Living out its mission of reaching out to the poor and the needy in and around Infopark, Koratty, Lend a Hand has carried out the following projects during the last one year:
There are countless people around us who are suffering from various ailments, and do not have the money to meet their daily medical expenses. While we are aware that we cannot meet their entire medical bills, we believe we ought to do whatever we can to help them. Over the past one year, we have supported 25 such patients, and we will continue to do so in the years to come.
Whenever there is a festive occasion, we always have a lavish spread laid out for us. But there are a number of people in our own immediate neighborhood who do not have a square meal to eat any given day. The sumptuous food that we consume, will not go down well if are not mindful of this fact, and do not set aside something for these less fortunate brothers and sisters of ours. We have visited more than 50 families during the last Christmas and Onam seasons, and distributed food kits to them.
The first week of June is the time when schools re-open after the summer vacations. That is also the time when parents have to buy new books, uniforms, school bags, umbrellas and other things for their children. For several parents in our neighborhood, this is a harrowing time, because they do not have the wherewithal to equip their children for the next scholastic year. Aware of this, and deeply concerned, members of the HOB team surveyed the surroundings of Infopark Koratty, identified 20 such families, and distributed school kits to them.
We have identified several patients in Infopark's neighborhood who are in need of long term medication. Lend a Hand has started an ongoing project to provide medicines to the most deserving among these on a monthly basis.
Education is the most precious gift that we can give to someone. It will benefit not only the individual, but ultimately also the society. We have started a project that aims at supporting deserving students through their school studies, bearing all education related expenses. Currently we are providing scholarships to two students. We hope to increase the number gradually as revenue increases. We are confident that when these children grow up, and are able to stand on their own, they will in turn reach out to the poor and the needy.
As the old adage goes, rather than giving a man a fish to eat, it is better to teach him to fish, because that will make the person more self reliant. Realizing this, we have embarked on the task of offering at least a modest means of livelihood to poor people, especially widows. As a part of this venture, Lend a Hand has given a cow to one deserving family, and a tailoring machine to another. More such projects will be taken up in the coming years.