Santa needs some help!

Looks like Santa needs some help this year and is looking for used toys in good condition for little boys and girls (babies to 10 year olds). At Christmas time, any goodies for the children will be very welcome. We were thinking of filling up some bags with these toys and goodies and distributing them during the Christmas week. Someone out there needs your help - please do be generous in giving.

Taking it slow....

Was I kidding when I said I would take it slow this year? Looks like it just cant happen and over the last few months, steps were taken to ease the misery of some poor folk and their families. Second hand furniture (cot, mattress, pillows, tables and chairs), a gas stove and a washing machine were given away to enhance their lives. Staple rations were given to 7 families thus providing them with good food for atleast a month; new saris were given to a few ladies; school fees for the next term were paid for a couple of students; we even pitched in some money to help a friend in need who was undergoing chemotherapy. Our reaching out just never ends.... and with God's grace we are able to help where its required.

The above was made possible only with the timely assistance from our sponsors - Ashley & Helen Bakes from Sydney, Philomena Harding and Florence Barnes from the UK, Rebecca, Yvette, Pam and Ashraf from Melbourne, and Anita Mawdsley from Chennai. Thank you, dears, and may God bless you abundantly for your generosity.

Whazzup??!!

Whispering Hope has decided to take it a bit slow this Christmas time and try not to go overboard with its programs. Think of it as a much needed rest and a time for planning future events in a meaningful way. Exciting food hampers are being planned for selected families and being Christmas, some gifts for the kiddos. Wish us luck! You can send in your gift for the kids or add to our hampers making it more attractive! Let the spirit of giving engulf you during this festive time.

We did it!!

Whispering Hope got into the role of the Easter Bunny and was kept busy throughout the South Indian summer. School fees were rustled up and the children that we have been sponsoring over the past few years continue with their studies. Not the best of destinations for a holiday, especially in the summer, but Guntur saw a couple of mothers and their young children come for a much needed break from their routines in Chennai. The train ride from Chennai to Guntur was thoroughly enjoyed by the kids and it was an interesting change. Staple food rations were distributed to a few families, new clothes given out to the ladies that we meet from time to time, pocket money given to the older ladies, and to top this all, Sagar - one of our proteges - was presented with a brand new cycle.

We would like to thank our sponsors for their kind contributions towards the above programs : Kudzai Chinhengo from Zimbabwe, Devrim Tuncay from Turkey, Helen and Ashley Bakes from Sydney, Pam and Ashraf from Melbourne, Biju Damodaran from Muscat, Balu and our annonymous angel from Mumbai, Anita and Kevin Mawdsley from Chennai. Thanks Guys - you were wonderful!!

What is the Easter Bunny upto?

The Easter Bunny is busy making plans for the next holiday season. The days are getting brighter and hotter and Whispering Hope intends to keep sizzling all thru the summer. Time to rustle up some school fees for the poor children, beach parties, picnics, and maybe a little side trip to sunny Guntur for the most deserving kids. We do need to keep those kids out there happy and encourage them to do well in their studies.

Children's gifts are most welcome. Please feel free to contact me with your contribution. Have a fantastic summer 2011!!

Without Them......

Without the angels mentioned here below, Whispering Hope would have stumbled through its Festive Plans. Our heartfelt thanks go out to Juan and Ana Fradera from Thailand, Gerard Smith from France, Kiran Krishnan from Singapore, our own angels from Mumbai - Balu and Eswar, Alun Long, Bernard Paul, and Little Trishna Mathew from the Uk, Tripta & Manoj Barai, V. Kumar, Fenella Dias and Bridgette White from Bangalore, Gladys Fernandes, Pat & Lochlan Fernandes and their friends (Monty and Pam), Gerty Cobb, Helen Bakes, David and Marcus Bakes - all from Australia, Jenny White and her friends (Julia, Yoly, Avril, Telles and Kutty), Sangeeta, Monica, Chitra, Ruby, and Hermie Vanspall from Chennai, Cuneyt Meran from Turkey, Sandra & Noreen Joseph, and Margaret Lobo from Vizag. Lets give them a big hand! Clap clap Clap!

We are extremely grateful to Mr. Rajan Sekri for rustling up loads of stuff from his friend circle among whom, some of the ladies repesented the Madras Inner Circle 2 Club. These ladies brought in lovely goody bags, and Santa caps for the kids at the hospital. One of the ladies volunteered to be Santa and wow what a Santa she was! The charming little elf, Keirav, proved to be the best little guy in town helping Santa distribute the gifts. Thanks Rajan, for the hand towels and the plum cake.

