ÿþ <!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"> <html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" > <head> <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=ISO-8859-1"> <title>Vibha Xpressions Vol. 4, No. 1, 2 | Jan, Feb 2008</title> <style type="text/css"> body { background-color: #ffffff; font-family: verdana, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; } table { background-color: #FFF2BD; border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; border-color: #336699; font-size: 10pt; } td { background-color: #FFF2BD; border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; border-color: #336699; /* padding: 5px; */ } h1 { font-family: verdana, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-style: bold; font-size: 10pt; text-align: center; color: #ffffff; background-color: #604D86; padding: 5px; } p { padding-top: 3px; padding-left: 5px; padding-right: 5px; padding-bottom: 2px; } li { padding-left: 1px; padding-right: 5px; } img { border-style: none; } .imgcenter { margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; } .style9 { font-size: 12pt; font-weight: bold; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: #604D86; } .style11 {font-size: 7pt} .style12 {font-size: 8pt} .style13 { color: #660000; font-weight: bold; } </style> </head> <body> <center> <table width="799"> <!-- Header --> <tr valign="top" bgcolor="#FFF2BD"> <td colspan="2"><table width="100%" style="border-style: none; background-color: #FFFFFF"> <tr bgcolor="#FFF2BD"> <td width="75%" align="left" nowrap style="border-style: none"><a href="http://www.vibha.org" target="_blank"><img src="http://www.vibha.org/Xpressions/Vol_2_No_1_Jan_2006/VIBHA_140x57.gif" border="0"></a><a href="http://www.vibha.org/Xpressions/" target="_blank"><img src="http://www.vibha.org/Xpressions/Vol_2_No_1_Jan_2006/VIBHA_XPRESSIONS_400X57.gif" border="0"></a></td> <td width="25%" align="right" bgcolor="#FFF2BD" style="border-style: none"><p align="right"> <a href="http://www.vibha.org" target="_blank">www.vibha.org</a> </p> <p align="right"> <a href="mailto:info@vibha.org">info@vibha.org</a></p> <p><font style="font-size: 8pt">Vol. 4, No. 1, 2 | Jan, Feb 2008</font></p></td> </tr> </table></td> </tr> <tr valign="top" bgcolor="#FFF2BD"> <td height="193" colspan="2"><!-- FIXME: Message from the Editor --> <p align="Justify"><br />One of the most accurate statements about India is that it is a land of paradoxes. It is shocking that the fast emerging superpower and IT force of the world is also home where about <a target="_blank" href="http://www.childinfo.org/areas/education/table1.php">4 million children are outside the school system and about a million infants die every year</a>. It is up to us to help better the destinies of these kids, the future of India. You do not have to affect the lives of many to make a difference. Here is an example of how little drops of water can make a mighty ocean... </p> <p align="justify">"One day a man was walking along the seashore. He noticed that during the night many seashells and starfish had washed upon the beach. As he strolled along, he noticed a small figure dancing in the distance. As he drew closer, however, it became apparent that the figure was not dancing. Instead, she seemed to be repeatedly performing some ritual. He drew nearer still and noticed that the small figure was a child. She was methodically picking up starfish and tossing them into the surf. He paused for a moment, puzzled, then asked, "Why are you throwing these starfish?" "It's high tide", she replied, "if I leave them on the beach, the sun will soon dry them and they will die. I am throwing them into the ocean so they can live".The man carefully observed her actions and was impressed by the child's thoughtfulness. Then he motioned up and down the miles of the beach. "There must be thousands of starfish along here," he said, "You cannot possibly make a difference." The young girl stopped and her face darkened. She chewed thoughtfully on her lower lip and softly said, "You're probably right." With downcast eyes she seemed lost in thought - but then she leaned over, carefully picking up another starfish, pulled back and arched it gently into the sea. With a tone of gentle defiance, she said, "But I made a difference for that one".<br /><i> Extracted from the <u> Star Thrower </u>, by Loren Eisley</i>. </p> <p align="justify">Read on to see how easy it is to make 2008 the year that YOU make a difference to someone's life... </p> </td> </tr> <tr valign="top" bgcolor="#FFF2BD"> <td width="50%" rowspan="2" bgcolor="#FFF2BD" style="background-color: #FFF2BD"><!