Giving Tuesday is an international holiday but also a movement that was initiated in the United States by the 92nd Street YMCA and the United Nations Foundation as a response to counter rampant commercialization and consumerism in the post-Thanksgiving season (Black Friday and Cyber Monday). Gifts...
Ms. Periyaka is a poor widow who, sadly, has no children to look after her. In order to survive she tends goats from morning until night every day. Recently, the vision in her right eye has been becoming hazy and soon she won’t see well enough to earn her meager living. Compassionate...
Sometimes those who have the least are the ones who are the most grateful for life’s blessings. Yamini has been very poor all her life. She, along with her mother and sister, were abandoned by her father when she was very young. They now live with her grandmother near Guruvarajapet in Tamil...
Although Thanksgiving is predominately celebrated as holidays in North America (USA and Canada), its themes of joining together, sharing, and gratitude has meaning to people everywhere. Most of us celebrate some level of abundance, but for those who have the very least, a helping hand could mean...
Diwali is India’s biggest and most important holiday of the year. At HoPE Learning Centers, every year, the children enjoy the feasts and new clothes provided by our generous sponsors. They are ever thankful for the blessings which your donations bring to their lives during Diwali and all...
Diwali is India’s biggest and most important holiday of the year. It is a time of feasting, families, and festive decorations much like Christmas in the West. Diwali is aptly called the Festival of Lights. All across India, people celebrate by hanging millions of lights on their windows and...
Rekha is from Karaikalmedu, Puducherry and is attending the same school as her younger brother. Her mother is a housewife and her father is unemployed. Her community is officially designated OBC (Other Backwards Community) by the Indian government due to poverty and lack of educational...
Pethandi is an enthusiastic student who really gets excited about her studies. She loves to watch National Geographic Channel and Discovery Channel so she can learn more about science and English. After seeing those around her struggle to pay for hospital bills and medicines, she hopes to become a...
Varshini’s parents are illiterate and cannot not help him with his studies. His lessons on Yoga and Phonemic Intelligence have been very helpful to his development, in fact he is now helping his friends with their studies as well. He is also grateful for the mini-meals he gets at school so he can...
Malathi is an 8th grade student at the Kizhavanam HoPE Learning Center. She attends classes with her two siblings. Her parents work as day laborers and don’t make enough to provide for the family, so the resources of the HoPE Learning Center have been really important to her health and...
Sanjana has two siblings and her entire family struggles to make ends meet. Regardless, she never complains and chose instead to tell us about all of the good things in her village and her life. She said, “Nowadays, I concentrate on studies and also excel in sports after coming to HoPE Center...
Kowsalya is in 7th grade in Agalanganallur. Her mother is has severe epilepsy and can no longer bring in even the meager wages she used to earn as a laborer. Kowsalya’s father divorced her mother for this reason. Kowsalya does most of the household chores before going to school. She washes clothes...