Participants: Terry Benedict (Host)
Series Code: HIM
Program Code: HIM000019
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00:21 India is a land full of contrast.
00:25 It's a land of great mystery and beauty. 00:29 It's a land of unspeakable despair, 00:32 but traveling through India one thing is for sure, 00:35 it's a land filled with people 00:37 who should never be underestimated. 00:41 For the last 40 years, 00:42 Asian Aid has invested in the futures of people 00:45 who have never been given such a chance, 00:47 and their investment has proven infinite returns. 00:52 Driven by the vision of Helen Eager, 00:54 dedicated to helping those who have the least. 00:57 Asian Aid is an organization implementing 00:59 diverse development projects 01:01 and sponsoring thousands of children. 01:04 Their outreach expands from Bangladesh to Nepal, 01:07 Sri Lanka and beyond, from remote villages 01:11 and empty fields to sprawling centers of education 01:15 from nothing to the unimaginable. 01:19 Now Asian Aid decided to document 01:21 the work it has been doing in all these years 01:23 with a desire to show the world what is possible. 01:27 By digging wells in remote villages 01:29 for clean drinking water, 01:30 and bringing much needed healthcare 01:32 to the women of Nepal. 01:34 By providing an education for orphans, 01:37 deaf and blind children, 01:38 giving them a sense of place, a home, 01:41 but what we really discovered was being given was hope. 01:45 Giving hope to children, giving hope to women, 01:50 giving hope to the ones who needed the most. 01:54 This is Hope in Motion. 02:06 I want to become doctor 02:08 because I want to help the other people. 02:29 [speaking in foreign language] 02:59 These kids are like any other kids. 03:04 They sleep and they dream 03:08 only for these kids it's on top of each other. 03:16 In that small room we have to sleep, 03:19 42 girls in that room and we are not adjusted there 03:23 and it is not enough place to sleep there. 03:30 Sleeping on the floor in the cold season 03:33 and they are getting chest cold. 03:38 These are the kids at Sunrise Orphanage. 03:44 They live by a cesspool of trash and sewerage, 03:47 a breading ground for mosquitoes. 03:51 We are getting scared about the children health. 03:54 Due to the mosquitoes they are getting malaria... 03:59 We are little dismayed by their surroundings to say the least. 04:03 Yeah, when we realized where they started out. 04:06 It's easy to see how far they have come. 04:10 But there is no denying how far they still need to go. 04:23 Asian Aid asked our film team to come to Bobbili, 04:26 near the central east coast of India 04:28 to see the Sunrise Orphanage home, 04:31 a small rented building on the outskirts of town. 04:34 As an outsider looking in, 04:36 there's something immediately appealing about these kids. 04:40 It's hard to put your finger on it 04:42 until you meet the couple that have dedicated their lives 04:44 to taking care of them. 04:46 Meet Lolitha, the director of Sunrise 04:49 and her husband Varma, a top Asian Aid field officer, 04:53 they introduced us to the kids. 05:06 Their smiles and demeanor seemed outshine 05:08 their trouble pasts like Hannah, a servant girl 05:11 who witnessed her father killing her mother. 05:14 And Rosey, an aspiring singer 05:16 whose parents both died of AIDS, 05:19 each with their own story. 05:22 These kids have every reason to despondent, 05:24 sad or problematic, but they are not. 05:28 Each one has dream of becoming something 05:30 great when they grow up. 05:32 As we get to know each kid the thought accursed us, 05:36 "Why would Asian Aid want us to see this place?" 05:40 It doesn't seem right that this is 05:41 what they are living across from. 05:44 But Varma reminds us of Asian Aid's ambitious mission, 05:47 "Help the least of the least." 05:49 And how it wasn't always like this here at Sunrise, 05:52 the need is tremendous and growing. 05:54 Need is more in this area, why? 05:57 Most of the people is illiterates. 06:00 Most of the children, they simply, 06:01 they will run here and there on the roads 06:03 without food and proper clothes. 06:05 This is a backwards area, 06:06 there is no proper income for the people, 06:09 no proper education, 06:10 the most of the children are becoming orphans. 