Newsletter October 2011

Submitted by Sabine on Tue, 04 Oct 2011 - 22:39

A warm Namasté to all!

First we would like to comfort everybody that the earthquake that happened on Sunday eve 18 September, didn’t affect our houses and our projects. Everybody was scared of course, but there was no damage. Most damage and death was at the border of Nepal and Sikkim (India), where the earthquake hit with a magnitude 6.9.

Sadly, one week after, Nepal came in the news again, with a plane crash of a sightseeing Mountain flight, on Sunday 25 September, where nobody (19 people) survived.

Soon the DASHAIN festival and holidays will start. The Nepali people indulge in the biggest festival of the year. This is the longest and most auspicious festival, occurring for 15 days! Throughout the kingdom, the goddess Durga is worshiped in all her manifestations with special ceremonies, abundant offerings and sadly also thousands of animal sacrifices (mostly goats) for the ritual holy bathing. It is the remembering of a great victory of the gods over the wicked demons.

For the ones who want to know more in detail about these festivals, click here.

Political situation Nepal

The political situation in Nepal is still the same as decades ago. Even though they say there is democracy, it is only for the people who are and were in that position.

Despite growing demands for a consensus government, the leaders of the political parties have once again not been able to enter in such consensus.

To finalize the constitution draft and get peace, the 4 big power groups (UCPN-M, NC, CPN-UML, and UDMF) have to reach out to each other and work together.

On August 28, UCPN-M’s vice-president, Dr. Baburam Bhattarai, has been elected the new Prime Minister of a majority government. The Prime Minister originally had the intention to lead a consensus government, but the NC rejected its cooperation once again.

Hopefully, the NC will awake and understand that this old political party with its great tradition is on the best way to become responsible for the country’s greatest political disaster!

Projects QOLN

1. Day Care Centre (DCC)

Our Day Care Centre is an amazing school! Every year we have lots of kids coming, so also this new school year (starting from April) we could welcome 601kids!

Especially this year, we created a separate class for kids who need special attention. There are 11 kids in this class.

Since the 16^th of July 2011, we got a new teacher for the kindergarten. Her name is Hari Devi Thapa. QOLN gave the responsibilities to the local committee to select the teacher out of 29 candidates.

In July, we closed the school for 3 weeks, due to the heavy rainfall everyday and night. It was very difficult for the little toddlers to come to school that time!

From the 19^th September, we have again 2 volunteers helping out in the DCC and the click click class. Katha & Pia are originally from Germany and are doing a great job with the kids and helping out and guiding our new teacher Hari.

2. Nepal Child Plan

Our sponsor program is growing every year. I would like to thank all sponsors who continue to support a child from this program and by doing this also support our Day Care Centre! We now have 100 children sponsored!

QOLN can only express their gratitude and hope that you will continue supporting in the future!

After giving all they need for school (uniform, books, schoolbag, shoes) in April, QOLN gave all NCP kids this summer a RAINCOAT to be able to get to school dry in this monsoon time.

Other very good news is that one of our first sponsored students, Puja Pariyar, passed her SLC (School Leaving Certificate) in Class 10. Only in the last decade, Nepali schools are extending their classes up to Class 12 as in the Western system. But in class 10 students have to do this governmental organized exam, to get their diploma from Secondary level.

3. Click click program

We are very happy and proud of our disabled class. In June we had a visit of Ria Hillebrand (the Holland volunteer who helped me to start this class in 2009) and she was amazed about the progress!

Meanwhile, our volunteer Paul Viane was very busy in Belgium to promote this project. He intends to bring care-giver Yam to Belgium for extra training hopefully end of next year.

In our Belgian Newspaper “Het Nieuwsblad” an article (here and here) about it appeared, which you can read (sorry, only in Dutch).

Thank you to Paul and his effort to help us with this special program!

Also a big thank you to Matt Cone, who managed to fundraise 1000$ for the click click project, with his organization Helping children where we fly!

4. Buffalo project

Our buffalo project which was initiated last year in April 2010 is running well. All beneficiaries are paying their soft-loan and are taking good care of their buffalo.

As we said in our newsletter of April earlier this year, due to the inflation rates, buffalo prices went up from 300 € to 500 € and more! So we will start up a new project next year.

We are grateful to Olivier Toulemonde and D.E.P.A.R.T.S. for their continuous support and trust in this amazing project!

In the beginning of September I visited a few families, to ask them how they are doing. They were all delighted about QOLN’s support and advice.

I had toast with a cup of milk!

5. Health Post Sundar Pokhari

With a great thank you to Ben Caerts and his sponsors, QOLN could purchase enough to make a new Health Post building for Sarangkot.

This new building will serve 2 village development areas.

Throughout the whole summer, workers continued in casting the cement roof, plastering walls, casting cement floors and making an iron balustrade on the rooftop. Also the outside is finished now: the natural cut stone looks like a fine craftsman’s work!

There will be 3 rooms in the health post: one for consultation, one for check-up of the patients, and one as a medical storage room.

QOLN is still searching for funds to finish the doors and windows, do painting and finish the compound.

The building will be inaugurated when sponsor Ben Caerts and his family visit Sarangkot, and this is on the 9^th of November 2011.

6. Blue Planet Lodge - Nepal Tourism Year 2011

Till now, 2011 doesn’t seem different to me then other tourist seasons.

Till this moment, the monsoon rain still hasn’t finish. So the tourists, who came already in September, will have a lot of rain!

But bookings for October and November are looking promising!

As I am now taking care of our daughter Tara in Kathmandu (who is doing wonderfully in year 8 of Secondary school at the Kathmandu International Study Centre – KISC), I decided to teach piano lessons again and hand-over the hotel business to Ram.

He is doing an amazing job of handling everything and keeping the Blue Planet Lodge as a little paradise with the most beautiful Himalaya View close to the Fewa Lake!

7. THANK YOU

QOLN wishes to thank:

All sponsors, schools, Rotaries who contribute in their way, helping us implement better projects and guide our existing projects!
To Bram, who is updating the website of QOLN - PLEASE HAVE A LOOK!
The Soroptimistn in Zonhoven (NGO of higher educated women, who strive for equal rights, opportunities & equal representation of women at all levels of making decision in society, education and peace through goodwill, understanding & friendship).
The continuous help from Theo Hulshof
Edith Peetroons-Van Gorp for funding on her birthday together with her friends.
Ram Sharma for giving me QOLN info
Tara Sharma for correcting this newsletter

Every obstacle in your path is a springboard for the same path!” - Buddha