The New Year began in the best fashion a child could ask for. On the very first day of the year all the children were transported to Mapusa for a circus show in the evening. They enjoyed the circus acts tremendously. This show was sponsored by Jim and Elaine Cowper, a couple who has been with El Shaddai from the very beginning. With such a great start the rest of the month just flashed by with school and other activities like the beach visits. These outings are thoroughly enjoyed by the children who simply love the sea and sand. Many of their sponsors too come to visit at the beach and many others make new sponsors there.

This month many sponsors visited at the Home. It is always a joy to see them and the love and concern they have for their children. The children and staff this month got to witness a very special meeting. Francis Cozen sponsors Anand but had never seen him. Mr. Cozen along with Norah Cozen came to House of Kathleen to meet his ‘child’ Anand. Francis was moved when Anand called him ‘DAD’. We could see a bond being formed right in front of our eyes. They both brought loads of joy to each other. Mr. Girish Kunkolkar and his family sponsored lunch for our children. One of the first Home Pastor Matthew and Anita visited after their return from UK was House of Kathleen because the tiny tots and atmosphere at the Home have a tendency to make difficulties and problems to go away. 12 Cadets from the National Cadet Corp visited us and played with children. An Inspector from the women and child welfare board came on a random visit and was very happy with the care and love showered on these children. Towards the end of the month Pastor Matthew, Agnel and Gasper armed with a video camera came to our Home to film the wonderful work we do here at El Shaddai.

This month has also been a month of activities. It started with the circus show. We received a new DVD player and children are enjoying their favorite shows and cartoon characters. New inverters were installed at the House and now we don’t fear the power cuts. New menu has gone into effect and children enjoy the bread butter and jam on Sunday. Porridge and custard are a real treat to these children. The mock fire drill was conducted with satisfactory results. Four new children have found a home here. Krupal, Ashwini, Krishna and Vithal are four new children who have found a home at House of Kathleen. All the children have made them feel welcome. We also had to say goodbye to Nagesh who has been transferred to Shekinah House. He was one of our bigger boys and expressed a desire to be with boys his own age and size.

On the medical front we have had a good month. Most of our children enjoyed good health and there were no emergencies. Kavita was taken for her scheduled meeting with Mr. Dhume who made the necessary adjustments to her prosthetic limb. Lucracia also assisted bigger girls from Rainbow House by taking them to the hospital. A couple of children had minor dental difficulties. Presently all our children are enjoying good health.

The year has begun well for children at HOK. We hope and pray that these coming months will also be a blessing. We hope to care for more children who need our love. We only hope we can give back to the children all the love and affection they give us. This truly is a noble profession and we are so proud of these children…….our children.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, February 5th, 2008 at 5:26 pm and is filed under Events, House of Kathleen. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.