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Amazing Interview In India with an Indian boy.

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Yes it was amazing, and honest.
The kid is smart for picking up all these languages. Has a great poise and presence in front of the camera.
Wish we could help him?
 
For the price of a few extra tapes (under $50) we figured we could collect extra footage of India and add an India travel film ("India 101) to our catalog for a more general audience, and it could introduce the Tibetans in the context of India and sales when it releases will benefit The Tibetan Photo Project...


This is where you and your support come in...


So... With a wider eye and camera pointed into India, we tripped over an interview with an 11-year old street kid and given this was not long after Slumdog Millionaire won the Oscar for best picture in the entire world, this interview felt very relevant....


We got home and about a year ago posted the entire interview as raw footage and it had a few hundred quiet views...
then...


Something happened and last week it began to gather about 60,000 views and its still climbing at at least 5,000 views a day...


People have watched it and contacted us about helping the boy... including many people in India...


To respond, first we had to get on the email machine and try to see if the boy was still around... and it looks like we found both a connection and an NGO that works with kids like him in the Dharamsala.... and we are connecting folks interested in helping to the NGO (we do not make endorsements but connections), so we hope that people will look to this or another avenue that satisfies them and then Raj and maybe even other kids will get some help...


All of this is because of your support... We would not have been there without you... its nothing that was intended...


But you get to be the butterfly wings who through your support stir the air...helped us make it to India where we somehow landed in this exact minute and space to film the interview and your support moved everything to end up possibly helping kids in India...


Or maybe you want to link the actions, starting at the moment of your support and see how many elements or degrees of separation have to fall into place in order to link you to this boy in India..


You are pretty darn impressive.... thank you


Here is your video Amazing Interview In India with a boy from the streets ~ Beyond Slumdog Millioniare / update below - YouTube


It looks like you might just be changing a life!


Correspondence #1


From: Anna Owen [email protected]
To: Joe Mickey <[email protected]>
Cc: [email protected] [email protected]
Sent: Mon, February 21, 2011 3:04:35 PM
Subject: RE: Your work in Dharamsala
Hello Joe


Suraj is well known to Tong-Len. His brother, Sunny, is one of the children sponsored into full-time education and living in one of our hostels. We have been able to help Suraj's family and others living in the slum camp at Charan Khad with health care, clean water etc as well as providing education in our tent schools and a nourishing midday meal to all the children in the camp who cannot yet be part of our sponsorship programme. His grandmother Rukma, is a lovely lady who I have become particularly close to. Four other of her grandchildren with different parents are also part of the sponsorship programme. When selecting children for sponsorship, we have to follow certain criteria that have been agreed with the residents of the slum camps. One of these is that we only accept one child per family. The residents considered this to be the fairest way, as one child with all the opportunities a good education provides, is able in the long term to help the family. The family is given a small stipend to help compensate for the loss of family income from the child's begging. We are currently in the process of building more hostel accommodation to allow more of the children the chance of full -time education. When this is complete in July, we will be in urgent need of new sponsors. If anyone is interested, they can contact me [email protected] There is more information about Tong-Len's work on the website Tong-Len Charitable Trust: Registered Charity, India, McLeod Ganj, Dharamsala, Himachal Pradesh | Support, Sponsor, Sponsorship, Sponsoring a child, Child Sponsorship, Donate, Donating, Donation, Volunteer, Volunteering, Help, Himalayas, Scotland, UK and the facebook page of Tong-Len UK.


I tried to post the above on your facebook wall but my comment does not show - perhaps because we are not friends! Can we rectify this? I am a relative newcomer to facebook and am not completely au fait with how it all works.


I can send you a lot more information about Tong-Len by email but I am waiting to hear back from Jamyang [email protected] who is the director of Tong-Len in the field and is in daily contact with the residents of the slum camp including Rukma. I know Jamyang has been and continues to be concerned for Suraj's well being and safety on the streets especially as he spends long periods away from the relative safety of the slum camp where Rukma and the rest of his family reside.


I live in Scotland but am currently in Australia. My skype name is avowen and Jamyang's is Jamyang4 if you feel you want to communicate in this way.


With all god wishes for your project - great photos!


Anna


Anna Owen Director Tong-Len UK


_________
Correspondence #2
Hi Joe


I totally understand that people who have seen the video interview want to direct support to Suraj personally. Whether or not this is possible through Tong-Len is really for Jamyang to decide in consultation with his co-workers on the ground and the leaders of the slum camp residents. I am sure Jamyang will get back to you when he has had the opportunity to discuss the issues involved.