-- FIXME: Project profile here --> <h1> <strong>Contribute as a volunteer by</strong></h1> <ul style="text-align:justify;" > <li>Volunteering at Vibha's fundraising events</li> <li>Educating yourself about Vibha's programs </li> <li>Signing up for programs or getting others to sign up by promoting them</li> <li>Being part of the programs team by providing innovative ideas to increase the participation in these programs</li></ul> <h1>Contribute as a patron to Vibha's many programs</h1> <p align="justify"><b>I. Help Them Grow - Automated Donation Program </b> <br /><br /> This Program's main strength is that even a few dollars set aside every month by you has the potential to provide an underprivileged child with life changing opportunities that he or she would otherwise never get. Contribute any amount of your choice from your bank account or credit card. Last year saw 48 new sign ups in the program. Sign up online at <a target="_blank" href="https://secure.vibha.org/donations/htg/new/">https://secure.vibha.org/donations/htg/new/" </a></p> <p align="justify"><b>II. Vibha Beneficiary Program (VBP) </b> <br /><br /> This program was started in 2005 to address the needs of patrons who wanted to be involved very closely with a project near and dear to them. It was also a way for organizations to fund projects through a trusted organization like Vibha in the field of child development. VBP did quite well in 2007 raising $43,000 through 6 sign ups supporting 5 different projects. This program has given Vibha a mechanism to reach out to you, our patrons by providing the option to pick something of your choice and by providing personalized service. To sign up or for more details write to <a target="_blank" href="mailto:vbp@vibha.org">"vbp@vibha.org" </a></p> <p align="justify"><b>III. Change For Children </b> <br /><br /> This program was officially launched at Vibha's volunteer conference in Dallas in June 2007. Collect the change at your home or workplace in specifically designed canisters provided by Vibha. It is a good way to get people of all ages involved, and is especially popular with children. More than 300 canisters have been distributed since the launch. Details at <a target="_blank" href="http://www.vibha.org/cfc"> http://www.vibha.org/cfc </a></p> <p align="justify"><b>IV. Vibha Dream Registry </b> <br /><br />This program was officially launched in December of 2006. This is an ideal way to celebrate birthdays, weddings, graduation or any other milestone by requesting a donation to Vibha in place of a gift. In addition to raising funds, this is another good way to spread awareness about Vibha and our children as your guests will automatically learn about us. This program was a huge success in its first full year of operation. We had 10 sign ups and raised more than $5,000 through this program. More details on how to participate at <a target="_blank" href="http://wiki.vibha.org/Vibha_Dream_Registry"> http://www.vibha.org/dream</a> registry or write to <a href="mailto:dreamregistry@vibha.org">dreamregistry@vibha.org</a>. </p> <h1>Affiliate Programs</h1> <p align="justify">You can support us through your everyday activities just by supporting the businesses which support Vibha. All it takes is a few minutes to set these up once (in some cases no set up required, just click through from links here) and Vibha benefits by getting a portion of the proceeds from the businesses at no extra cost to you. It is as simple as that. </p> <p align="Center"><a href="http://www.clubshop.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://vibha.org/Xpressions/Vol_4_No_1_January_2008/ClubShopMall_banner_468_b.gif" /></a> <br /><br /><a href="http://www.fundraising-solutions.org/marketplace/marketplace.cfm?user_id=1444" target="_blank" ><img src="http://vibha.org/Xpressions/Vol_4_No_1_January_2008/FundraisingSolutions_Shop_button4.gif" /></a></p> <p align="justify"> <b>Donate while you search or shop... </b> <br /><br /> &nbsp;&nbsp; <a href="http://www.goodsearch.com/" target="_blank" ><img style="margin-left:auto; margin-right:auto;" src="http://vibha.org/Xpressions/Vol_4_No_1_January_2008/Goodsearch.gif" /> </a> <br />GoodSearch is an Internet search engine which donates 1 penny for every search. To set it up </p> <ul style="list-style-type:decimal;text-align:justify;"> <li >Open your favorite browser and go to Goodsearch</li> <li >Designate Vibha as charity of your choice (you just have to do this once on every computer you use)</li> <li >Search is powered by Yahoo</li> <li >Tool bars available for popular browsers like IE/Firefox/Safari makes it even easier to use </li> </ul> <p align="justify"> &nbsp; &nbsp;<a href="http://www.goodsearch.com/goodshop.aspx" target="_blank" ><img src="http://vibha.org/Xpressions/Vol_4_No_1_January_2008/Goodshop.gif" /> </a> <br />Goodsearch's online shopping which includes pretty much every vendor. A portion of the sales is donated back to Vibha. <br /><br /> A nice bonus is their real time update of funds raised for Vibha. Check it out while you are there.