The dreaded phrase “are we there yet” has taken on a new meaning. I heard it more times than I care to think about on this trip. Yet, as we enter into our 15th year of operation, the impact we’ve made has become very apparent. I feel like we are nearly there and the finish line for what we set out to achieve is in sight.
Our mission to reach the furthest behind first and provide education to children touched by poverty in one of the remotest corners of the
globe is now producing tangible outcomes. With each child finishing school, I am seeing the cycle of generational poverty breaking down and opportunities for social mobility opening up for many of our supported families
Completing the circle: 15 years ago, I sponsored our first sponsor child. A young girl whom I met while climbing mountains in a remote pocket of Ladakh. This year we have taken on our last student with our admission books now officially closed.
2023 has been a rewarding year with a further 20 students finishing school. Many have continued on to tertiary studies or skills training programs. Some have joined the army and others have taken on paid work to support their families. This leaves us with around 80 children still enrolled in our program (from around 130). In the next 3 years we will see a large bulk of students move into their final years with over half of our remaining students graduating by 2025.
We are thrilled to have also awarded our second Lille Fro Scholarship to a particularly deserving student from one of our lowest income families. With continued support from her sponsor, she is now undertaking a Bachelors Degree in IT at Haryana University.
Finally, in what feels like a truly long-awaited moment, we have just put the roof on the main complex of Little Seeds House, the hostel we are building Zanskar which we are aiming to complete also by 2025. Help us cross the finish line!
Thousands of people in poverty have been touched and helped since we began. We have made a change in the world together and I am incredibly proud of all we have achieved. While the finish line is in sight, we have more to do with 2024 gearing up to be a significant year with critical funding targets needing to be met.
We are needing all the help we can get to raise a final $70,000 for the completion of Little Seeds House; and find an additional 8 sponsors to assist with our current shortfall and to help to get the children through school. We would be grateful if you might be able to reach out to your own networks in the hope we can garner this much needed
support. We will be having a fundraising event in the first half of next year to help with our final funding drive.
To every single one of you who has given your time, skills, resources and support, I thank you with all my heart.
Wishing you and your loved ones a very Merry Christmas.
Kind regards,
Tamara Cannon
