In this episode
of Hope In Motion,
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we take a look at
how your contributions
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are making positive changes
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in the lives of so
many children in India.
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Sixty to seventy percent,
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we are dependent
on the sponsorship.
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Without the
support of any sponsorship,
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those children
would not be here.
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We visited an Adventist school
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that sprung from
one woman's vision
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to a sprawling
beautiful campus today.
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It just sort of amazes me
when I think of, you know,
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what we started from
with absolutely nothing,
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to see what is there today
is just mind boggling, really.
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And meet Devoki,
a science teacher
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at the school, who
defied all social norms
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to pursue a life of her own.
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In villages that is a rule
that when a girl is grown up,
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she should be given
in marriage to someone.
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So in my case also it
would have been like that
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when I would not have
come to the school and study.
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By this time, I would have
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even got
married, having children,
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all those things.
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Asian Aid is an
organization giving hope,
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an organization fostering
permanent positive change
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in the lives of
disadvantaged children
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and their communities,
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an organization
that is committed
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to making a difference
in the lives of children
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and those who are in need
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serving communities in
Nepal, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka,
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Myanmar, and India.
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For the last 40 years,
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Asian Aid has invested
in the futures of people,
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and their investment
has proven infinite returns.
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Driven by their dedication
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to helping those
who have the least,
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Asian Aid is an organization
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focused on the
welfare of children
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implementing
diverse development projects
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and sponsoring
thousands of children.
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Their outreach spans
from child rescue operations
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to providing an
education for orphans, deaf,
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and the blind children,
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giving them a
sense of place, a home.
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But above all, Asian Aid is
an organization giving hope,
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giving hope to children,
giving hope to communities,
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giving hope to the
ones who need it the most.
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This is Hope In Motion.
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The beautiful
landscapes, its people,
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the colors and customs,
that's India in a nutshell.
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Asian Aid has been
working in this vast land
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since its very beginning,
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which is nearly
40 years ago now.
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Primarily focused
on child sponsorship,
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Asian Aid also
has been instrumental
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in building many
children's homes and schools
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to complement its
sponsorshipprogram.
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The Immanuel
English School in Jeypore
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in the state of Orissa
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is one that has
undergone a transformation.
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In the beginning, we
just were sort of picturing,
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maybe, you know, just
a small boarding school.
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We were thinking a lot
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of the very
primitive tribal people
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that were there in Orissa,
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especially the
Bonda tribals was what,
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you know, we had on our minds
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when we started the school.
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Jeypore and most parts of Orissa
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come under the
so-called tribal belt of India
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where primitive
tribal people live.
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Cut off from the
mainstream societies,
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they live in the
mountains in remote regions
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with no basic amenities,
largely living off of the land.
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Helen Eager,
co-founder of Asian Aid
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has been visiting
these communities,
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especially the Bonda tribe.
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Moved by their backwardness
and the plight of the children
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from these communities,
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she started a
school for them at Jeypore.
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Starting with around 50 children
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and a few staff,
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all under one roof,
and without a boundary wall
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to protect them
from wild animals,
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it was a testing time
for the children, the staff,
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and for principal, Arun Ponda.
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And once Mrs. Eager
brought Elder Garwin Mcneilus
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and his wife to
visit this place.
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So once when he came over
here, he was very much impressed
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with the way children
are learning over here,
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and he felt that
he will do something.
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He'll take up this project.
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Garwin McNeilus,
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an Adventist businessman
from Minnesota impressed
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by what was being
done at the school
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took up the project of building
a larger facility in 2004.
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Within a year, the first phase
of the new campus was ready.
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And year later, it had
grown to what it is now.
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We just feel surprised
how the things have changed.
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Everything was just like
the hill that you see behind,
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full of bushes
and unwanted plants.
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So nobody from town
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ever thought that
there can be something here.
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But God has blessed this place,
and we can see a great change.
