Transform Outcomes for Children at Risk In India

“Hello!

Congratulations! You are now a MADster. Welcome to the MAD family! We are delighted to have you on board. We really appreciate the energy and enthusiasm you displayed at the workshop, which contributed in a big way for its success. As we consolidate operations, we foresee a lot of challenges and we will be far more confident facing them with you in the team.

We are confident you will be able to make a difference!”

Every year an email of this sort hits the Inbox of people who believe that they can make a difference. Applications in thousands are received every year at this time of the year, driving an air of hope and endless possibilities across 23 cities. The cause unites every individual irrespective of his/her background, culture, language and empowers them to embark on a journey together, by caring more.

With this credo of unflinching faith and envisioning to create a space of care, MAD started its Recruitment season of 2016. This time we asked people to believe once again-to espouse the kind of belief that made people follow Gandhi on the Dandi March, the belief that led many embrace the humanitarian ideals of Mother Teresa and the belief millions of people of colour expressed in Martin Luther King Jr and made his dream their own. We believe that a group of passionate people, together, can be such agents of change as these great people. For this, the underlying message for this year’s recruitment campaign is ‘Don’t Stop Believing’.

The hunt for MADsters is still on across 23 cities and we cannot wait to welcome new bunch of young leaders who would aid us in the vision of ensuring equitable outcomes for children living in shelters.

Meanwhile, our Programs Team continues to work hard each day to ensure that the quality of intervention on ground is maintained and empowers our children and youth to realise their full potential. One of the big challenges we encounter is transition and readiness skills as for a child who has grown up in a shelter, reintegrating into the society can be a massive challenge. However, our Propel and Aftercare program works tirelessly everyday to ensure that our youth are equipped with the resources and skills that would make this journey as seamless as possible.

Take Sangeetha’s case for example.

In 2014 when Sangeetha secured an admission at Vellore Institute of Technology (VIT), a bonafide

university in south India, it was not just a dream come true for her or her parents but also for the Propel

team in the city which had worked tirelessly towards this end..

Growing up in a shelter had moulded Sangeetha into an unusually reticent youth, bereft of a sense of choice or the ability to express herself. Whenever her professors tried to engage with her or a classmate tried to approach her, Sangeetha would retreat to a corner and find new means and excuses to avoid any sort of interaction.

Sangeetha’s reluctance to reach out to anyone for guidance or help took a toll on her academics as she

ended up getting two arrears and scoring a mere 6.8 GPA in her first year. This is when her wingman

decided to intervene and decided to help Sangeetha by simple communication exercises. Every week,

they would religiously practice the art of conversation through role plays and simulation exercises.

There was a written element incorporated as well.

This newly found sense of self and expression allowed Sangeetha to start realising her

potential. Soon, she managed to clear her papers and ended second year by scoring a massive GPA if

8.06. The day she got the answer script for one of the more difficult papers, she immediately called her

wingman. “I scored a 46 on 50!”, she announced ecstatically. Her wingman recalls that moment with

much warmth and pride, “Even I had not managed to score as much as she had in that paper! It was a

moment of rare happiness and absolute triumph!

Sangeetha is currently in her final year at VIT where she is pursuing a Bachelor’s degree in Computer Applications and currently under the Aftercare Program.

Not only our youth, but we ensure that our younger children who fall under the primary academic support program of MAD, called ‘Ed Support’, receive the care and guidance that children of their age require.

It is because of this need to provide kids with emotional support as well that we came up with the concept of ‘School Goes MAD’, where volunteers accompany the children on their first day to school. Read what a volunteer from Mysore has to say about this event when it took place a few days back there,

“We were greeted with smiles, when we boarded the bus along with them-I could see at least a million of them. We walked the way between the bus stop and the school. We held hands and walked once again, only to sense a different something this time. Something new something more. We accompanied the children through their morning assembly. The curves on their faces shortened as we waved them goodbye. The kids were displeased.There was a sense of gratification in the gloom for us. For some reason, we felt successful. A perception of accomplishment blanketed us when we knew we had created what we intended to.”

Turning from the Programs Team to the team that ensures a smooth and continuous flow of resources that keep things running at MAD, our Fundraising Team, we realise how crucial and exciting a time it is for us! This great enthusiasm has been ushered by a mission three friends have undertaken to propel the cause forward. An ex MADster, Sunaina Pamudurthy, along with her friends and fellow adventurists Binoy John and Bhairav Kuttaiah, has started on a journey spanning 18000 kms, 13 countries and 2 continents to raise$1 Million for children in shelters.

Hailed as one of the most dangerous and grueling rallies in the world, the Mongol Rally is an event where participants across the globe undertake a gruelling trip to fundraise for a cause. These three friends have taken it upon themselves to go on this ‘Rally for Change’ (in a Tata Nano, nonetheless!) and raise funds and awareness for the cause of children in need of care and protection. Currently, volunteers across the country are wholeheartedly working to garner as much support as possible for these three who are fighting odds everyday to make it through to their decision.

The coming few months continue to hold further excitement for us! Class commencement, trainings, the final leg of Rally for Change-we are all set to take up more challenges and leave a mark wherever we go, India or Mongolia!