Faith United Presbyterian Church

Village Transformation Project in India

1988 marked the beginning of the transformation of villages in the southern tip of India when Saro Ambrose collected clothes, pens, pencils, toys, and $400 from donated by our Sunday School children and the congregation. Her first stop was in Kandithankulam, a village in the state of Tamil Nadu. When she returned to Illinois, everyone at our church was astonished to find how far $400 could go: Books were purchased for the schools, schoolchildren's tattered uniforms were replaced, and other basic necessities were purchased for the rest of the village.

Today, Saro along with her husband, Raj, continues to make regular pilgrimages back to her homeland in an ongoing effort to make tangible imporvements. The number of villages served has grown to three. In addition, two slum areas near the villages have benefited. The amount of annual donations has more than doubled. The number and types of projects undertaken have also multiplied.

A b o u t t h e F o u n d e r

Originally born in India, Saro immigrated in 1982 to the United States, where she is a lecturer in English at Monmouth College, Illinois. She was astounded by the amount of waste that the American lifestyle generates, and decided to make a commitment to transfer some of the abundance to people who need it the most. Saro's work cuts across religious and national boundaries. She continues to touch the lives of many people, igniting hope to those who had little, and sparking altruism in others.

E x a m p l e s o f S p o n s o r e d P r o j e c t s

1.    Four drinking water bore wells were dug.

2.    Thatched roofs of homes were replaced by tiles to prevent fires and leaks

3.    Villagers now have electricity allowing mothers to cook and children to study at night.

4.    School children have new uniforms, books, and toilets in their schools.

5.    Good students who otherwise could not afford college were awarded scholarships.

6.    Many found new jobs with the help of purchases such as:

        *   Bicycles for people (including a leper, an ice vendor, and a farmer) who used them for
             work-related purposes.
        *   Sewing machines for women tailors who were certified but too poor to practice.

        *   Goats for families who use the animals as a means of livelihood.

        *   A wet grinder for a couple with serious medical problems who use it to sell food.

7.    A bus stand was built providing refuge from the hot sun and monsoon rains.

8.    Seed money was given to fifteen homeless villagers to build homes of their own.

9.    A family caught in the clutches of a loanshark has been extricated from huge mounting debts.

10. Several villagers with overwhelming hospital bills have been helped.

11. Expenses of cataract surgeries for 25 senior citizens were met.

T h e H e a l t h C l i n i c

Thanks to generous donations from our congregation and other friends, a health clinic, with four beds for in-patients, was successfully constructed in November 2001. The clinic has live-in accommodation for a full-time nurse. A highly qualified part-time physician and an experienced nurse are treating the patients. Thousands of people from seven nearby villages have already been treated for snake bites, accident-related injuries, viruses, and countless other ailments at this clinic. Also, healthy babies have been delivered here.

Built with a generous donation from an anonymous couple from our Church, this clinic has inspired hundreds of other donors to contribute to an endowment that helps to pay for the staff, utilities and maintenance of the clinic. The patients pay only as they are able and those who cannot afford are treated free. We currently have an endowment of about $55,000. This needs to be raised to at least $75,000 to make the clinic fully functionaly and provide quality care.

There are no overhead costs. 100% of all donations go to the development projects and the clinic.