With regard to donations, Tong-Len UK, has no paid administrators, so 100% of every donation received goes directly to the work. My husband and I (both retired) run Tong-Len UK from our home in Scotland. We absorb the running costs and pay our own way when visiting the projects. Tong-Len UK totally funds the current hostels and child sponsorship programme, and is a major contributor to the medical work and the running of the tent schools within the slum camps. Tong-Len USA, which has been set up more recently, has taken on the responsibility for the mobile health clinic in conjunction with Rotary. Other major support for the work within the slum camp itself has come from the Dalai Lama Trust and the Energee Association. There is also a little other local support given directly through our Dharamsala office. I am sure very little of any donation coming through these other routes is lost to administration.


I hope this answers your queries, and I look forward to becoming your facebook friend!


Kind regards


Anna

Camera's For Cultures Inc; The Tibetan Photo Project
 
Tong-Len Charitable Trust: Registered Charity, India, McLeod Ganj, Dharamsala, Himachal Pradesh | Support, Sponsor, Sponsorship, Sponsoring a child, Child Sponsorship, Donate, Donating, Donation, Volunteer, Volunteering, Help, Himalayas, Scotland, UK



Sponsorship Schemes


Much of Tong-Len's work is sustained by regular donations. If you are interested in providing a regular donation, there are a number of sponsorship schemes that you can undertake:


Child Sponsorship
The cost for one child to attend school and live in the hostel is approximately £750 per annum. As this is a considerable sum to seek from any one sponsor, sponsorship has been divided as follows:


Each child has a sponsor for school, with all of that sponsor's money (£150 per annum) going into an individual fund for that child to cover school fees, uniform, books etc - everything they need for school itself.


The child also has a sponsor for his or her individual needs within the hostel. The £12 per month covers non-school clothes, toiletries, medical costs, and a small amount for recreational activities and outings. Any money left over is used for the collective benefit of all the hostel children e.g. to purchase books for the hostel library, or the occasional special treat in which all can share.


The individual child hostel sponsorship does not cover rent, food, heating, staff salaries and all the other major costs involved in housing and caring for 40 destitute children. Approximately £1.50 per day per child in sponsorship is required to cover the running costs of the hostels. It is possible to sponsor a child to live in the hostels for a certain number of days per month. Most sponsors who do this opt for 10 days and we try to ensure that there are no more than 3 hostel sponsors per child.


All sponsors are given details, photos and regular progress updates of the children they are supporting and are able to communicate with them if they wish by email or post to the hostel.


Child sponsorship not only provides an education, it also provides some of the joys of childhood to children who have known nothing but the hardships of hunger, disease, begging and scavenging.


If you would like to support Tong-Len's sponsorship programme, and know that every penny of your money is being used to benefit a child in one of the above ways, then please contact [email protected].




Project Sponsorship


All of our projects require secure, sustained funding if they are to remain effective and expansive. Our tent schools need funding to cover the cost of teachers' salaries, the maintenance of the tents and the purchase of books, stationarey and equipment. Funds allocated to our health projects enable us to implement health promotion and disease prevention schemes such as the provision of clean water, as well as providing essential medication and treatment. If you would be interested in directing your sponsorship towards the tent schools, the health projects, or any of our other community based projects, please send us your details and we will happily get back to you with some of our current requirements.


Corporate Sponsorship


Tong-Len welcomes enquires regarding corporate sponsorship for any of its work.

May be we can sponsor a child. I think if TamilBrahmins take the initiative, Or Individually we can participate.
 
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Dear Shri Prasad,

At present it will not be difficult for me to spare Rs. 1000/=p.m. If I commit for a higher amount now, I do not know whether it will be possible for me to sustain that higher level in case my rickety health breaks down and it becomes necessary to get hospital admission. (My employer - RBI - gives medical insurance but it actually does not work in the case of retired staff like me and we have to trust our own resources only.)

Kindly let me know how I could make this monthly payment. For the sake of better assurance I can try to even make one year's payment (Rs. 12,000/=) in one instalment.

In case something happens to me, I am hopeful that one of my sons will definitely take over this small expenditure, since in $ or Pounds, they are already giving much to charity.
 
