THE PROBLEM
Across the country, there are children lose their childhood to trauma that is occurring from these grave situations life has thrown at them. Children who lost their parents to HIV AIDS, abandoned children, children who lost families in natural disasters like famines, tsunamis, earthquakes, children who lost their parents to the pandemic.
Books help children to forget about their trauma, they get a space where their mind is open to new possibilities. Bookwallah installs libraries in such homes and volunteers visit them and help them read and discover new worlds.
However, 2020 has brought our efforts to a halt leaving the children feeling lonely. This sudden lack of communication or personal visits by our volunteers has affected the children’s mental well-being, leading to familiar insecurities such as a feeling of abandonment, hopelessness and depression.
THE SOLUTION
Through the "Be The Light" initiative by Bookwallah, Magic Crate Libraries will be distributed to Shelter Homes and Child Welfare Communities across the country. The aim is to provide these crates to 100 such shelter homes. These books will help heal, empower and transform these vulnerable children to rebuild their lives.
ABOUT ME
I am currently the Principal at The Stephen High School for the Deaf and Aphasic at Mumbai. I am a senior special educator in the field of education of the deaf children for three decades and more. Bookwallah library project was setup in my school in 2013. I have always been a strong ambassador of Bookwallah at my school,diligently promoting the reading habit, using fairy tales and stories to encourage the deaf students to read and fly high on the wings of their imagination.The journey has been so fulfilling and worth its time and effort, that I have now extended my services to the mission of Bookwallah.I am deeply moved by the value added services this organization brings in the lives of traumatized children, helping them to rebuild their lives, rekindling hope,love and a promise of a happy ending as in every fairytale.
THE TEAM IN ACTION
Bookwallah not only installs libraries, but there are also volunteers who go to read for the children. Maintenance and upkeep are also done by Bookwallah. Right now the children are at their orphanages, most of the projects aren’t allowing visitors or volunteers. But a couple of them, volunteers go to check on the place and the children. They are also assisting with the remote sessions through smart TVs set up by Bookwallah.
LOCATION
ABOUT BOOKWALLAH
Bookwallah was inspired by events in Founder & CEO's Seena Jacob’s own life where the solace of great books available in United States public libraries helped her get through some hardships. In 2010, partnering with her Founding Board of Directors, G. Riley Mills and Ranjeet Nambiar, the team visited several orphanages near the outskirts of Mumbai and Pune, India. They quickly discovered that many of these orphanages did not have adequate resources, proper funding and expertise to establish libraries for their children. However, there was clearly a need and desire. The team soon witnessed firsthand the joy and appreciation that spread across each child’s face after receiving the small gift of a book.
Even though Bookwallah is a 10 year ‘young organization’, we are beginning to see that our programs are having an effect and making a transformation.
FAQs
Will we get to know the details of who benefitted?
Yes. After the money has been collected it will be transferred by Fueladream to Bookwallah. We will update you on the details of the beneficiaries as soon as possible. Once we get this information we shall upload a report on the UPDATES section of this campaign. You will then get an alert & can read details about the beneficiaries.
How does crowdfunding work?
Crowdfunding in India is a relatively new concept & is growing very quickly.
It’s a concept that allows a large number of funders (like you) to fund an idea or a cause or event by giving small amounts of money online. Fueladream.com is a crowdfunding platform in India that allows for such pooling of funds. You can fund innovations & ideas on FuelADream and be the first to get these products or make them come true. You can also do a good turn by funding charities and causes through crowdfunding. When you fund a charity it’s more like a donation & you get small innovative rewards like a shout-out on an FB page or a thank you email from the beneficiaries.
