The new approach to the kitchen and dining room

Shanti Nivas is a sloping site, built on the side of a old vocano! Shanti Nivas and this part of Vizianagaram is surrounded by conical hills. The soil is red and shallow lying over quartzite and granite rocks.When the monsoon rains come the topsoil is washed into rivulets as the rainwater flows off the sides of the hills towards the roadside ditch, at the bottom of our site. When the rain stops the land which is not protected in some way, for example by terracing or vegetation, is a series of mini ravines.Not exactly the Grand Canyon but a real problem for vehicles coming into the site and for walking across..

The route from Thompson House and the Pickford  Memorial Hospice to the dining room and the kitchen building was also victim to this erosion every time the frequent monsoon cyclones dropped their rain.

 Now, thanks to the generosity of the Ian Thompson Memorial Trust,  this problem has been solved. The new concreted  route provides a clean and smooth surface for the children to walk along.

The children often do not wear sandals or flip flops while 'at home' as it is the custom not to wear anything on the feet in a room and footwear must be left outside the door. Now those little bare feet have no more stony and uneven places to negotiate! The staff find it a pleasure too.

A big thank you from the children, and staff, at Shanti Nivas!

More news from the Pickford Memorial Hospice

Victor with Bhavani'sBaby. 

Bhavani lives with her moither and baby Anita in a village in Vizianagaram district. It is a difficult and long  journey to Shanti Nivas so that when Bhavani comes for a check-up for herself and the baby she stays for a week. Brighter Future provides her with free medicines as needed, and with powdered milk for baby Anita. They are also given a nutrition pack of rice, wheat, lentils, soya and oil  to help them survive at home.

 Bhavani is deaf and dumb. She can only communicate in grunting sounds. Her mother brought her to the Hospice when she was found to be pregnant. 

Bhavani was not married and could not tell us what happened to her. She lived with her mother. All we knew was that she went to work in a jute mill. She was ill and found to be HIV positive. We had no idea of when her baby was due. Every month it was predicted but baby Anita took her own time! Baby Anita was given anti - Hiv drugs which mean that Anita has a 70% chance of not having caught HIV at birth.

These little boys are in our hospice for HIV children. Appalnaidu, in the left,  has been with Brighter Future for more than a year. he was admitted with his mother  for complications of HIV/Aids and TB because they did not take their treatment as they were too poor to get to the clinic where it was available. His mother had to spend all her time begging from roadside cafe's

and food stalls to get food for them to eat. He is now getting regular food and medicine but still his health see-saws up and down so he stays in the hospice with his mother who does little jobs around the campus.
These photo was taken on Christmas day when Mary and Victor went tovisit all the children at all of our homes.The flowers are a traditional gift.

Meanwhile on the same site as the Hospice the Shanti Nivas boys, Nagaraju R, Durga and Vidya have been helping paint the gate near the tuck shop.  

At 19, Swarthi is our oldest girl. She was given this 'half sari', a blouse and skirt, for her Christmas gift from Mary and Victor. Swathi helps Victor in the office but she is also often to be found at the children,s homes 'helping out' wherever needed.