Wednesday 7 January 2015

Merry Christmas and happy new year 2015



MERRY CHRISTMAS AND A HAPPY NEW YEAR!
Dear : Friends
Greetings to you from your big family in Nepal with HFN.  I hope you are well.  Mariya, all the children and myself would like to wish you a wonderful Christmas and a happy New Year.
We have decided to write a newsletter to update you on our past year, as for some of you it will have been some time since you last visited.
This year we have had 15 volunteers come and stay with us.  They have all been great and we have enjoyed getting to know them all.  They have come from Australia, France, Germany, Switzerland, U.S.A and the UK.  Previously, we have also have also had volunteers from Belgium, Sweden, Denmark, Estonia, Macedonia, China, Japan, Hong Kong, Singapore, Canada,  New Zealand, Portugal, Italia  and the Netherlands.
We are so grateful to how people from all around the world have come together in our home and have given up their time, shared their talents and resources for a good and worthwhile cause.  Your financial generosity has been such a help and blessing to us.  Without this, the orphanage would not be sustainable and the children would have remained in very different circumstances.  They would also not have the opportunities they currently have.   It has also helped us enable a few local children in our community to buy stationery and be able to go to school.  

In April this year, 10 year old Roshan from Chitwan joined us.  Sadly, his mother who worked as a labourer, died due to an illness.  This left Roshan in the care of his ill father who is unable to work due to kidney problems.  Unable to go to school, Roshan started hanging out with street children until, thankfully, someone in the neighbourhood contacted My sister from Chitwan. Roshan has settled in well and is working hard at school.
Madan is now 18 and lives with his step-sister and family about 5km away.  He visits once a week and sometimes comes to stay.  He has completed his 2 years of various subjects at Higher Education level, during which Computer Science was his main focus.  He went on to do a 3 month Korean language course but ultimately would love to pursue I.T. at University level.
Madan’s younger brother, Sujan, is with 15 now the oldest in the home.
He is in his final year at Secondary school and takes his exams in February, after which he has to wait for 6 months for his results!

All the other children are well and working hard at the local Active Academy school  where, apart from Nepali, all their lessons are taught in English.

Two years ago, Demisha moved from the Montessori nursery school to the Elim Kids Academy.  Dan is also now in uniform and has been going to the same school for the past year.  
Since September, Mariya has been working for a small finance company.  This involves walking from Thamel back to Dhapasi collecting money from shops along the way.
That just leaves us to thank you once again for your support and friendship.  We hope you have a joyful Christmas with your family/friends and wish you the very best for 2015. 
With love and warm wishes,
David, Maria and all the children
Himalayan Foundation Nepal(HFN)
P.O. Box: 8975 EPC 4030,
Dhapasi, Kathmandu
Skype:  david.prasain
www.volunteerorphanage.org
info@hfn.org.np
himalayanfn@gmail.com