Provide a Safe Haven for Indian Children

Ashraya’s annual New Year party for all the crèche children and staff was held on January 7^th 2017 at  Ashraya’s office premises in Indiranagar-Bangalore. Children and staff from the 5 crèches, volunteers and committee members were invited.

A total of 157 children and 16 staff members, four volunteers and committee members attended. 

 The New Year party this year was sponsored by-

• The Adoptive Parents group- Mallika William –Board Member of Ashraya and member of the adoptive parents group mobilized sponsors from the adoptive families –  the  generous support covered the  cost of gifts for each of the 157 children and the transport costs.    
• A regular sponsor- Ms. Sudha from Jumporee organized jumping castle for all the children.; this year Sudha  also sponsored  the Magician’s Act and distributed chocolates to all the children.
• Nithya  Lakshmi Reddy arranged for transport for one of the  crèche’s.
• Ms. Shanti Chacko sponsored the sumptuous lunch.

The Day’s Program included:-

i. Dance and music program

The crèche teachers and children started preparing for this program in December-2016. The children were very excited practicing their songs and dance items.  

The children from all the 5 crèches put up a great show. All the children were beautifully dressed; they were excited and very energetic.   

Each crèche got 10 minutes to perform.

Shivajinagar crèche children did 2 dance items to Kannada ad Hindi songs and the children also sang a Kannada song.

Indiranagar children did a dance to ‘Jai Ho’ song using a variety of accessories and a fun dance.

Avalahalli crèche performed 2 dances to 2 Kannada songs.  

Banaswadi children also danced to 2 different songs.

Siddapura children sang a prayer song.

 ii. Lunch:- A  special lunch was catered for all the children and staff.  The menu included Vegetable Pulav, Raita and  potato finger Chips ordered from Subramanya Catering. Sweets were ordered from Kanthi Sweets .  Everyone enjoyed  the food; the children enjoyed the crispy finger chips.

1. New Year Gifts:- This year Ms.  Christy Abraham -Treasurer,  Ashraya , handed over the  New Year gifts to the respective teachers  which was later distributed to all the children once they reached their crèches.

Overall it was great show. The entire programme went as per the schedule which ensured that everyone relaxed and enjoyed every bit of the programme.

The New Year Party was a great success because of the children, teachers and staff’s co-operation. A special thanks to all our crèche children for beginning the year with great energy and excitement.

iv. Doctors Visit:- Every month the doctor visits  the crèches.  The children in the Banaswadi crèche were diagnosed with Vitamin A deficiency and the doctor prescribed  the supplement which was then bought and distributed among the children.

In Indiranagar  2 children were diagnosed with a skin infection, medication was prescribed and the children were asked to return to the crèche after the rashes had healed as it may spread to the other children.

Apart from these minor health issues the children in the crèches are all well.   

v. Height and Weight :- Every month a regular   height and weight check  is done for all the children in all the crèches.  Increase in growth parameters is a clear indicator that the nutrition provided is a very important component of the crèche services.  

vi. Trip to Neelbagh:- On  the 1^st of March 2017 the entire staff from  Ashraya- (admin, crèches and women’s centre staff) went on a  trip to Neelbagh School. This is the first time all the teachers were visiting  the school project which is also run by Ashraya.   On the way  to the school the group  also visited two beautiful temples Kaivara and Kailasagiri.

Kaivara  is a famous temple located in Chikkaballapura district of Karnataka ;7 kms away is a beautiful temple named Kailasgiri with 5 different gods that is carved inside a big cave. It was a wonderful experience.

 The next stop was Neelbagh School where we were warmly received by the Principal  Mr. Manjunath. A delicious lunch was prepared by the staff which we all enjoyed.  It was an opportunity for the Neelbagh staff to meet the rest of the staff of Ashraya.  It was an enjoyable trip and everyone headed back to Bangalore to reach their homes by late evening.

vii. PTA Meeting:-  This round of Parent Teacher meetings are the last for this year as most of the children are applying to join regular, formal school.

The parents were informed about the RTE (Right To Education) criteria and  regulations and the necessary documents that are  required while filing for the RTE.

The teachers will be helping the parents in filling the forms for RTE and school application.  The teachers will also be coaching the children on how to conduct themselves at the school interviews.  

  The parents are very happy to see a change in their children. They have appreciated  all the hard work put in by  the teachers ; the parents have stated that  their children blossomed in the stimulating environment,  gained good health and learned manners and  good habits and  were coached well  to join formal schools. .

 We wish the children all the very best in their formative years.