<br /> <br /> <span><b>Helping kids as you get your groceries...&nbsp;</b><br /><br /> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; <a href="http://www.ralphs.com/ccprogram.htm" target="_blank" ><img style="margin-left:auto; margin-right:auto;" src="http://vibha.org/Xpressions/Vol_4_No_1_January_2008/Logo_ralphs.gif" /></a> <br />Register your club card once and Vibha will get a portion of your purchases donated by Ralphs. </span></p> <ul style="list-style-type:decimal;text-align:justify;"> <li >Open your favorite browser and go to Ralph's Community Contribution Program</li> <li >Click on the "Organization" button and search for Vibha to get the organization code</li> <li >Then click on the "Participant" button to enter the organization code and your club card details. That's it</li> </ul> <p align="justify"><font color="red"><b>HELP US HELP THEM...</b></font></p> <div> <h1>Write To Us...</h1> <p align="justify">Your feedback is important to us. Vibha welcomes any comments, suggestions or questions you may have about our projects, programs, products, monitoring etc. If you are particularly interested in a topic and would like to see Vibha showcase it please <u><a href="mailto:xpressions@vibha.org" >let us know.</a></u></p> <p align="center"><img src="http://www.vibha.org/Xpressions/Vol_2_No_7_July_2006/July_06_09.jpg" align="center" hspace="5"></p> <p> </div> <p align="center" class="style13">Together, we can do much more!<br> Dream a little! Do a Little!</p> </td> </tr> <tr valign="top" bgcolor="#FFF2BD"> <td width="50%" height="1668" bgcolor="#FFF2BD"><!-- FIXME: Program profile here --> <h1> Project Profile </h1> <p align="center" class="style9">HEARDS Project </p> <p align="justify">The Health Education Adoption Rehabilitation Development Society (HEARDS) was founded in Aug '99 by a group of social workers dedicated towards the eradication of poverty in Chittoor district, Andhra Pradesh, India. The vision and mission of this project is to eradicate child labor and to facilitate the holistic growth of every individual in this district via education, equality and liberation from poverty. This dynamic society aims at serving the developmental needs of the  poorest-of'the-poor' in this district. Various programs are in place to meet the socio-economic, educational, cultural, health and medical needs of all age groups in the target population. </p> <p align="center"><img src="http://vibha.org/Xpressions/Vol_4_No_1_January_2008/Heards4.JPG" align="center" hspace="5" width="312px" height="208px" &nbsp; /></p> <p align="justify">Drought and famine are a part and parcel of life in Chittoor district, owing to a dry climate and scanty rainfall. Crop cultivation is limited to a few months, leading to only seasonal employment with very low wages. The environment is plagued by various insecticides, flies, unhealthy sanitation system, water scarcity, poor drainage system, small crowded rooms occupied by large number of family members including dependent children. Most members of a family lead idle lives and often fall prey to gangs and anti-social behavior, resulting in children having to work as laborers to add to their family income. Project co-ordinator Mr. Kuriakose Santy and 3 others work actively towards identifying the child laborers around and talking to concerned employers and parents to enable them to stop work and join school.