06:13 Orphans are becoming more and more and more and very year. 06:16 We started the orphanage 06:17 with the small orphanage with 3 children, 06:19 that 3 children went up to the 7 children. 06:21 The orphan rate is more than facility is very less. 06:29 Varma takes us to the near by slums of Bobbili 06:32 to have a look at the need for ourselves. 06:56 Unfortunately, it doesn't take long to see the need 07:00 Varma had been telling us about. 07:03 So you can see the little boy here, 07:04 he looks very anemic. 07:06 He lost his mother recently with uterus cancer. 07:10 Right now, immediately he need a sponsorship 07:13 and we need to take him to the Sunrise Home right now, 07:15 but there is no accommodation, 07:17 no place, no room in Sunrise Home. 07:23 Varma and Lolitha want to take them all in, 07:27 but they just can't. 07:28 It's hard to bear when there is so much at stake. 07:32 These children they used to roam here and there, 07:36 but where as if they come here they have to study, 07:39 they have to eat and evening they have to come. 07:43 Their life is different here. 08:00 When we are going to school, it is very difficult to walk 08:04 because many cars will come and... 08:09 it is very difficult. 08:16 I was scared while children going to school 08:19 because it's very busy road, 08:21 some motorbikes, some may hit. 08:26 Well, here we are in the town of Bobbili. 08:28 It's actually a bigger city than it looks 08:31 and every day the children have to walk right through 08:34 the middle of town to the school, it's not good. 08:46 Cramped living quarters, filthy conditions 08:50 and a dangerous walk to and from school everyday. 08:53 Sunrise Home is not living up to Asian Aid standards. 08:56 Varma and Lolitha intend to change that. 08:59 We have to do something. 09:01 I got a thought, why can't we go for the separate campus 09:07 with all facilities for the children? 09:09 The project proposal name is 09:11 long term self-sustainable and income-generating 09:14 and they already purchased 12 acres of land. 09:24 Their vision is profound, yet simple. 09:27 They want to leave the over cowered 09:28 rented building in town, 09:30 instead they want to build a sustainable home 09:33 and school that will accommodate their kids 09:36 and the hundreds of other children 09:37 in need in this area for years to come. 09:40 But buying and running 12 acre project is not easy. 09:44 There are ownership issues to contend with, 09:47 as well as issues installing a clean water supply, 09:50 maximizing crops, not to mention 09:52 raising the fund to do all this. 09:54 That's very encouraging they have 09:56 a leader and his wife who not only care for these children 09:59 but they've got a plan for the future. 10:02 Despite the challenges, as we get ready to leave, 10:05 we feel good about what can happen here. 10:09 Bye. Bye, Lolitha. 10:11 And we are excited to see 10:12 what will take shape over the coming months. 10:18 We head to Asian Aid's other schools 10:19 and development projects. 10:22 We visit the town of Jeypore in the mountain region of Orissa. 10:26 Here Asian Aid shows us what is possible 10:28 with the clear vision and lot of dedication. 10:32 Starting from nothing in this remote mountain area, 10:35 Asian Aid worked with key partners 10:37 to build a boarding school that houses 10:39 and educates over 700 children. 10:42 Children who now have a much greater chance 10:44 at succeeding in life. 11:02 After almost two months, 11:04 we head back to the new land. 11:06 This thriving corn crop is Asian Aid's 11:09 first big step towards the self sustainable, 11:11 an income generating Sunrise Home. 11:15 Jim and Helen are both insistent 11:17 that the kids see the land. 11:22 On the way, it's hard to know 11:24 who is more excited, the kids or Lolitha and Varma. 11:30 Sometime they may feel they are hopeless in this world. 11:34 If we have our own home I don't need to send anyone. 11:39 I can keep the children with me 11:41 and they can continue their education here. 11:43 I'm praying today, I'm praying today 11:48 In Jesus Christ I'm praying today 12:01 This is Sunrise land? This is Sunrise land. 12:04 From here the whole-- 12:06 this from here are the Sunrise land. 12:08 I think it looks excellent. 12:10 It's just phenomenal, 12:11 how we were here what two months ago? 12:14 Two months ago nothing was there. 12:15 And nothing was here and this is the-- 12:17 really this is the vision happening. 