"I want my money to go to women who have nothing"...


MotherNurture is delighted to recognize the efforts of one of our first champions, young Nidhi Madusudan, who is 13 years old and who has contributed Rs. 800 that she received as a gift to the Bharath Charitable Cancer Hospital and Institute. You can see how she has used her money by following this link.

This NGO is listed on the website of Give India, one of our partners. The money will go towards building smokeless ovens for 4 mothers who can now cook for their families without exposing themselves to hazardous, carcinogenic smoke.
http://www.giveindia.org/give/ngoprofile/ShowDonationOptionsDetails.do?ngoid=24&optionid=143&quantityForUser=0

The conversation with Nidhi was truly touching. Nidhi first got to hear about MotherNurture through her mother who works extensively with non-profits. When she was asked what cause she wanted to give to, she said, "Amma told me today that she went to see a poor woman who had only two sets of clothes. One set had been stolen. The woman was not able to invite Amma into her hut because her only other pair of clothes was drying in the sun and so she was not wearing anything and could not meet Amma. I want my money to go to people like that, women who have nothing".

With the guidance of her mother, Nidhi gave her money to this NGO. She will receive feedback regarding her donation. She has also volunteered to talk to her friends about this.


"Mama, I made a donation for 900 rupees for six families for kitchen-gardens"...

Anasuya, (9) raced up to tell her mother this after she decided to donate to MotherNurture. Since her mother was on a conference call, she wrote on an envelope that she would be available in 1 minute to listen to her. Anasuya however had to tell her mother the news, so she wrote it down. That little piece of paper, is, in my eyes, a classic.


Anasuya's budget was Rs. 800, we sat down together, with her mother's permission, to go through the GiveIndia website. While there were a number of causes that she could have given to, we focused on giving to mothers. She chose to give her money to the International Human Development and Upliftment Academy. Follow the link below to see what her money will buy.. curry leaves, saplings and seeds.
https://www.giveindia.org/give/ngoprofile/ShowDonationOptionsDetails.do?ngoid=42&optionid=240&quantityForUser=0

Our real success, I believe, is not just Anasuya's generosity but her mother's feedback. Her mother was sort of "playing along" since she knows the people behind MotherNurture, but she used to, quite openly, refer to us as "ga-ga mamas". We chose to maintain a dignified silence as long as she allowed Anasuya to donate.

I got a call from her mother who then told me:" I was so happy to see Anasuya so excited about giving. When she was younger, she used to frequently ask me why there were so many poor children in the world. I never really had any answer but I used to tell her that we were donating her old clothes and toys to poor children. Gradually, I believe she was getting immune to the poverty surrounding her, just as many of us eventually do. Now, she knows what a difference she can make".
"See what Anasuya wrote to her mom, when her mom was on a conference call...."


"My boys want to give 30% of their combined savings"...

Anish (10) and Akash (7) told us, through their dad, that they were committed to giving a portion of their savings to MotherNurture. Read the email from their dad, to us. See the project they gave to. Anish and Akash are our first young champions: it was when they made this donation, late last year, that I realised that MotherNurture could happen, one child at a time. Interestingly, the kids seem to have interpreted the idea of MotherNurture as "children not having mothers".

Their dad, Vamsi Krishna, sent us this message:

"I haven't had an opportunity to touch base with you on your project and hope it is progressing well. My boys are ready to send a portion of their piggy bank (about $35 which is roughly 30% of their combined savings). Let me know who/where they should address it to. They are in the process of starting to jot down some thoughts to share with their classmates when they get back to school. I will send you a copy when they are finished with that.

This project is through Global Giving. My kids finally distilled their choices down to three and then decided to pick a project in India. The project is titled 'Give Life to Orphans and Needy Children in India'. I think apart from the fact that this project caught their imagination, they felt their $30 would provide immediate value - the project stated that it costs $10 to provide health care for one child for 1 year.

Take a look at the project:
http://www.globalgiving.com/pr/1900/proj1834a.html

I will follow up and complete the formalities on their behalf. Again, thanks for introducing us to these projects. My boys now understand that small contributions also matter and that they have an obligation to help when they can - I think this will be a lesson that will allow them to grow up as more responsible adults.

My 6 year old, being very attached to his mom, was quite worried about other moms being able to take care of their kids. As you pointed out, if we can even influence a few lives in a positive way, it is important that we continue. You can count on me. Let us together do all we can to ensure the success of this project.”


"I want to help sooo. much"

Our young champion this month is 6 year old Lakshanya (Lucky). We got a call from her mother, asking us to speak to Lakshanya about MotherNurture. It is fun trying to make one's language and idea simple enough for a child to understand. The conversation went something like this:

"Lucky, a number of mothers are very poor and need our help"

Lakshanya replied, " I want to help them so much"

Me:" So what do you think you can do to help?"

Lakshanya: " Give them food to eat... also food that grows from plants.., plants are good."

Gayathri and I went through the GiveIndia website and Gayathri made this donation on behalf of Lakshanya. The amount is Rs 1050 to pay for food and provisions for one month for a woman in rehabilitation. The money will go to the Ahmedabad Women's Action Group.

See how the money will be used by following this link:
http://www.giveindia.org/give/ngoprofile/ShowDonationOptionsDetails.do?ngoid=25&optionid=147&quantityForUser=0

The best feedback we received was when Gayathri told us that she was amazed at how quickly Lakshanya responded. This is one more aim of MotherNurture: when we try to nurture giving in children, their responses finally change us in the process. We may be the catalysts, but this is one reaction where the catalyst also changes.


"A bride-to-be gifts a donation on behalf of her niece"

Vishalakshi is going to be married in the first week of August, 2008. Just before she left for her wedding, she gifted a donation to Sankara Nethralaya, on behalf of her six year old niece, Rajshri.

She said, " I chose this option because I was moved by the story on the GiveIndia website. I have always admired the work of Sankara Nethralaya, and when I read the story about how a poor woman was helped due to a cataract operation, I decided to make this gift just before my wedding, and educate my niece about this gift."

To see where her money went, please follow the link below:

http://www.giveindia.org/(S(mw1vmi451xi0xtz1wvyxusuj))/p-218-sponsor-a-cataract-operation-for-1-poor-patient.aspx

This donation marks a first for us at MotherNurture, where we have had an aunt donating for her niece and a bride donating before a wedding.


"Aishwarya (8)supports MotherNurture with help from her parents Kamini and Ranga"

Kamini, Aishwarya's mother wrote us this letter:

"Aishwarya makes a gift. I spoke to Aishu about this lovely concept on how children can help families by helping the mother. She was initially concerned as she did not have any money with her but when I told her that I would contribute on her behalf - she thought of options. I asked her to chose between provisions : health ; education or livelihood for the family. she thought for a while and first said - why not health ? Because if health is in place - then everything is in place. We searched for options on mother's health but she was not sure which one to choose. Then her second choice was on livelihood. The rationale being that if we provide the family with a source of livelihood , then the family is taken care for ever and does not need to depend on others to provide for their food.

I have donated Rs 3500/- for a poor woman to set up a village ration shop in Ranga's name. This is based on the request that Aishu had made."

See how her money will be used by Sahara, Orissa:
http://www.giveindia.org/p-957-help-set-up-a-village-ration-shop-for-a-poor-unemployed-woman.aspx