

-Robert Rose

Basanta

March 11, 2011


Today was the day we were going to visit Basanta. He has been our sponsored student since he was in Class 1 back in 2004. Tina, my sister pays $50 a month for his school fees, uniform, hostel and schoolbooks. Every year Tina puts a care package together, picking out a few clothes, shoes, chocolates and little toys to send with wishes of Happiness and love!

We came to know about Basanta from Rotaractor Sanjeev Dahal who had a friend who taught at Suryodaya Secondary School. She mentioned there was an orphan boy who did not have much but was a good student and needed a sponsor to continue his studies. He would hide under his table because he was so ashamed about not having the requisite school uniform or materials everyone else had. The teacher would provide second hand clothes and materials but she would not be able to provide these on an on-going basis. He lost his Mother after his little brother was born and his father was so upset, he left the family and now Basanta has 2 aunts to care for him during festivals and school breaks. He still has his grandparents whom he loves very much.

“No problem”, Rob had immediately said, I am sure we can find a sponsor for him and that was that!

That was 7 years ago and yesterday we enjoyed a bright and enthusiastic 13 year old, now in 7th grade who is Vice President of the school’s Eco Club! He loves plants, shows us the club’s herbal garden which they had tended which boasts of mint, timor, basil, and all other herbal /medicinal native plants.

He is shy but opened up after an hour and was excited to tell us where his Eco Club activities has sent him; Godavari and other neighboring towns to look at plants and trees. He said he was so excited about our meeting, he could not sleep that night before and neither could he concentrate at class the day we were supposed to arrive. He’s a bright and confident boy now and on the verge of adolescence and despite the heartache of missing parents, he seemed content with the knowledge that somewhere halfway around the world, Tina, his adopted parent cares for him and loves him.

He wants to meet Tina! I hope that next year she can visit and finally meet the recipient of her love and care! Gotta make it happen! He’s smile is oh so worth it!

Fun-filled Day

It was the day scheduled to take all the sponsored children from the Naxal Deaf School to the zoo just like last year! Last minute confirmation required a change in plans to have a little party at the deaf hostel instead since they had to study for exams and the kids' parents could only allow 2 hours for the event.

So we stopped at Batt Bathini department store and loaded up on games and sports equipment so we could have fun playing at the hostel! Rob and Balram ordered snacks for lunch + drinks + oranges and we were in business!

All the other hostel kids had to wait until we videotaped the sponsored kids for their requisite video message to their sponsors. Then they all filed in to participate in all sorts of games we brought. It felt like carnival day at our kid's grade school minus the cake walk game =).

We had a soccer ball, table tennis, badminton, racket ball, cricket, golf, jump rope and hoola hoops! See the photos and it says it all! I didn't even need to learn sign language!

Sita came along with us as our guide and translator! Rakesh came along with us! He is the young adult who had been kept home due to his disability and who now lives at NDA and goes to school at class 5. He had suffered from brittle bone decease and is this tiny guy in a tiny wheel chair! He was overwhelmed and realized he was not alone.

Everyone got along! I was busy braiding the friendship bracelets that were in those beany baby give away baggies! I finally got to tie a square knot correctly!

Enjoy the pics when they get posted!

Getting it Right!

It’s been 2 years since 1000 hearing aids were distributed to children and adults with hearing impairment in hopes that this will help them progress in the world that prefers sound to function and communicate. A large hearing aid manufacturing foundation goes around the world providing hearing aids to Africa, South America, Asia and far flung countries were nutrition, lack of awareness about hearing disorders, decease and poor hygiene contribute to conductive or sensorineural hearing loss or both. Was it all a numbers game?

Did they bask in their glory when they drop millions of hearing aids to show their patrons and donors, government grants and individual contributors they had used the funds wisely? Alas, it is so short sighted to dispose of these hearing aids only to find out that without follow-up or monitoring, the results of such endeavor only reveal that a large percentage of these hearing aids have not been used at all.

A meeting with Rotaractors, a speech therapist and donors from Holland, Monique and Rolf, brings forth the comprehensive plan to do this right, to do this all over again. This time not with a large organization but with people and organizations that understand that sustainability comes from monitoring that ensures long term benefits make for meaningful change in a beneficiary's life.

Monique and Rolf are currently building a hostel for 25 impoverished deaf students at the Kavre School for the Hearing Impaired plus living quarters for the hostel administrator. This frees up classrooms so the school can continue to provide grades 1-10 + 2 courses to the deaf community in Banepa.

Trifc.org continues to sponsor deaf children out there and provided the deaf women's cooperative the marketing process for the embroidered note cards. With funds, new audiograms will be performed on the children to determine who will benefit from hearing aids. Dr Ruchie will donate her time to be part of the audiogram testing and will continue to monitor the development and adoption of the hearing aids for the children who will receive them.

