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The Namaste
Handicraft Centre project began in April 2007 with eight
women taking up residence and beginning a six month
training program at the premises in Damside, Pokhara and
opportunity will be given to more women to work for us
in the near future. The centre provides accommodation
and food for the women and their children. There are
seven children altogether and the project also provides
for their care and education.
Brief biographies of the women and their children:
Buddhi Shree Gurung
Date of
Birth - 17th October 1968
Husband’s name - L. Tej Bahadur Gurung
Permanent address - Bhachowk VDC, Kaski
Temporary address - Kalikamaga, Ward 12
Nationality : Nepali
Arrival date - 13th April 2007 |
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Buddhi Shree Gurung
is a 39 years old woman with an extended family of 8
members. Her husband died from tuberculosis on the 18th
of May 2005 and after his death she did not receive any
support from the rest of the family. They took no
responsibility for either or her or her children. She
obtained some work but could not earn enough to feed her
three daughters. In Nepal life for a widow is usually
very hard; no one offers support and she faces many
problems. Fortunately Buddhi Shree heard about the
Namaste Handicraft Centre project through a local
magazine. After applying and being interviewed, she was
successful and joined the program. According to Buddhi
Shree the Namaste Handicraft Centre has provided a great
opportunity and her life has already become more stable
and settled. It has also given her hope for her
children’s future. After the death of her husband the
two main problems were how to survive and how to educate
her children. The Namaste Handicraft Centre is providing
her with the means to overcome both these problems and
she is feeling much more positive about life. She is
grateful to the project for changing her life and giving
her hope.
Mahima Gurung - date of birth 5th January 1999
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Mahima is
eight years old and in Class 3 at Pokhara
Cambridge English School. The death of her
father meant that her education would be limited
and therefore her opportunities in life
restricted. To add to her difficulties she has a
congenital disability in both legs which can
cause problems with some of her normal daily
activities. Despite this Mahima is a bright,
cheerful and well-mannered girl. She is very
happy to be at the Namaste Handicraft Centre She
works hard at school and enjoys watching
dancing, listening to music and painting. Her
aim is to become a nurse. |
Prasansha
and Aaradhana Gurung date of birth 24th August
2003
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The twin
girls are four year old and in Nursery Class at
the Pokhara Cambridge English School. Prasansha
has been very sick but recently her health has
greatly improved. Both girls like to sing and
dance and they enjoy being at the Namaste
Handicraft Centre very much. |
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Aradhana
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Pransansa |
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Kamala Thapa
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Date of
birth - 18th May 1984
Husband’s name - Late Om Bahadur
Thapa
Permanent address - Pokhari
Bhanjyang, Ward 3
Temporary address - Aarawa Sahakari,
Ward 2, Pokhara
Nationality : Nepali
Arrival date - 18th April, 2007 |
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Kamala is a 23 year old lady who comes from an extended
family of six. Her husband died from tuberculosis on the
21st of August 2006 and she has not received any support
from the family. She is not educated and has no work
experience. Her mother-in-law and other family members
did not even give her enough food for her 4 year old
son. Consequently her son was undernourished and she
felt completely helpless. She is very happy and grateful
to be a part of the Namaste Handicraft Centre project
and is now feeling optimistic about her own career and
her son’s future.
Gagan Thapa – date of birth 29th July 2003
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Gagan is now
a healthy four year old and is in Nursery Class
at Pokhara Cambridge English School. He was a
little slow getting used to school work but he
is now making good progress every day. He enjoys
playing on the swing and dancing. He is very
energetic. |
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Sangita Dhakal
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Date of
birth - 23rd January 1978
Husband’s name - Late Bimal Dhakal
Permanent address - Deurali
VDC,Ward 4,
Palpa
Nationality : Nepali
Arrival date - 18th April 2007 |
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Sangita is a young
woman from Palpa whose husband died in a major bus crash
in November 2005. Although her mother-in-law treated her
well, the family had insufficient income to support
Sangita and her 5 year old son. She was feeling helpless
and worried about how she and her son would survive. She
is very happy to be at the Namaste Handicraft Centre and
is hopeful that the training she receives will mean that
she and her son will have a secure future.
Bimochan Dhakal - date of birth 4th January
2003
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Bimochan is 5
years old. He is in Nursery class at Pokhara
Cambridge English School where he is progressing
well. He likes to sing and dance and especially
likes folk songs. He is very talkative and
funny. He wants to be a doctor when he grows up.
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Sunita Sunuwar
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Date of birth - 5th April 1980
Husband’s name - Ganesh Sunuwar
Temporary address - Mahadevtar,
Kathmandu
Nationality : Nepali
Arrival date - 14th April 2007 |
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Sunita is 27 years
old and from Kathmandu. She was married at a very young
age and throughout 13 years of marriage her husband was
physically and mentally abusive towards her and their 2
children. Sunita says that he was neither a good husband
nor a good father. She is relieved and happy to be at
Namaste Handicraft Centre, starting a new life. The
sense of community and the feeling of safety offered by
the centre makes her feel that she will do well here and
her children will have a good future.
Kalpana Sunuwar - date of birth 5th
February 1996
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Aged 12,
Kalpana is in Class 3 at Pokhara Cambridge
English School. She is an extroverted girl and
loves to talk – she is a ‘chatterbox’. She is
curious about everything and is doing well at
school. Life has been hard for her in the past
and she is happy to be at the Namaste Handicraft
Centre. She loves watching television,
especially the fashion channel. She would like
to be a model when she is older. |
Bhawana Sunuwar - date of birth 9th June
1998
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Bhawana is 8
years old and in Class 2 at Pokhara Cambridge
English School. She works hard and is a good
student. She is a sweet, sensitive girl and gets
on well with everyone. She loves to sing and
dance. She would like to be a nurse when she
grows up. |
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Name :
Sajina Gomja
Father’s Name : Bir Bahadur Gomja
Date of Birth : 2037-12-09
Permanent Address : Padam Pokhari, Ward
No-6,
Hetuada
Marital Status : Single
Nationality : Nepali |
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FAMILY BACKGROUND:
Sajina Gomja is the second daughter of Bir Bahadur Gomja.
