Nuwara Elders Home
3 & 30 January 2011
Thanks to the personal generosity of Nicholas Tummillo (OSI's treasurer), our Pune children enjoyed a very unique and special day trip. To inspire their own social awareness, we organized a visit to Niwara Elders Home, not far from the girls' Janata Vasahat neighborhood. The attention of our wonderful girls brought great joy to the elders in the home, and our girls too learned valuable lessons about the needs of others. And their own pride was lifted to realize what happiness they themselves are able to give.
At Niwara Elders Home
Arriving at the home at about 9:30am, the girls were greeted by Mr. Sadashiv Manse, a gracious volunteer at the home for the past 8 years. Mr. Manse informed the girls about the routine of the home, and gave them some insight into the hearts of the elderly residents. The children then had a very leisurely tour of the home, with plenty of time and opportunity to interact with the elderly residents.
Introduction by Mr. Manse (Ruksar, Kajal, Areefa, Arti V.)
Interacting With the Residents (Sonu, Pooja M.)
Maharashtrian Lunch
As a reward for their social service, after their visit the girls enjoyed a traditional Maharashtrian Thali lunch at a nearby restaurant. They enjoyed an abundance of Maharashtrian specialties like masala rice, dahiwada (pakoda with curd), jalebi, and onion pakodas. While these are traditional local foods, our girls' situations mean that they rarely if ever get to experience them. So lunch was a delicious cultural and educational experience!
Being Served (Satyawa, Kajal, Ruksar,
Sufia)
What to eat first? (Sonu, Megha, Pooja M.)
Acknowledgements
Nicholas, many thanks for providing this experience
for our girls. Visiting Niwara Elders Home was a
new experience for them. It touched their hearts much deeper than we even expected. We heard some
rather touching comments from the girls that we took note of. And Renuka, one of our oldest girls,
stated that she would like to visit the home as a volunteer every week!
"Every trip we are taken to some new places to visit. But this trip was very special. I will
never forget this visit and grandparents that I got to interact with."
-Parveen
"It was a nice experience to talk with these grandparents, and to show some care for them."
-Alisha