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It just sort of amazes me
when I think of, you know,
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what we started from
with absolutely nothing,
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to see what is there today
is just mind boggling, really.
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The larger
facility made it possible
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to bring in more children
from the tribal communities
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as well as nearby villages.
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As the news of the
new facility spread,
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many more
children from Adventist
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and non Adventist families
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desired to be
educated at the new school.
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Many in rural
India struggle to earn
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even two dollars a day.
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Their only way
of earning a living
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is grazing their livestock
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or working in the fields.
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Here poverty passes from
generation to generation,
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and education is not an option.
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I mean some parts of
India really seem to be growing,
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and really, you know,
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India seems to be
really coming up as they say,
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but when you go to the
villages and the slums,
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they have not improved
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in all the years that, you know,
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I've been coming to India
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which is now more than 30 years.
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You know, when you
go to the villages,
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and you see into
some of the slums,
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and you see how bad,
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you know, the
conditions are of the people
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and the
children are living under
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because this, often,
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it's not that they
don't want to work,
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but there's just not
enough work available.
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Although the
majority of the people
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cannot afford to send
their children to school,
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they do view education
as a catalyst for change.
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Sixty to seventy percent,
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we are dependent
on the sponsorship.
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because majority of
this children are poor,
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and they don't have any support.
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Without the
support of any sponsorship,
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those children
would not be here.
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Today over 6,000
children in India
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are sponsored by Asian Aid.
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And because of their commitment
to the welfare of children,
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especially children
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from tribal
communities and villages,
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these children are
reaping the benefits
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of an Adventist education.
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Devoki Moharia,
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a science teacher at
the Immanuel English School
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was a former student here.
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I finished my BSc
degree in college,
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and I'm very much
interested in science
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because I was good at science.
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In this school, I
teach mostly, 8th, 9th, 10th.
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I teach them
chemistry and biology.
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Devoki was among the
first batch of children
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to be brought to the school
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from neighboring villages
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when Helen Eager
and some of the staff
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from the school
visited these villages.
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I sent messages to
the church pastors.
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If there are any
children from poverty level,
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and wherever
there are no schools.
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So many names came
from different churches.
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Then, first, I went
to some orphan children,
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then I came to know
that there are two girls...
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Very small girls
nearby Kotpat town.
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So I went there
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and I met with
her father, Devoki.
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Then her father was not
willing to send the girl here
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because there was
no boundary around,
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and there was only one
building build by Asian Aid.
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Then when I went,
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she was the
smallest among the two.
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Then she started
crying not to take photo.
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I carried her, I
gave her chocolate.
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Then I made her to stand,
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then I took a
photograph for Mummy Eager,
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and that's how I found her.
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I was very happy
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thinking that I'm
going to go to a school,
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a hostel, English medium.
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No one knows in my
school what it mean,
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they don't know how to
talk in English and all.
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So I was very happy
that I will be the person
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to learn English and all.
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So when I came here,
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first two, three
days, I was nervous, means,
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I used to remember
parents, all this thing.
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And only one single building
was there and no boundary.
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It was like jungle.
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And jungle means I really
get very, very scared of that.
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And no boundary, no, nothing,
only one building was there.
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Boys, girls, staff,
everyone in same building.
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Doing all the activities,
eating, sleeping, studying,
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everything in the same building.
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With the untiring
efforts of Helen Eager,
00:11:00.66\00:11:03.02
and the prayers of
staff and children,
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the small school was transformed
00:11:05.19\00:11:07.33
into a huge campus.
00:11:07.36\00:11:10.00
And like a miracle,
suddenly Garwin Papa
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and Mama came here.
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So we think and we believe
00:11:14.64\00:11:16.81
that God Himself
has chosen this people,
00:11:16.84\00:11:18.94
and He has sent
to help His children,
00:11:18.97\00:11:21.54
so that many more souls
00:11:21.58\00:11:22.91
will be added into His kingdom.
