School Screening Program

Namaste,

Now that we are in our second half of our Global Reach donation journey I wanted to summarize our sucesses this year. We have completed seven programs this first month.

Four Eye Programs
-Low vision- we again worked with Hari Thapa to identify and correct low vision cases with special lenses, small hand-held telescopes and magnification devices from the Lumbini Eye Institute.
-The School Screening Program from the Bhratpur Eye Hospital will examine the eyes of 7-8000 school children this year in the remote areas of Chitwan province.
- Butwal Lions Hospital received our second year donation for 100 to 110 pair of new glasses for destitute children.
- eye medicines will be given free of cost to patients at the Remote Eye Camp programs at the Himalayas Eye Hospital in Pokhara. Surgeons and hospital personnel travel for days to provide eye care to these remote areas.

- Two blind homes, one at Pyuthan with 10 children and the other at the Santi Blind school with 27 children, were provided with braille paper, fluorescent lighting for low-vision children, clothing and bedding, food items and day to day necessities for our 5th year

-Mina Devi's Orphanage with 14 children in two rented rooms was given our $500 gift for school supplies and other items for the 4th year. A five room home is being built for her by a local Nepalese business organization.

We don't do this alone. So many persons here in Nepal and at home have helped us do this work. I want to thank one and all.

It has rained steadily for two days now. Pools of water and mud are everywhere, the temperature is between 50-55 degrees with no heating and there is six hours of electric a day but i would not trade the joy of doing this work for anything.

thank you again,
mike sir

Hello,

Mike Cassidy is currently in Nepal attending to all three projects that are posted on Global Giving’s Site.  Below are emails from Mike in the field from Nepal.  Mike will be in Nepal until March 20th.  When he returns, he will post photos and additional reports.  As emails come in I will forward them to all three project sites.

Thank You,

Bill Sansone
Global Reach International 

From Nepal,

Jan 25-26
I was taken to a school screening from the Himalaya Eye Hospital yesterday. The 3 ophthalmic assistants examined 75 students from a school & hostel at the Youth Rescue & Development non-profit from Britain. These are girls freed from trafficking to India, ferral street children and children from destitute homes. A wonderful job is done to readjust these youths with a two year electrical , plumbing, computer or nurses aide training program with a one year half-way house offered after leaving. one of the boys i spoke with was a 'cutter' with wounds on both arms. he was rescued from a circus three months ago.... two girls refused to have their picture taken in a group, both were freed from a brothel in India and brought to this school. I am sure they have their reasons for not wanting to have a picture taken of them. they will have very hard lives in this culture.

We made a $500 donation to the Remote Eye camps Program to buy medicines, through this hospital, for the poor and needy. They were very grateful for the help.

Jan 28.
I am back in Bhairahawa at the Eye Hospital. My friend, Su-san, is coming from Pyuthan tomorrow and this will save me a four day trip to the Hilly area. He runs the local eye clinic and told me there are 4 more blind and low-vision children, to a total of 10, housed at the local school. I am glad to be able to increase our usual donation from $280 to $425 this year.

The 27 children at the santi blind home insisted I 'sleep over' tonight. I could not disappoint them. The beds are hard with a thin quilt for a mattress. I have Brachs peppermint candy for them. I will be fine.

It is time to find Amod (Field Project Personal) and see about my motor bike ride to the blind home this evening


Feb: 7

Namaste,

We finished the santi blind school program yesterday with a modest ceremony of teachers, the principal and the president of the management committee. I was presented with a framed 'letter of appreciation', a garland of marigolds and a 'tika' on my forehead. they were very, very grateful for the $1000 donation once again. the blind and low-vision students are given a stipend of only $18 a month from the government, enough for 'fooding' and little else.

'you have done a great thing, sir' said 16 year old Kamal when I gave him a $14 (1000 rupies) gift before I left Santi School this morning. He has worn sandals and a torn shirt. His mother works and lives at the Santi School and makes $21 a month.

I went to Mina Devi son's wedding party-picnic last Tuesday. a modest affair in an open wooded area. she is not a well-off women and has devoted her life to providing for these 14 children. I very much admire her.

I had three visits to a dentist this past week for a broken cap and post. A very well done job but I became concerned when the second visit was done by flashlight because of a power shortage.

The day after tomorrow I am leaving here for a stop at Chitwan and the Bharatpur Eye Hospital on my way to Katmandu. We are having the school screening program from this area next year and I will meet Tulsi, a former student and manager of the hospital..... I was just told by Mr Kandel that 8136 children had their eyes examined last year with our $1000 donation and 102 children received a new pair of glasses.

Mike sir