12:19 This is the first stage of the reality of the vision. 12:28 Where they are at now they have no place to play, 12:31 they are just basically stuck inside the orphanage. 12:35 So out here they have plenty of place to play, 12:38 there's lots of land, there's a rive they can go in 12:42 and I just think it's gonna be 12:43 a whole new life for these children 12:45 and a whole new experience 12:47 and I'm really pleased with what we have done. 12:49 Okay, ready, steady, go. 13:06 I saw their happiness while they are playing. 13:09 I too felt happy and I too played for sometime. 13:14 We had a nice time yesterday. 13:16 It's been pretty emotional to see these kids are happy. 13:20 And it will be another 100 children we can have like this. 13:23 So today has been the most emotional for me. 13:35 As filmmakers, we tried to stay objective. 13:38 But knowing that Hannah and Rosey 13:41 and the others have dreams 13:43 as big as any kids in the world. 13:45 It's hard not to be excited of what's possible here. 14:13 When I first came to India now around 32 years ago, 14:16 they were two things that really struck me. 14:19 The first one was the need for food and clothing 14:23 and accommodation for children 14:25 living way below the poverty line. 14:27 The second thing was the amazing potential 14:30 that these boys and girls have 14:32 to make a difference in the world 14:34 and the only thing missing was the need 14:37 for people like you to help. 14:39 With sponsorship you can make a difference 14:42 in the life of a child everyday. 15:16 We've been on the road for a month now, 15:18 from the rural valleys of India 15:20 up to the foothills of the Himalayas. 15:23 Now we are headed back to India. 15:25 Only this time, into one of the poorest 15:27 neighborhoods in the country. 15:39 This is the Vishakhapatnam know as Vizag, 15:43 located on the Bay of Bengal on the east coast of India. 15:53 Only 20 miles form these peaceful Bengal beaches, 15:57 seemed half a world away. 16:27 We are following Asian Aid's Helen Eager 16:30 through the heart of Vizag, 16:32 to a street only people who live there would want to visit. 17:01 Well, we are right here in the middle of the slums. 17:04 We are in the city of Vizag which is on the east coast. 17:07 There's about 10,000 people 17:09 who live cramped in this area in 10x8 rooms, 17:13 5 to 10 to a room, most people are unemployed, 17:17 there's a large number of prostitution. 17:20 The area, the street was in a very bad condition. 17:24 The prostitution and robberies and other things, gambling 17:28 and the police will come and take them away 17:30 and the children will be suffering a lot. 17:34 The children don't know what life is. 17:36 They don't know what father's love is 17:38 and they don't know mother's love also. 17:43 At the end of this long, dirt and grind filled path 17:46 is a narrow three storey building, 17:49 not a beautiful site, but it's the only hope 17:51 that these kids have for better life. 18:04 When we first were asked to support this school, 18:07 they said this was an area for criminals and prostitutes, 18:11 was the message that we got. 18:13 But right here in the middle of this mess is a school 18:18 that we have been running for a number of years 18:21 and inside the school 18:22 there's over 100 bright cheery children. 18:26 Thank you, teacher. Thank you, teacher. 18:31 As you can understand running a school 18:33 in this environment is not easy. 18:36 I mean, it's right on the frontline of need of poverty. 18:41 The teachers and myself has to play an important role 18:44 because these children are not ordinary children. 18:51 Most of the children are coming from a poor background, 18:54 not only poverty but also the families 18:58 are all broken up families. 19:00 You told us that some of these women 19:02 who are working as prostitutes 19:04 are living just opposite the school. 19:07 And you said that sometimes the men's come there 19:10 and make bookings in the morning 19:13 and then in the evening they go somewhere with the men. 19:17 All these people are prostitutes 19:20 and they have to do that 19:21 because there's no other source of life 19:23 because no education for the parents. 19:39 What is she saying? 19:40 My husband is not a good man, he's not supporting the family. 19:44 I have three children. 