We'll get it right this time, make the necessary changes to the program, elicit the help of the children's parents and together understand what exactly can and cannot be done for them. It takes a village to raise a child, it takes a several more to work together to combat ignorance, greed, short sightedness. We all need to listen to that voice inside of us when a louder voice seems to want to drown us out.

Embroidered notecards empower women

Rose Stevens has began the revolution of empowering women with the set up of the Kavre Deaf Women's Development Coop in Banepa, Nepal. Here 15 women had undergone a a 15 day training program to produce export quality note cards embroidered with colorful floral patterns.

The women would not have any other source of livelihood or supplemental income for their families on account of their handicap and the limited opportunities in this society.

They socialize and teach each other new ideas and gain support for their issues and rejoice in their good fortunes as well. Its a coming together of women who have since time held the family unit together and is the driving force for progress!

See their work and their expressions - words cannot convey!

Wish Fulfilling Goddess – Manakamana Temple

February 28, 2011


On the way to Pokhara, we stopped at the Manakamana Temple on top of a hill 1300 meters above sea level just north-east of the town of Mugling. You can hike up foot trails to worship and offer your best chickens or goats but that can take up to 3 -4 hours. After such offerings, the sacrificial creature is dressed and blessed and taken back home for a blessed feast! Or you can board a cable car completed in 1998 by the Swiss government and the pride of Nepal’s tourism board!

We opted to ride up the cable car and spend 10- 15 minutes admiring the little hillside farms and terraced plots as the breeze cooled our heads and kept us in a perpetual dream state!

We enter the turnabout where we hopped off the cable car. We hiked through small alley ways filled with merchants on either side peddling offerings for the Goddess, flowers, strings, coconuts, fruits etc. in little wicker or metal trays.

After about 15 minutes, we stepped a square where the temple has stood for decades when a King of Gorkha had his wish fulfilled and as promised built a temple to Manakamana for all other Hindus to worship and honor.

The temple, built in the 17Th century looked worn out, covered with wax and soot from the millions of butter candles lit and left to burn in all its natural glory for the more smoke that reaches its rafters, equals the passion of its devotees! Rice litters the square as visitors feed the hundreds of pigeons that have made the temple their home - living room plus toilet as well! We made sure not to stand along the electrical cables above us where the pigeons perched happily! Bells surrounded the temple which is rang as the devotees prayed and circled 3 times to make sure the wish has reached the Goddess’ ears.

The lines snaked around and behind the temple, the visitors waiting patiently their turn to enter the temple and get a blessing from the priest inside! They reappear happy, joyful and pleased they had made the pleasing sacrifice to Manakamana!

I must say it is true, your wishes do come true!

Of Suspension Bridges

02/28/2011


It was the last leg of the Volunteer’s Tour and we were on our way to Pokhara, the restful lakeside town made popular by the trekkers to the Annapurna Circuit and where many other trailheads begin.

While Sita, a visually challenged woman who was the first blind Nepali to complete her Masters Degree accompanied the group to Dhulikhel, Jayanti, the program officer of the Rotary Disability Awareness Campaign accompanied the group this time.

Jayanti’s story is one of sheer commitment to one’s desire to make something of oneself in a society that excludes the disabled. Her disability occurred at 2 years of age. She contracted polio and was sent to live at an SOS orphanage for children with disabilities and never saw her mother until she turned 20 and was released. Her family became the children and guardians at SOS Children’s Center at Djorpati. She has then reconnected with her family which lives in Danghadi, a district in the Western part of Nepal that requires a 15 hour bus ride and ½ hour rickshaw ride. She gets to spend the festivals with her family and currently lives with her sister Kalpana. Today she also attends the University and will complete her Masters in Mass Communications in the next 2 years.

The Disability Awareness Campaign precludes the employment of disabled personnel in every possible segment of this program. In the duration of this campaign, we have seen the people with disability (PWD) build wheelchairs, bookshelves, coordinate the activities of the awareness campaign, pose as models for all our media and advertising materials, write articles and commentaries in all Nepali news publications, participate in sports days and become beneficiaries of 25 projects that were developed by the Nepali Rotary Clubs partnered with District 5030 and other US Rotary clubs totaling an amount of over $250,000.00.

The trip to Pokhara included a short walk through a tiny village carved into a mountainside and connected to the main highway via a steel cable suspension bridge. Such an analogy of what people can do for each other, how a single construction enables a community to thrive and gain services for their health, education, medical, nutrition and opportunity to earn and participate in nation building. Everybody needs a connection, everybody needs to contribute and everybody can because we are all able!
Building Community, Bridging Continents!

Rotary can provide that connection, District to District, Club to Club, Rotarian to Rotarian! Building bridges and connecting communities!