NEWS FROM
LUTHERAN WORLD RELIEF
November 3, 2005
For more information contact Emily Sollie at esollie@lwr.org or 410-230-2802.
In this news release:
Stories from a delegation to tsunami-affected areas in India and Indonesia, led by Lutheran World Relief president Kathryn Wolford
- “Never Delay in Action”
- Sight and Hope Restored in Cuddalore
- Good Wins Out Over Evil: “We Are Ready to Celebrate Diwali”
“NEVER DELAY IN ACTION”
Baltimore, November 3, 2005 — The framed quote on the wall of the computer center in Pushpavanam village in Southern India sets the tone for the village and the young women at the computer center: “I never delay in action.” Just nine months after the tsunami struck their village, the young women attending the new computer center are definitely not delaying in action.
A youth group formed by Lutheran World Relief partner CASA (Churches’ Auxiliary for Social Action) and Pushpavanam villagers spent a great deal of time discussing what they wanted and needed to rebuild their lives after the tsunami. After much discussion and research, the youth determined that they wanted to build a computer center. A computer center, they felt, could fulfill a number of their needs—helping them with their school work, providing them with skills for future jobs, and giving them a place to gather together.
CASA provided the youth group a small grant to build the computer center building and purchase computer equipment. The youth group runs the computer center and hired a computer expert living in a nearby village to provide them with ongoing computer training and classes. For the first six months of the computer center’s existence, CASA will continue to provide funding for the computers, the electricity, the teacher’s salary and other expenses. The youth group decided to charge each student a small fee to use the center and take classes there. The money they collect will stay in the computer center and will allow them to be self-sufficient by the end of their first year together.
The students said they were proud of what they had built together with CASA’s support. Each student pays a small fee, approximately $2.00 US, to use the center and take classes there.
One of the female students, when asked why she liked to learn about computers said, “I want to learn enough to get a job in the city and to run a computer center like this one in another small village. It is my duty to make sure that other people have the same opportunities I do.” Clearly, she had internalized the quote that hung on the wall of the computer center and was making sure that she would never delay in action—for herself and for others.
SIGHT AND HOPE RESTORED IN CUDDALORE
Baltimore, November 3, 2005 — “Believe it or not, many opportunities and much good have come from the tsunami,” said Dr. Thiru Krishnan, an optometrist and eye surgeon who works at a monthly clinic for hypertension and diabetes screening, nutrition education, and blindness prevention in Pondicherry. The clinic is run by ADEPT (the Academy for Disaster Management, Education and Training), a program of Lutheran World Relief’s long-time partner, UELCI (United Evangelical Lutheran Church in India). ADEPT increased their capacity and expanded the clinic after the tsunami to respond to the many medical and psycho-social needs of area villagers.
Inside the clinic is a festival-like atmosphere as hundreds of men, women and children moved from station to station. In one area, villagers could receive a comprehensive eye exam and recommendations for glasses, treatment or surgery. In another, three young women – new volunteers – educated their peers about nutrition and the value of high-protein, low-cost foods. Across the courtyard, older men and women had their blood pressure tested and received information about hypertension and how to avoid or control it. Finally, in another corner of the courtyard, young nurses screened patients for diabetes and educated those who had been previously diagnosed about how to eat right or how to administer their own insulin.
As visitors from LWR walked through the clinic, one doctor and one patient stood out from the rest of the crowd. Dr. Krishnan’s enthusiasm for his work was unmistakable. As he walked the group through the clinic, he introduced them to many patients and offered stories of sight corrected, sight given and eye-related diseases overcome.
“I could work many places in this country or in the world but none would be as exciting as working here,” he told LWR President, Kathryn Wolford. When Wolford asked him why he enjoyed his work at the clinic so much, he responded, “Nowhere could the need be as great as here. Many of the patients at this clinic lost everything to the tsunami – their family members, their homes, their ability to work, their communities and their sense of safety.” He continued, “In the face of such great losses, it is our duty to give something back to these people. I am honored to be able to give even a few of them the gift of sight, clear vision or a future without blindness. I am a very lucky man.”
Dr. Krishnan excitedly introduced one of his post-tsunami patients, Sevaramun. Before the tsunami, Sevaramun, a 60-year old man with white hair, had suffered for four years with failing sight due to advanced cataracts on both eyes. Sevaramun had lost his wife and children in the tsunami and therefore had lost the people who could serve as his eyes on the world.
A little over two months ago, he attended an ADEPT clinic and talked to the doctor about his cataracts. At first, Sevaramun was too scared to have the surgery the doctor recommended but, over time, the doctor gained his trust and the surgery was scheduled.