19:45 I don't have education and so I have to do this work, 19:49 recently I started. 19:55 Sarojini's daughter Mary has a crippling bone condition. 20:04 Anyhow I want to get my daughter cured. 20:07 By doing anything, I want her to be cured, 20:10 but the money I'm getting is not sufficient for her cure. 20:18 Take the second bit and third bit as your homework. 20:22 This little girls name is Mary Manju. 20:25 Her mother is Sarojini and she was telling us 20:28 how she really struggles to be able to afford, 20:32 to buy the medicines and the proper 20:34 health care that Mary needs. 21:25 Her own sister ran way. 21:30 Because he is my own brother-in-law, 21:32 my sister's husband, so I came forward. 21:34 She started looking after this child. 21:38 And nobody forced her to come forward? 21:44 She came willingly to serve. 21:47 Manga is only 24 years old. 21:50 She can go and select a good man to be her partner 21:54 but she in spite of all that, 21:56 she refused all the good things in life 21:59 and she sacrificed and came forward. 22:01 She's really a noble person. 22:04 In order to feed them, 22:05 she has to go outside and earn like this prostitution. 22:23 These kind of children are finding 22:26 great peace and love in our school. 22:30 They need love and affection. 22:33 Education comes next, first thing they need love. 22:41 This school shows light to many children 22:44 who are greatly in need of love and affection, 22:47 so that at least these children when they grow up, 22:51 they will not be like their parents, 22:53 they can live better life. 22:55 I think the school that is here is really been a light 22:59 for this community and there are many children 23:02 who have really blossomed 23:03 and really have wonderful opportunity to do something 23:06 with their lives because of this school. 23:10 I just would hate to see it get closed. 23:13 It just makes me very angry to think 23:15 that people would in anyway try to disadvantage 23:20 the people that are here 23:22 and they have already been disadvantaged so much. 23:53 And these people you could say, as the Bible calls them 23:56 "the least of least" but Jesus especially care 23:59 about the "least of these" and that care He has given to you 24:03 so that you are willing to be here 24:04 and to work for these children. 24:08 In our western countries I think we really have no idea 24:12 what it would be like to be born into a family 24:15 that lived in an area like this and to hear stories 24:18 such as Sarojini's where she is having to work as a prostitute. 24:24 It would be wonderful if we could have some adult literacy 24:26 as well as some other training programs 24:29 for ladies such in this area. 24:35 She want to stitch blouses. 24:42 She is learning tailoring it seams. 24:48 Manga and Sarojini want a better life for their children. 24:51 They are seeking literacy in work training programs, 24:54 that is not that easy to come by here. 24:57 But above all, they know that it is really the school 25:00 that can help their kids out of poverty, 25:02 and give them that chance and a better life. 25:12 It's a challenge to build a bridge of trust 25:14 and hope in this environment. 25:18 But we left seeing that is exactly 25:20 what this little school is doing. 25:22 It's giving the people of this community 25:24 the thing they need most, "hope." 25:49 The reality is we have to help these kids. 25:52 These are 120 kids in here, if we don't help them now, 25:56 will be down on that street. 25:58 This is not a school we can be proud of physically, 26:02 but for the kids it's what we do. 26:05 We have to give them some hope 26:07 because if they cross the street 26:09 when they leave the school there is no hope 26:12 and I need your support right now 26:14 to try and give these kids some hope. 27:58 Currently at the Vizianagaram school 28:00 there are 19 Asian Aid sponsored students. 28:03 They sleep on the floor and they share one bathroom 28:05 with all the other students on the campus. 28:08 When my church family heard about this need 28:10 they raised funds to make this campus 28:12 a better place for the students. 28:14 There's a constant need for donations by individuals, 28:17 churches, organizations. 28:19 To assist Asian Aid with these many special projects, 28:22 join me would you, in making the difference? 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Revised 2014-12-17