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Dear Shri Prasad,

At present it will not be difficult for me to spare Rs. 1000/=p.m. If I commit for a higher amount now, I do not know whether it will be possible for me to sustain that higher level in case my rickety health breaks down and it becomes necessary to get hospital admission. (My employer - RBI - gives medical insurance but it actually does not work in the case of retired staff like me and we have to trust our own resources only.)

Kindly let me know how I could make this monthly payment. For the sake of better assurance I can try to even make one year's payment (Rs. 12,000/=) in one instalment.

In case something happens to me, I am hopeful that one of my sons will definitely take over this small expenditure, since in $ or Pounds, they are already giving much to charity.

Dear Mr.Sangom

Feb 2010 itself this video came out.
Amazing Interview In India with an Indian boy - YouTube

What i posted was a reproduction of the same from the web at a later date.
By this time many would have donated for his cause.

Somewhere i read that you are having frail health and aged 72.

You need all the money to help you.

For your satisfaction, you may send Rs 1000/-( Rupees Thousand only ) as one time payment ,after taking proper guidance from Mr.Prasad Sir as he seems to have more knowledge about these things.
 
Dear Shri Prasad,

At present it will not be difficult for me to spare Rs. 1000/=p.m. If I commit for a higher amount now, I do not know whether it will be possible for me to sustain that higher level in case my rickety health breaks down and it becomes necessary to get hospital admission. (My employer - RBI - gives medical insurance but it actually does not work in the case of retired staff like me and we have to trust our own resources only.)

Kindly let me know how I could make this monthly payment. For the sake of better assurance I can try to even make one year's payment (Rs. 12,000/=) in one instalment.

In case something happens to me, I am hopeful that one of my sons will definitely take over this small expenditure, since in $ or Pounds, they are already giving much to charity.

Thank you sir, for taking the leadership role.
I too will contribute for this year, and try to continue for years to come.
I do not know if we should contribute on individual basis or collectively under TB banner?
Let me check with Mr. Praveen.
 
Dear Mr.Sangom

Feb 2010 itself this video came out.
Amazing Interview In India with an Indian boy - YouTube

What i posted was a reproduction of the same from the web at a later date.
By this time many would have donated for his cause.

Somewhere i read that you are having frail health and aged 72.

You need all the money to help you.

For your satisfaction, you may send Rs 1000/-( Rupees Thousand only ) as one time payment ,after taking proper guidance from Mr.Prasad Sir as he seems to have more knowledge about these things.

Dear Shri PJ,

Thank you for your brotherly concern for myself. Though my life-experiences and thinking have turned me into a sort of agnosticism in my philosophical outlook, I have been helping whatever possible for people in distress, not because I imagine that some "punya" will accrue to me and all that, but it has been, is and will be my constant attempt to help especially young people in poverty. I was one though I did not beg and as the saying goes "poverty in childhood is the worst curse one can have".

As you have said I will now donate the monthly amount.
 
Dear Shri PJ,

Thank you for your brotherly concern for myself. Though my life-experiences and thinking have turned me into a sort of agnosticism in my philosophical outlook, I have been helping whatever possible for people in distress, not because I imagine that some "punya" will accrue to me and all that, but it has been, is and will be my constant attempt to help especially young people in poverty. I was one though I did not beg and as the saying goes "poverty in childhood is the worst curse one can have".

As you have said I will now donate the monthly amount.


Sangom Sir

I am just completed 74 entering 75.

i know the value of health at old age.

Please donate Rs 1000/- ( Rupees one thousand only ) as one time Payment for your satisfaction.
 
Mr. Praveen has been very prompt and has responded as such.
If they accept it under TB banner, then we can do so. Else we will have to do it individually.

Some places they prefer not to accept it under a "community" banner.

I have written to Tong-Len organization about contributing under the community banner.
I will post their reply.
 
Mr. PJ sir,
You are senior to me and you are advising Mr. Sangom sir to be careful.
I know it is with very good intention.
But we all have to do our part. I understand that we have to prudent and keep enough for our rainy day fund.
None of us know when we are going to leave this world, and how much money we should have in our rainy day fund. Our children have enough that they would not go hungry when we are gone. Depending on the insecurities we will never have enough. Helping others who are worse of then us is a social responsibility, and a little bit of guilt, and bribe of punya for next life may also help us to contribute to charity.

In some of the religious groups 25% of income is the norm for charity. For instance Mormans donate 25% of their income to church. Indians do a lot less (sorry to all of us).