Now, only 3 weeks after surgery, the doctor and Sevaramun excitedly demonstrated that sight had been restored to the previously cataract-clouded eye. Sevaramun covered his bad eye with one hand and the doctor had him call out how many fingers he was holding up and had him read a sign on the wall far across the room. Both doctor and patient displayed a contagious enthusiasm at the sight regained through this relatively simple surgery that would have usually been impossible for most villagers to obtain.
Life is bittersweet for Sevaramun, who has regained some of his sight but still suffers from the aching loss of his family, his house, and his ability to earn a living. In spite of his loses, Sevaramun spoke positively about his future. Now that he has seen, literally, how cataract surgery restored his sight, he will allow Dr. Krishnan to operate to remove the cataract from his other eye next month.
Before the LWR delegation left, Sevaramun told them that he had gained something from the Doctor and the ADEPT clinic that he thought he had lost forever: hope.
GOOD WINS OUT OVER EVIL: “WE ARE READY TO CELEBRATE DIWALI”
Baltimore, November 3, 2005 — Approaching the village of Kummarappetai in Southern India, one feels as though they might be approaching a tropical beach resort. The incredible beauty of the palm trees, the beach and the breaking waves makes the tremendous devastation wrought by the tsunami there just 9 months ago almost unbelievable.
But speaking with the villagers, it’s impossible to avoid the physical and mental destruction created by the tsunami. Although the village only lost four people to the tsunami, more than 120 of the village’s 170 houses were destroyed. Before the tsunami, fishing had been the livelihood of almost all villagers. Almost all of the boats fisher folk used were destroyed by the tsunami, and, even though many of the boats have been replaced, fishing can no longer sustain the village economy.
Long-time Lutheran World Relief partner CASA began working with the villagers of Kummarappetai in early January. Even though many villagers received fishing boats and gear after the tsunami, CASA staff and village leaders quickly determined that Kummarappetai would need to diversify its economy to survive and thrive in the post-tsunami world. CASA worked with villagers to create a number of self-help groups that met to discuss the kinds of work that could sustain the village in the future.
Many of the women of Kummarappetai had supplemented their families’ incomes before the tsunami by taking in tailoring work. The women hoped that they might be able to put their tailoring skills to work to create a new industry. CASA and the women’s group researched what small sewing industries might work in their village and determined, together, that their tailoring skills could be put to use in a jute product production unit. The women’s group found a nonprofit organization that served as a wholesaler for jute handbags and signed on to be a production unit. The day LWR visited Kummarappetai, the women’s group was dedicating their jute handcraft sewing center.
One of the women who would be trained to sew jute handbags, Vasanthi, spoke for the rest of the women in her group. She said, “With the tsunami, we lost everything—our houses, our belongings but, most importantly, we lost our ability to earn a living.” She continued, “We met with CASA because we were intent on creating our own livelihood. The work we are going to do to create and sell jute bags gives us confidence in ourselves and our future.”
“With the tsunami we suffered a lot. CASA and our women’s group have been able to help us rebuild – physically and mentally. We asked CASA to help us be active, to help us redevelop ourselves and to rebuild our lives and our community. Now, we are ready to help others,” Vasanthi said. “We plan to sell our handcrafts to the wholesaler and in nearby towns and villages. We’re going to use the profit we make to buy better food for our families and to make sure we have the medicine we need. But, because we have been so blessed, we are most excited about using some of the profit we make to help other people in nearby communities rebuild their lives.”
In the first week of November, many Hindus celebrate the exuberant festival of Diwali with fireworks, ceremonies and feasts. Vasanthi said that even though the tsunami was only nine months ago, she and her village are ready to celebrate Diwali.
“We are feeling very elated,” she said. “After a tragic event like the tsunami, our village would normally wait at least a year before celebrating any of our religious or cultural festivals. But, we feel ready to celebrate Diwali because of what CASA has helped us do. Diwali is a festival of good winning out over evil. We feel like the work we’ve done together to rebuild our lives has overcome the evil of the tsunami and we are ready to celebrate together.”
WHO IS LWR? Lutheran World Relief, an international nonprofit organization, works to end poverty and injustice by empowering some of the world's most impoverished communities to help themselves. With partners in 35 countries, LWR seeks to promote sustainable development with justice and dignity by helping communities bring about change for healthy, safe and secure lives; engage in Fair Trade; promote peace and reconciliation; and respond to emergencies. LWR is headquartered in Baltimore, Md. and has worked in international development and relief since 1945.
Lutheran World Relief is a ministry of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod (LCMS), individuals and parish groups in international relief, development, advocacy and social responsibility.
