A city-based organisation works towards welfare of children in anganwadis
There is no clear formula for magic and there isn’t one to ensure a lifetime of self-fulfilment in personal and career terms. Research, however, shows that early childhood education is an extremely powerful tool to promote continued success in school, in the workplace, and in social and civic realms.
The Ashoka Tree, an NGO based in Kochi, aims to do just that. Founded by Reethika Azariah Kuruvilla and Prathiba Nair, The Ashoka Tree wants to ensure that every child in anganwadis gets quality education. Reethika, a mother of two, says, “We work towards bridging the gap between those of us who have so much to live comfortably and those who have not enough to cover themselves on a rainy day.”
Through the Early Childhood Education Programme, the NGO aims to provide unaided play schools with the necessary infrastructure and toilet facilities good enough for children aged between 2 and 6 who attend them. ‘The Blackboard Project’ has been one of its successful initiatives by which it secured blackboards for the anganwadis it works with in Kochi.
The kindergarten section of Global Public School, donated leftover stationery from the past school year to The Ashoka Tree, which was made into little art and stationery kits for over 100 children in anganwadis in Wayanad. They also provided first-aid kits that contain everything from bandages and Dettol to thermometers, paediatric paracetamol and nasal saline to these anganwadis.
Starting small with just two anganwadis, the NGO now associates with many anganwadis in Kochi, and has donors ranging from individuals to bigger corporates. A recent donation drive at the Phillips Innovative Campus, Bangalore, was held to help 133 play schools in Payyanur, Kannur, that The Ashoka Tree works with.
A team from the Executive Post Graduate Programme, IIM Kozhikode, worked with The Ashoka Tree to create a portal called ‘Helping Hands’, which would enable patrons and Child Development Officers connect with the NGO online so there could be easier access for both requirements and donations.
The NGO began ‘Run The World-An Upcycling Initiative’ with unemployed mothers, mainly women from the Mahila Mandiram and unaided play school teachers. These women were taught to make lifestyle products with recyclable and unused material. The organization also works with special schools and orphanages across the State, often providing monthly rations and is always on the lookout for more donors to contribute to the daily functioning and growth of these children.
Named after the ‘sorrowless tree’, The Ashoka Tree operates out of Kochi, but aims to expand it’s reach and spread love, hope and happiness in the lives of people it touches. As they say, “if each of us does one act of kindness every day, there’s no way the planet can’t become a better place.” What’s your act of kindness today?
Source: http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-features/tp-metroplus/the-tree-of-kindness/article18381108.ece
There is no clear formula for magic and there isn’t one to ensure a lifetime of self-fulfilment in personal and career terms. Research, however, shows that early childhood education is an extremely powerful tool to promote continued success in school, in the workplace, and in social and civic realms.
The Ashoka Tree, an NGO based in Kochi, aims to do just that. Founded by Reethika Azariah Kuruvilla and Prathiba Nair, The Ashoka Tree wants to ensure that every child in anganwadis gets quality education. Reethika, a mother of two, says, “We work towards bridging the gap between those of us who have so much to live comfortably and those who have not enough to cover themselves on a rainy day.”
Through the Early Childhood Education Programme, the NGO aims to provide unaided play schools with the necessary infrastructure and toilet facilities good enough for children aged between 2 and 6 who attend them. ‘The Blackboard Project’ has been one of its successful initiatives by which it secured blackboards for the anganwadis it works with in Kochi.
The kindergarten section of Global Public School, donated leftover stationery from the past school year to The Ashoka Tree, which was made into little art and stationery kits for over 100 children in anganwadis in Wayanad. They also provided first-aid kits that contain everything from bandages and Dettol to thermometers, paediatric paracetamol and nasal saline to these anganwadis.
Starting small with just two anganwadis, the NGO now associates with many anganwadis in Kochi, and has donors ranging from individuals to bigger corporates. A recent donation drive at the Phillips Innovative Campus, Bangalore, was held to help 133 play schools in Payyanur, Kannur, that The Ashoka Tree works with.
A team from the Executive Post Graduate Programme, IIM Kozhikode, worked with The Ashoka Tree to create a portal called ‘Helping Hands’, which would enable patrons and Child Development Officers connect with the NGO online so there could be easier access for both requirements and donations.
The NGO began ‘Run The World-An Upcycling Initiative’ with unemployed mothers, mainly women from the Mahila Mandiram and unaided play school teachers. These women were taught to make lifestyle products with recyclable and unused material. The organization also works with special schools and orphanages across the State, often providing monthly rations and is always on the lookout for more donors to contribute to the daily functioning and growth of these children.
Named after the ‘sorrowless tree’, The Ashoka Tree operates out of Kochi, but aims to expand it’s reach and spread love, hope and happiness in the lives of people it touches. As they say, “if each of us does one act of kindness every day, there’s no way the planet can’t become a better place.” What’s your act of kindness today?
Source: http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-features/tp-metroplus/the-tree-of-kindness/article18381108.ece