According charitable giving statistics from Giving USA 2010′s Annual Report on Philanthropy, Americans gave $227 Billion in 2009 to charities (as individuals, not counting bequests, corporate giving, or foundations). With 307 million Americans per the latest census, that’s an average of $740 per person or about 2.2% of income.
 
I got this mail from Tong-len organization.

Hello Raj

Thank you for your enquiry about child sponsorship. We do have a branch of Tong-Len in the USA but the only project it supports is the mobile health clinic. The child sponsorship programme is funded by Tong-Len UK and all our American sponsors donate through the website into the Tong-Len UK account. This may change in the future but at the moment Tong-Len USA does not have the resources to accept and channel money intended for child sponsorship. If you wish to sponsor a child through Tong-Len UK please do get back to me. I have another little Suraj who is in urgent need of a sponsor at 250$ annually. I have attached a brief profile and some information about how child sponsorship works.

With kindest regards

Anna

Anna Owen <[email protected]>;




Suraj Dunarai Suraj’s Family

Name: Suraj Dunarai
Date of Birth: 7.8 2004
Male
Parents: Father/Nand Kishor, Mother/Bandna

About the family:

Suraj’s mother Bandna supports the family by begging and collecting recycling to sell. Nand Kishor is not working as he is a severe alcoholic. Suraj have one younger brother, Lucky, age 6.With two children and husband not working Selma has great difficulty supporting the family. Both Suraj and Lucky are not going to school. They live in the poorest and most dysfunctional section of Charan.

The family has lived in Charan for 30 years.

State of origin: Maharashtra


Mr. Sangom and others,
How do we go about this charity?
 
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I got this mail from Tong-len organization.

Hello Raj

Thank you for your enquiry about child sponsorship. We do have a branch of Tong-Len in the USA but the only project it supports is the mobile health clinic. The child sponsorship programme is funded by Tong-Len UK and all our American sponsors donate through the website into the Tong-Len UK account. This may change in the future but at the moment Tong-Len USA does not have the resources to accept and channel money intended for child sponsorship. If you wish to sponsor a child through Tong-Len UK please do get back to me. I have another little Suraj who is in urgent need of a sponsor at 250$ annually. I have attached a brief profile and some information about how child sponsorship works.

With kindest regards

Anna

Anna Owen <[email protected]>;




Suraj Dunarai Suraj’s Family

Name: Suraj Dunarai
Date of Birth: 7.8 2004
Male
Parents: Father/Nand Kishor, Mother/Bandna

About the family:

Suraj’s mother Bandna supports the family by begging and collecting recycling to sell. Nand Kishor is not working as he is a severe alcoholic. Suraj have one younger brother, Lucky, age 6.With two children and husband not working Selma has great difficulty supporting the family. Both Suraj and Lucky are not going to school. They live in the poorest and most dysfunctional section of Charan.

The family has lived in Charan for 30 years.

State of origin: Maharashtra


Mr. Sangom and others,
How do we go about this charity?

Dear Shri Prasad,

As for my ability to contribute, the amount of Rs.1000/= will be too small in $ or Pound terms I think. So, I will be able to remit it to some person or bank a/c in India. I think you and Shri Praveen may decide how to go about it.

BTW, in the above write-up itself, the name of Suraj's mother is given as both Bandna and Selma. To me this raises a doubt whether some conversion to Christianity is also not part of the whole charity scheme. Kindly give some thought to this aspect also. This is not due to any bias on my side but only an observation please, in case you have overlooked it.
 
I think it is better to make individual contribution to charity of your choice is the best possible way at this time.
I do not know enough about the individual recipients or the charity's objectives.
 
Dear Sangom,

First of all, Rs. 1000 p.m. is not a small amount. If you are not comfortable with the organization cited by Prasadji, you can try udhavum karangal based in chennai. Udavum Karangal As far as I am aware, they are not affiliated to any religious organization and they do NOT discriminate based on religion or caste. You can donate online through net banking. They are not strictly education funding charity, but their activites also include educating orphan children.

Akshaya Patra (NGO in India) and Shankar Netralaya (Eye Hospital, Eye Care, LASIK, Chennai, India, Charitable, Best Eye Hospital: Sankara Nethralaya) are two other excellent organizations providing service to the downtrodden. Akshaya Patra provide mid-day meal to underpriveleged children and Shankar Netralaya provide free eye care to poor people. These organizations don't discriminate either but they are not purely "secular" organizations. Akshaya Patra associated with ISKCON and Shankar Netralaya with Kanchi Mutt.
 
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