</p> <p align="center"><img src="http://vibha.org/Xpressions/Vol_4_No_1_January_2008/Heards6.JPG" align="center" hspace="5" width="312px" height="208px" &nbsp; /></p> <p align="justify">VIBHA, along with the HEARDS and the National Child Labor Project Special School, with the support of the National Child Labor project of the Govt. of India, caters to the educational needs of 64 children between the ages of 5-14. There are 2 centers C.B. Road Center and Thotapalyam Center, where these children are educated between the grade levels of 1 and 4, by a total of 7 teachers. The children are placed at the grade level appropriate to their learning abilities and skills. Traditional classroom methods, vocational training, practical science, and educational software with a new computer training program are employed to teach the children. Regular medical check-ups and a daily lunch program are other important features of this program. The program also provides for two sets of uniforms for the children. In order to develop the knowledge and consciousness of nationalism, patriotism and integrity among the children, national holidays are celebrated at each center.</p> <p align="justify">One of the factors indicating the success of this program is evidenced by the fact that so far, 33 children have been successfully mainstreamed into regular schools. An attendance register maintained at each center shows that on an average, about 91% of the children attended the centers during the working days. The Project Coordinator and staff are striving hard to improve the attendance to 100%..</p> <p align="center"><img src="http://vibha.org/Xpressions/Vol_4_No_1_January_2008/Heards3.JPG" width ="312px" height=" 208px" align="center" hspace="5" &nbsp; /></p> <p align="justify">Project staffs meet regularly with parents of working children to motivate them to extend their cooperation to get these children access to essential education, basic nutrition and primary health. The cooperation of parents is critical to the success of this project, so parents of the child laborers are educated on the adverse effects of child labor. Awareness campaigns are conducted in the community to help eradicate child labor and stress the importance of education with special emphasis on the girl child. Some of the other achievements of this program include: </p> <ol style="text-align:justify;" > <li>Setting up of 5 Adult literacy centers</li> <li>Formation of self-help groups -- Micro entrepreneurship program</li> <li>Vocational training -- Candle Making, Basket weaving, Sewing, Talcum Powder Making, Soap Making etc</li> <li>Women's rights and welfare</li> <li>Health care - AIDS awareness, Vaccination drives.</li> <li>Campaign for Education</li> <li>Environmental awareness - Water management, Tree Plantations, Effective waste disposal</li> <li>Seminars & Workshops on Human Rights issues and minority rights.</li> <li>Safe drinking water program -- Safe and potable water for healthy drinking and other utilization to 112 families of the target village through support of the Cottonwood foundation, U.S.A</li> </ol> <p align="justify">Significant progress has been made by HEARDS in reducing child labor and protection of child rights. While much good work has been done, both the community and parents have a long way to go towards changing their attitudes around the all round development of young children. VIBHA has been active in its support, cooperation and funding (over $30,000 to date), towards the educational and personal development of these needy children. The long-term goals are to:</p> <ul style="text-align:justify;" > <li>To establish social norms for the total elimination of child labor and universalization of education.</li> <li>To have all children enroll in the schools and retain them through the period of education</li> <li>To reduce the incidence of early child marriage and child labor by creating awareness in the community about their ill-effects on children.</li> <li>Provide economic alternatives for every day survival</li> </ul> </td> </tr> <!-- Contact Address --> <tr valign="top" bgcolor="#FFF2BD"> <td colspan="2"><p align="center"> Vibha 1030 E El Camino Real, #424 Sunnyvale, CA 94087<br /> Phone: 408-997-9992 | Fax: 775-593-1061</p></td> </tr> <tr valign="top" bgcolor="#FFF2BD"> <td colspan="3"><p align="center"> <a href="http://www.vibha.org" target="_blank">Vibha Main Page</a> | <a href="http://www.vibha.org/Xpressions/" target="_blank">Newletters Home</a> (Previous editions) | <a href="http://www.vibha.org/donate" target="_blank">Donate Online</a> </p></td> </tr> <!-- Disclaimer here --> <tr valign="top" bgcolor="#FFF2BD"> <td height="45" colspan="2"><p align="center" class="style11"> <font color="#336699" style="font-size: 8pt"> Vibha is a 501(c)(3) registered non-profit, non-religious, non-political organization that seeks to restore to underprivileged children their basic rights to food, shelter, health and education - in short, a future. <br> All donations to Vibha are tax exempt in the US.</font></p></td> </tr> </table> </center> </body> </html>