Posted: 30/05/2007
Sam Gibson, a Tearfund volunteer, had visited Asha back in 2005. He was part of a Tearfund team who came to Delhi to work in the Ekta Vihar slum, painting the Asha centre there and developing friendships with many of the residents. Sam was struck by the poverty he'd seen in India, but also by the spirit of the people who lived in such difficult circumstances, particularly the children. He resolved to help and thought of a way to involve children back in the UK.
After becoming part of the MAKE POVERTY HISTORY Coalition in Lincoln, Sam set about organising a local event that would make a real impact. He wanted to involve children with the campaign because, as he explained, "children are very insightful; they say what they see and are not hindered by political correctness". As a result, children in schools, Sunday schools and other groups were told the story of Joyce Mbwils, a 30 year old mother of four children who had to walk 14 miles each day to fetch water for her family. The children were then asked to use artwork, prose or poetry to express their views on the Make Poverty History campaign's aims, the impact of poverty on children or the responsibility of world leaders.
The story made a strong impression on the children, as their work showed. It's simple, touching and shows true understanding of the situations faced by people living in poverty and of how richer countries can help by cancelling third world debt. The children's work was displayed for 2 days in the centre of Lincoln and the exhibition was supported and commended by the MP for Lincoln, Gillian Merron, and the town's Mayor. Gillian Merron was so impressed by what she saw that she helped to arrange for Sam and eight children (including Sam's sons) to meet with Tony Blair. The Prime Minister was also struck by the depth of the children's understanding as they quizzed him about third world debt and people who live in poverty.
Since his last visit to Asha, Sam had been determined to return to Asha and to help the slum communities further. He arrived early April, having raised a large sum of money from many different sources. Sam organised his own fitness challenge in his local gym, gaining a lot of support from people who otherwise would never have heard of Asha. He also hosted an evening at an Indian restaurant in Lincoln, raising a lot of money in addition to giving everyone there a great evening out and good food. The local press were happy to cover the event, raising the profile of Asha even further.
Once here, Sam wasted no time in launching into work - he helped out with a Tearfund team who were here painting an Asha centre at Anna Nagar, wrote volunteer and Ambassador blogs for this website and designed murals for the Asha centre at Vivekanand. With the help of the Asha decorator Radhaysham and our Programme Officer, Paul, Sam completed the centre in less than a week, and was the guest of honour at a colourful inauguration celebration. The children and adults of Vivekanand were honoured to have a lone foreigner helping to make their centre a pleasure to use, and so many crowded in to the centre for the inauguration that it was difficult to move in there!
We hope that Sam will inspire other people who are thinking of raising funds for Asha, and we'd like to thank him wholeheartedly for all his enthusiasm and his help.
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
Return to more recent news articles
I’m now so keen to learn that I will sit and listen to doctors whenever I get the chance. I’m busy all the time, delivering babies, giving lectures and training volunteers.
Bimla, women's group president, Ekta Vihar