And what would we have done, if it wasnt for Mr. NC Williams, President, YMCA? thanks to him we had a lovely open space to conduct our Christmas party. He also provided the yummy icecream and extra cake. A lot of appreciation goes out to Jude Jayasingh and his lovely wife for the sumptious cake supplied for the children. Last but not least, a mighty big THANK YOU to Thomas and Sankar who helped rock this party.

We are also grateful to Anita Mawdsley and Prakash Das from Chennai, Sitara Mathew from the UK, our angel from Mumbai for the contributions made towards school fees during the past year. We also take this opportunity to thank Mr. Krishnan of Chennai for the loads of stationery which was distributed to poor students during the Christmas holidays. We also thank Yvonne Ryan and her friend Barbara from the UK for all the children's clothes and stuff that they keep contributing from time to time.

We take this opportunity to thank each and every one of you for the generous assistance that you gave us from time to time. It feels real good that we were able to spread Miles & Miles of Smiles around which was what our aim was. Thanks guys!

And a Lil' something for the Oldies!

It is the Festive Season and after all that we did for the children, how could Whispering Hope not do something for the golden oldies?!! Gifts (basic toiletries and a hand towel) were packed, mint fresh 10 Rupee notes were ready with a 2 Rupee coin for that extra luck and distributed to about a 100 people. Pushed aside by their own families, they were really touched that someone somewhere remembered them at Christmas. A hearty breakfast was also given to the poor folks of the Vincent de Paul Society of St. Joseph's church, Vepery, Chennai.

Pensions were given to the ladies on our list, a ceiling fan was provided to a poor family, and food rations given to a few selected families.

This completes our program for the year 2010 and we look forward to doing much more in 2011 with your support. God bless all of you and your families!

Festive Celebrations - December 2010

1. Something Special for those with Special Needs - this event was celebrated with much gusto at the Day Care Centre run by the Guanellian priests at Sivagangai District, Madurai, on 19th December 2010. Rev Fr. Francis sent in a beautiful thank you note. Whispering Hope had sent in a contribution towards the day's festivities and a sumptious meal was enjoyed by all. A couple of photos taken on that day is displayed alongside.
Rev. Fr. Francis can be contacted on +91 98 841 71398.

2.Time Out for the little patients at the Old Cancer Institute, Adyar - 22 December 2010. What can one say about this? Our hearts go out to these little mites in various stages of this dreaded disease. Armed with loads of presents, Whispering Hope put up a little show for these young ones; a Charlie Chaplin look alike put up a little magic show which enthralled our young audience; the students of St. Mark's Matriculation School performed a couple of dances to entertain them; and then it was time for Santa Claus and ofcourse PRESENTS!! It was amazing to see the happiness and joy that we could give these kids and the gratitude received from the parents and care givers was overwhelming. Take a look at our photos which speak volumes.
Cancer Institute, Adyar - Tel. No. +9144 22350131
Mrs. Jean Marcus, Headmistress, St. Marks Matriculation School - Tel. No. +91 98 847 37597

3. A Christmas Party was held on the 23rd December for the children we meet from time to time. Fun, games, presents, cake - thanks to Jude Jayasingh, ice cream and more cake generously supplied by Mr. NC Williams, President of YMCA - were the basic highlights. Mr. Williams also gave us the YMCA premises to conduct this show which brightened the lives of the 180 children who popped up for it. Our photographs speak volumes about the good time had by all.
YMCA contact No. =+91 44 26400147
Mrs. Jebamani - Tuition Care Taker - Tel. No. +91 98 402 58338
Mr. Gunaseelan - Annamal Childrens Home - Tel.No. +91 98 845 86992

4. The Pilgrims' Progress : One fine day in early January, Rev. Fr. Gerry took a little band of elderly women for an outing. Casting aside their burdens, trials and tribulations, the 22 ladies enjoyed the time out when they visited a lot of churches in and around Chennai, and had a sumptious lunch provided by a friend. So sorry that we have no photos of this event on hand.
Rev. Fr. Gerry can be contacted on +91 94 441 42644.

A Promise Kept

A promise made earlier this year to the little fellas at the SALT home in Pondicherry was kept in the month of November. On Diwali Day, accompanied by the charming Fenella from Bangalore, her sweet old Aunt 'Dede', I went across to Pondicherry and delivered the promised goods! Badminton racquets, the net, shuttle corks, footballs, indoor games, etc; the children were absolutely thrilled and more so when they received some impromptu little gifts - caps, whistles, balloons, smiley balls and the like.
To add to the excitement, a little chap turned up to share his birthday cake with these orphans. Our pictures tell the story.
Bro. Melquie, Salt Children's Home, Tel.No. +91 94 868 52374