00:11:22.94\00:11:24.95
From right at the beginning
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when the school
was just one classroom,
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then with the
vision of Helen Eager,
00:11:28.42\00:11:30.49
and supporters
like Garwin McNeilus,
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this school
sprouted into an institution
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that now has, I
think about 700 children.
00:11:36.16\00:11:39.19
And of those 600 are sponsored.
00:11:39.23\00:11:41.53
And now we see
00:11:41.56\00:11:42.90
the success
stories coming through.
00:11:42.93\00:11:44.77
Devoki, who was
right at the school
00:11:44.80\00:11:47.24
when it started,
00:11:47.27\00:11:48.60
she did her
education at the school,
00:11:48.64\00:11:50.74
then she went
away to university,
00:11:50.77\00:11:52.84
and now she's come
back as a science teacher.
00:11:52.87\00:11:55.71
It's just so fantastic to see
00:11:55.74\00:11:57.58
the difference
that has made with her,
00:11:57.61\00:11:59.98
but also with the
children that are here.
00:12:00.02\00:12:03.22
If it weren't for
the timely intervention,
00:12:03.25\00:12:05.52
if Asian Aid and
people like Helen Eager,
00:12:05.55\00:12:08.32
Devoki Moharia's
life would have seen
00:12:08.36\00:12:10.69
the same
misfortunes of many young girls
00:12:10.73\00:12:14.00
just like her in her village.
00:12:14.03\00:12:16.60
In villages that is a rule
that when a girl is grown up,
00:12:16.63\00:12:20.30
she should be given
in marriage to someone.
00:12:20.34\00:12:24.17
So in my case also it
would have been like that
00:12:24.21\00:12:26.37
when I would not have
come to the school and study.
00:12:26.41\00:12:28.61
By this time, I would
have even got married,
00:12:28.64\00:12:30.81
having children,
all those things.
00:12:30.85\00:12:33.52
One of the huge
problems that is existing
00:12:41.09\00:12:43.39
in the world today is
that of human trafficking.
00:12:43.43\00:12:47.60
Of course, it is a global thing
00:12:47.63\00:12:49.33
but because I have
worked a lot in India and Nepal,
00:12:49.36\00:12:52.13
I know that it is
huge in these countries.
00:12:52.17\00:12:55.57
And the way these
children are treated
00:12:55.60\00:12:57.37
is just unbelievable
00:12:57.41\00:12:59.67
and what they suffer,
you just could not believe.
00:12:59.71\00:13:03.14
And so with your
help, and we're so excited
00:13:03.18\00:13:07.25
that Asian Aid has
now got the project
00:13:07.28\00:13:09.98
called Operation Child Rescue,
00:13:10.02\00:13:12.55
we can make a
difference and do something
00:13:12.59\00:13:14.92
for these children
before this happens to them,
00:13:14.96\00:13:18.63
and for some of them,
00:13:18.66\00:13:20.00
they can be rescued
from this situation.
00:13:20.03\00:13:22.73
If you would like
to become involved,
00:13:22.76\00:13:24.67
we would just be so
very, very grateful.
00:13:24.70\00:13:28.17
A few years ago,
00:13:41.28\00:13:42.62
I had the
privilege of visiting India
00:13:42.65\00:13:45.05
to see how the
Asian Aid projects
00:13:45.09\00:13:46.82
are making a
difference in that country,
00:13:46.86\00:13:49.19
how lives are being transformed,
00:13:49.22\00:13:51.66
lives of abandoned children,
00:13:51.69\00:13:53.80
tribal
children, orphan children,
00:13:53.83\00:13:56.16
children that are being raised
00:13:56.20\00:13:57.80
without the advantages
we have here in America.
00:13:57.83\00:14:00.00
And sometimes we
take for granted.
00:14:00.04\00:14:02.00
And I discovered one
very important thing,
00:14:02.04\00:14:04.17
because of sponsors like you,
00:14:04.21\00:14:06.07
these lives are
being transformed,
00:14:06.11\00:14:07.64
the future is made brighter
00:14:07.68\00:14:10.15
because of your prayers
and your financial support.