She comes from Padam Pokhari, Ward no-6, Hetuada. There
are six family members and her father is a farmer. A
neighbour gave the family money and took Sajina and her
younger sister away to India. The family accepted this
money and the fate of the two daughters because of their
extremely poor economic circumstances. Sajina was aged
just fourteen. The neighbour sold Sajina and her sister
to the Empire Circus in India for a period of seven
years. Her life as a circus girl was very difficult. Her
accommodation was a tent and she was given food, but
there was no salary. She worked more than 12 hours a day
at the circus (from noon till midnight). After three
years, at the age of 17, she managed to return home with
some money although her younger sister had to remain
with the circus. Due to love and support for her younger
sister she decided to return to the circus and remained
there for another seven years until her agreement with
the circus was finished. She returned to Nepal a grown
woman but society did not treat her well. People spoke
badly about her because of her past life and this caused
her great mental anguish. In 2005 she was contacted by a
staff member of Nepal Child Welfare Foundation (NCWF)
and she was given a position at NCWF. She received
training in tailoring and in the manufacture of
handicrafts as well as some informal education. With the
assistance and support of Mr. Mani Gurung and Mr.
Rajendra Bikram Silwal, Sajina is now working at the
Namaste Women’s Handicraft Centre as trainer. She is
delighted to have this opportunity and happy to be a
member of this non-profit organization.
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Name :
Ranju Ghalan
Father’s Name : Sher Bahadur Ghalan
Date of Birth : 2036-12-09
Permanent Address : Padam Pokhari, Ward
No- 4,
Hetauda
Marital Status : Single
Nationality : Nepali |
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FAMILY BACKGROUND
Ranju is the second daughter of Sher Bahadur Ghalan. She
has five sisters and one brother. Her father was a mill
worker at Hetauda but his income was not sufficient to
support the whole family. Unfortunately he decided to
supplement his income by selling two of his daughters to
the Gemini Circus Company in India. Ranju was just eight
years of age at the time. She did not know the person
who took her to India and her contract was for seven
years. Her life there was very hard. If she made the
slightest mistake, the circus people beat her. She was
given just enough food to survive but deprived of the
normal things a child is entitled to such as love,
education and having some fun. She was forced to work
more than 12 hours a day, (from noon 12 till 1am). After
her contract with the Gemini Circus Company ended she
returned, with her sister, to Nepal. However, their
father was missing and there seemed to be nothing for
the two girls at home. After a short time they returned
to India and joined the Empire Circus Company. When
their contract with this company was finished the girls
returned to Nepal again. Life at home was extremely
difficult and people treated the girls badly. In 2004
Ranju was contacted by Mr. Vim Bahadur Moktan, of the
Nepal Child Welfare Foundation (NCWF). She was given
training in tailoring and in the manufacture of
handicrafts as well as some informal education. With the
help of Mr. Mani Gurung and Mr. Rajendra Bikram Silwal,
Ranju is now working at the Namaste Women’s Handicraft
Centre as Trainer. She is delighted to have been given
the opportunity and happy to be a member of this
non-profit organization.
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Name :
Sila Adhikari
Father’s Name : Late Bhola Nath Adhikari
Date of Birth : 2041-02-20
Permanent Address : Ratna Chowk, Ward
No-7,
Kaski, Pokhara
Marital Status : Single
Nationality : Nepali |
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FAMILY BACKGROUND
Sila is the youngest daughter of the late Bhola Nath
Adhikari. She is from Ratna Chowk, Ward No-7, Kaski,
Pokhara. Her father died in 2001 from a heart attack.
After the death of her father, it was very difficult for
her mother to take care of rest family which consists of
five members. Her two brothers are unemployed and the
family’s only source of income is from renting part of
the house. Sila worked for one year at the Mina
Tailoring House as a teacher on monthly basis, but this
did not offer a great deal of job security. She was
hoping to improve her situation and was also interested
in working for an organization which benefits those in
need. With help of Mina Bhattarai, Sila is now working
at the Namaste Women’s Handicraft Centre as a trainer.
She is very hopeful about her future here and is also
happy to be assisting women who are seeking to improve
their situation in life by learning new skills that will
lead to employment opportunities.
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Name :
Mira Bhandari
Father’s Name : Late Krishna Prasad
Bhandari
Date of Birth : October 10, 1981
Marital Status : Married with one
daughter
Permanent Address : Bharatpur-10, Chitwan,
Nepal
Nationality : Nepali |
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FAMILY BACKGROUND:
Mira is only daughter of the late Krishna Prasad
Bhandari . She is from Bharatpur-10, Chitwan, Nepal. In
1994 her mother died from brain tumor and three years
later her father died from heart attack. After the death
of her parents, life for Mira became extremely
difficult. At the age of sixteen she was left alone with
no one to give her love, support and care. She married
Ajay Kumar Pudasaini when she was quite young, and had
one daughter. However, her husband and his family
treated her badly. She found life very difficult and was
unable to fulfill her dream of having a career. She had
hoped to make use of her good education and training but
to no avail. However, with the support and help of Mr.
Bishow Raj Poudel she is now working as the supervisor
at the Namaste Women’s Handicraft Centre. With the
encouragement of Mr.Vishma Raj Poudel she is leading a
very normal and happy life here. She appreciates and is
delighted with the opportunity that working for the
Namaste Women’s Handicraft Centre has given her.
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