'Holistic Development'for 300 Poor Kids in India

Dear Donor,

Christmas Greetings from IDEA!

            Exams are over and winter is here - a perfect time to go out and play and play is what they did. In our Holistic Development programme there is emphasis on sports and physical activity along with educational activities so we encourage children to take up a sport as sports instill many good qualities like team spirit, leadership qualities and confidence plus the benefits of fitness and good health.

Athletic Event enjoyed:

            Recently a media company organized a national level athletic event for school children. 20 children from IDEA participated in various running races. It was a good experience for them to compete and interact with children from other backgrounds. We were very happy to see that even without any coaching, the kids put up a tough fight. Every year we organize sports meets and many kids also participate in marathons and sports competitions. One of these sports enthusiasts is Swati who is a budding sports star and we are happy to share her story…

Swati - an athlete in the making:

            Swati got associated with IDEA when she was in 6^th Std. She has been under different IDEA projects like learning centers, sponsorship program and vocational training course. Swati continued attending our study centre till 10^th std as there was lot of disturbance in her small single room house which made studying impossible for her. Her father is jobless and mother works as domestic help. Because of sponsorship support, Swati could continue her schooling and scored 68% in 10^th board exam.  In the mean time she also completed a 6 months basic nursing course conducted under IDEA’s vocational training programme and also took a part time job for a few months to support her family.

            Now she is pursuing graduation in Commerce stream. In college she got interested in the game of Kabbadi which is an old Indian sport. She is showing all signs of an athlete in the making with her good performances and winning laurels for her college Kabbadi team. Swati is now a national level Kabbadi player which is a matter of pride for us and is still associated with IDEA’s youth groups and helps conduct games and activities for IDEA’s young children. She frequently helps other children and her mentors from IDEA. Her helping nature is appreciated by all. Swati is currently sweating it out for a national level sports competition representing her club. IDEA wishes her good luck!

        Please continue supporting Swati and her friends who are at the most important time of their lives.