00:14:10.18\00:14:13.08
Because of what you do,
they now have nutritious food,
00:14:13.11\00:14:16.38
clothing, and they are able now
00:14:16.42\00:14:18.32
to propel
themselves with education
00:14:18.35\00:14:20.82
to look to the future
with hope and courage.
00:14:20.86\00:14:24.33
And so on behalf of Asian Aid,
00:14:24.36\00:14:25.76
I want to thank
you for all you do,
00:14:25.79\00:14:27.80
your sponsorship.
00:14:27.83\00:14:29.26
And now because of
you, they have hope,
00:14:29.30\00:14:31.97
hope for brighter future.
00:14:32.00\00:14:34.27
Life in rural India is simple.
00:15:00.90\00:15:03.30
People live in close quarters
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and as a unit.
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During the day they either
go to the field or they graze
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what little livestock they have.
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And there's a clear
order of social precedents
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based on gender.
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Women have little or
no say in it structure,
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often leading to
unjust practices and misery.
00:15:22.08\00:15:25.79
So in villages,
parents are uneducated
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and they don't
send their children
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when they are
small to the school.
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So that is the reason
I never went to school.
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In villages that is a rule
that when a girl is grown up,
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she should be given
in marriage to someone.
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So in my case also it
would have been like that
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when I would not have
come to the school and study.
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By this time, I would
have even got married,
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having children,
all those things.
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Child marriage
is a common practice
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in South Asia,
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and it's more
prevalent in India.
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According to the United Nations
Children's Agency, UNICEF,
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80% of girls are
married by the age of 15.
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Although Indian law has
made child marriage illegal
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and the practice is in
decline in recent years,
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customs and traditions
dictate life in rural India.
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It is like so in
Devoki's village, Besuli.
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At present, I don't have
any of my friends to my age.
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Only I'm the girl in my village.
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All are younger to me.
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All have got married.
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By now, she
would have got married
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if she would not
have studied here.
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By now she would
have got married,
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so by now she
would have been lost
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in that way.
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But now she is in God's hand.
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She is doing wonderful.
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If my daughter
didn't go to school
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like others and
get an education,
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her life would
have been like others.
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Although Devoki grew up in
a boarding school in Jeypore
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and went to
college in bigger cities,
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she has not forgotten her roots,
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and is always happy
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to visit her
family in her village.
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Yeah, I feel very happy
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because I'm born and
brought up in this village.
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And even though I
stay in town or something,
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but I still have
love for my village,
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for my family members.
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I feel very happy
when I come back to my home
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and see them.
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Devoki is the only
girl from her village
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to have successfully
received a college education.
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And in a community
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where women have
little or no say,
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she is treated with
the utmost of respect.
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We feel very proud.
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Whenever someone
comes to visit us,
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we always tell
them about our daughter.
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When she comes here, we
are very happy and proud.
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Boys and girls
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from underprivileged backgrounds
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are today able to
follow in the footsteps
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of someone like Devoki.
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It's because of institutions
like Immanuel English School
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and the people who envisioned it
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to make a difference
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in the lives of
so many children.
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Well, as an administrator
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who travels to
India and regularly,
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we're just faced
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with so many
challenges and demands,
00:18:38.78\00:18:41.25
and it's just so
refreshing to stop
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and think about
the actual blessings
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that we have.
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We see the problems,
00:18:48.06\00:18:49.39
but we lose
sight of the children,
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the children who
are in the schools,
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the children who we've
made a difference with.
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Ellen White said,
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"Education is the
harmonious development
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of the physical, the mental,
and the spiritual powers."
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It prepares the student
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for the joy of
service in this world.
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And for the higher joy
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of wider service
in the world to come,
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this school campus,
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although situated
in a remote region
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of one of
India's backward states
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is a fine example of
true Adventist education.
