Background of the Project Ave Maria Nursery & Primary School and Orphanage

AID INDIA runs many projects which are beneficial to the women, differently-abled (People with disabilities) and children of different situations. AID INDIA makes changes in the community through the projects namely school, orphanage, child development centres, distance adoption programme, micro credit programme, community based rehabilitation and so on. It works in 4 districts of Tamilnadu of South India. AID INDIA has promoted over 300 Self Help Groups so far to make the living of the downtrodden independent. The majority of members of the groups are mainly poor women belonging to suppressed communities. Some of the groups have been promoted for differently abled persons. There are always people’s participation to ensure practical activities and to make the projects real and transparent. We have always the advisory board from the beneficiaries. Thus, the members of socio economic development programme design projects for AID INDIA on the basis of need. The school was started accordingly to  serve the kids from the families organized by aid india and the children of orphanage namely Ave Maria Home for Children.

Reason for undertaking this project

Satankulam is near the seashore. In 18 kms there is the Bay of Bengal. We had promoted SHGs (Self Help Groups) and supported the groups with our micro credit programme. In the year 2004 the Tsunami devastated the seashore villages and the people either lost lives or lost assets. So the villages near the sea could not come up from the fall. Our involvement was also limited because of financial position. Many of the announcements of the government such as adopting children and economic lift became fruitless and the announcements seemed to be the paper-news. Many of the children in this area became drop-outs from the school and they did not have proper support for their education. Hence most of the children became child-labours.

Other villages where AID INDIA works in are also consisting of Dhalit people, Backward people and Most Backward People. They are lower-caste people. They are really suppressed in the society. Most of the parents were illiterates. They have more children. They do not have own house and they work for the land-lords who had given some money to them. As a result many children could not go to school. In the villages, many families are disorganized and in several cases, either the mother or father runs away from the family and lives with another person. Because of these reasons many children have become deserted and they are under the care of grand parents who cannot take care of them properly because of poverty, age and inability. The schools functioning here prove to be for the teachers and not for the children. The teachers keep the children only for maintaining the strength of the school to be eligible to get salary for them, since the salary is calculated on the basis of strength of the children. The parents or guardians of the children live in a hand-to-mouth situation. Many of the girls do not go to school because of poverty and disorganized situation in the families. Thus there are many deserving children who are to be supported.

Under these situations, the members of our programme put a request before AID INDIA to start a school and orphanage in Satankulam to support many children with qualitative education.

Why Satankulam was selected for starting the School and Orphanage?

In Satankulam AID INDIA has a Farm in 50 acres of land. The land is located in the important place or cross road from where one can go to Tuticorin, Tirunelveli, Kanyakumari and Tiruchendur. There is a bus stop in the Farm. AID INDIA has 7 pumpsets with free electricity with open wells. There is no problem for water. More land is available for playing and for extension of project. This is a place for free and unpolluted air which is necessary for the children. They can cultivate vegetables for their own purpose. A dairy farm (if established) can support the children with milk. The remaining milk can be sold. Already coconuts are available for the kitchen of the orphanage. Further, the project location is not far from the town.

Description of the Project

The project consists of an orphanage and a school for the kids ranging from the age 4 to 10. The school is called as Ave Maria Nursery and Primary School. This has been functioning from the academic year 2009-10. An academic year is from June to May.  The schools functioning here charge more fees from the children and they keep many formalities for giving admission. Hence, the poor families could not imagine such schools for their children. As a result many intelligent children loose the opportunities of being educated in good schools only because they are poor. Moreover the existing schools are run on business-mind. They are always calculating the profit they could earn out of the education of the children. AID INDIA has decided to change the situation by giving good educational opportunities to the children of poor families who cannot imagine their children’s education in an English Medium School. It does not indicate that AID INDIA wants to educate all the children by the support of sponsors. It wants to concentrate and to give opportunity to the children coming from the families which have been organized under micro credit programme. Others who come for admission can make contribution reasonably towards their children’s education.  

The orphanage “Ave Maria Home for Children” is also another connected project which functions in the same complex. We aim to help 100 girls who are either orphans or semi-orphans or deserted. If the children are below the age 10, they can stay there and study in the school which we start. The girls above the age 10 can go to the Girls Higher Secondary School functioning in Satankulam. But they can stay in the orphanage. Satankulam is only 3 kms from the project site. At the moment we are keeping some boys also. In future this home will be exclusively for girls alone.

About Building and the cost

Land is free. AID INDIA could not wait for the donations to erect building for the above purpose. Therefore AID INDIA entered into agreements with the companies which supply cement, sand, steel, gravels, bricks etc and has erected some rooms for the children. The money for the above materials would be repaid in future. The total cost for construction is 10 million rupees. AID INDIA is also trying to get some sponsors from interested friends and organizations for this construction. When they give some money it will go for the payment towards the materials we got already. Stichting AID INDIA of Holland started by Willem Jan and AID INDIA Australia started by Alexandra are trying to raise funds for this purpose. Already the Stiching AID INDIA, Holland, has given donation to undertake this project and they have given a bus to transport the children. AID INDIA Australia has been started newly and the responsible person is trying a lot for supporting construction.

Running of the project

The home for the girls (Orphanage) can be run with the support of many organizations or individuals under the distance child adoption programme. Hence we are now presenting the details of the children before the friends and organizations for sponsors. We believe we can realize it. We plan to support 100 girls.

For the school there are 2 methodologies. One is to admit the children from normal families who can pay the fee (reasonable fee) for their children as they do in other institutions. For the children coming from the member families we want to find sponsors or scholarships to educate them. The main expenses for them are tuition fee, books, note-books, uniform dresses, transportation etc., These members can also contribute for their children’s education to some extent.

Another prospect for the project is that many volunteers from other countries want to come and teach the children. There is no expenses for the organization. They will come and stay in our home/guest house which has all facilities to accommodate about 12 volunteers at a time. They pay for their food and accommodation through a donation. They work in the school or orphanage.

Selection of children for the project

The process of selection of children is the responsibility of the groups of women and differently-abled persons. Since they know the real situation of the child this method is followed. The advisory board from the beneficiaries will decide and give the list of children to be supported.