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The local community feels
that this is the best campus
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that we have.
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No school has such a campus,
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and there is peaceful atmosphere
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to study.
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There is no disturbance.
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And everyone feels
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that their child
should be educated here.
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Taking care of
such a large campus
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requires hard work.
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But for Principal
Ponda, that's not an issue.
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Every child and staff
member living on campus
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has their work cut out,
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and they do it with enthusiasm.
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I travel to many
schools in India,
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but it's just so delightful
to come to this one at Jeypore
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because when you
walk in the gate,
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the grounds, the trees,
they always keep it clean.
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They repaint from time to time.
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The children are involved
in doing the maintenance,
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and doing the
gardens, and that just makes
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a total difference
not only in the grounds
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but on the development
of the children themselves.
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A harmonious development indeed.
00:20:29.06\00:20:31.89
Education in India
is highly competitive
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and the school
as big and beautiful
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as it may be has to compete
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with other institutions
for it to be influential,
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and to continue to
be held in high regard.
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The trend of
education is changing.
00:20:55.85\00:20:58.75
And the latest, we
have digital classes.
00:20:58.79\00:21:03.02
And as you know
throughout India,
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there is a change in
the education system,
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and we want to go
with the latest technology,
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and that is why we
opted for this digital class.
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It is very user-friendly.
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Students also can operate.
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It's just like a TV remote.
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Even if a teacher is absent,
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still they have the subjects,
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they have the chapters,
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and they have
the evaluation test.
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The students can take
the test by themselves,
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and they can know
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what score they are getting
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in particular chapter or lesson.
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Whatever the
student needs to understand,
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everything is given clearly.
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And whatever the teacher
is teaching in the classroom,
00:21:42.53\00:21:45.43
and what
questions they have finished
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in the classroom,
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we can access that
in the server room.
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Cutting edge technology
for the changing times.
00:21:54.21\00:21:57.78
Today, the
Immanuel English School
00:21:57.81\00:21:59.51
at Jeypore is not
only a boon for children
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from tribal
communities and villages,
00:22:02.42\00:22:04.69
but it's also a huge draw
00:22:04.72\00:22:06.62
for children from
neighboring states.
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Wow, look at that.
00:22:34.62\00:22:35.95
Just so many kids,
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most of them
from poor backgrounds,
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most of them from tribal areas,
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and look they're
getting an education,
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they're disciplined,
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they're
learning to be organized.
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And the education is making
a real difference to them.
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I just wish I could
bring some more in this.
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So many out there and
put them in this environment.
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Look at it, it's just fabulous.
00:22:54.54\00:22:57.47
The growing
realization of the need to bring
00:22:57.51\00:22:59.91
in many more
children can be discouraging,
00:22:59.94\00:23:03.11
but it's reassuring to
know that with sponsorship,
00:23:03.14\00:23:06.35
we can go about making a
difference one day at a time.
00:23:06.38\00:23:10.35
When we are at home,
00:23:10.39\00:23:12.25
sometime we are not
getting three meals to eat,
00:23:12.29\00:23:15.32
no good place to sleep.
00:23:15.36\00:23:17.36
So when schools are
that, like this school,
00:23:17.39\00:23:20.43
they are providing
meals, education, everything,
00:23:20.46\00:23:23.06
sponsors, they
are struggling hard
00:23:23.10\00:23:25.00
to educate some other's lives.
00:23:25.03\00:23:27.04
That is something
very great to understand.
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Since sponsorship
was there, I studied.
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So I'm so much
grateful to my sponsor.
00:23:34.84\00:23:37.38
And to me, it's really wonderful
00:23:37.41\00:23:39.01
just to see the changes,
00:23:39.05\00:23:40.85
you know, when you see a
child come looking dirty,
00:23:40.88\00:23:44.75
and unhappy,
00:23:44.79\00:23:46.12
and know that
nobody cares about them.
00:23:46.15\00:23:48.52
And then after a very short time
00:23:48.56\00:23:50.73
to see the transformation,
00:23:50.76\00:23:52.09
and then after a few years
to see them really doing well,
00:23:52.13\00:23:56.40
I think that's what
makes it worthwhile.
00:23:56.43\00:24:00.07
Devoki, although
having better offers
00:24:00.10\00:24:02.34
to teach outside
in bigger cities,
00:24:02.37\00:24:04.77
has come back to
teach in the place
00:24:04.81\00:24:07.18
that gave her a
new chance in life.
00:24:07.21\00:24:10.91
Actually my education,
00:24:10.95\00:24:13.92
my foundation started from here.
00:24:13.95\00:24:16.52
So I thought first
let me serve to my place,
00:24:16.55\00:24:20.12
the place where I belong to,
00:24:20.16\00:24:21.52
where I've got my foundation.
00:24:21.56\00:24:23.43
Whatever talent I have,
let me show to those people,
00:24:23.46\00:24:25.89
so that those students
also will learn about that.
00:24:25.93\00:24:29.90
That's so lovely to see
some of the young people
00:24:29.93\00:24:32.53
with that kind of commitment
and gratitude to Asian Aid,
00:24:32.57\00:24:35.64
and for the sponsors
that have helped them
00:24:35.67\00:24:37.77
to get an education
and to be where they are.
00:24:37.81\00:24:41.48
I feel very proud
because whatever I did for her,
00:24:41.51\00:24:46.88
I got the fruit.
00:24:46.92\00:24:48.25
Today, Asian Aid continues
to fulfill its commitment
00:25:01.13\00:25:04.23
to the welfare of
children who are in need,
00:25:04.27\00:25:06.84
and to provide them
00:25:06.87\00:25:08.20
with an education
through sponsorship,
00:25:08.24\00:25:10.41
giving them hope and a
chance for a better life.
00:25:10.44\00:25:13.78
They are building lives.
00:25:16.14\00:25:18.95
Students and
children they are in darkness.
00:25:18.98\00:25:21.38
They are receiving
the light in their lives.
00:25:21.42\00:25:25.29
If they are at home,
00:25:25.32\00:25:26.65
the lights are
being off or gone away,
00:25:26.69\00:25:28.62
but once they're coming here,
00:25:28.66\00:25:29.99
their light of
their lives is being on.
00:25:30.03\00:25:33.26
Because since I think that...
00:25:33.29\00:25:35.00
I feel since I
was in this school,
00:25:35.03\00:25:37.90
I'm blessed to be
in this position today.
00:25:37.93\00:25:41.24
I just got a letter
00:25:50.08\00:25:51.41
from our
sponsored daughter, Sheila.
00:25:51.45\00:25:52.88
And I've got to tell you,
00:25:52.91\00:25:54.25
there is nothing like
getting one of these letters.
00:25:54.28\00:25:56.42
Our family has
been able to sponsor her
00:25:56.45\00:25:58.49
through Asian Aid,
00:25:58.52\00:25:59.85
and because of that
00:25:59.89\00:26:01.22
she's got a great place to live,
00:26:01.26\00:26:02.59
she's got great meal,
00:26:02.62\00:26:03.96
she's got great
clothing, and best of all,
00:26:03.99\00:26:06.19
I found out she
is now in college,
00:26:06.23\00:26:08.30
she is in nursing school.
00:26:08.33\00:26:10.30
There is nothing like
getting a letter like this.
00:26:10.33\00:26:12.70
You need to start
getting these letters too.
00:26:12.73\00:26:14.34
Listen, through
Asian Aid, you can make
00:26:14.37\00:26:17.04
a huge difference
in the life of a child,
00:26:17.07\00:26:20.08
and I promise you,
00:26:20.11\00:26:21.78
it's going to
make a huge difference
00:26:21.81\00:26:23.48
in your life too.
00:26:23.51\00:26:24.85