Join us on Saturday afternoon for Afternoon Tea Party , 2nd March 2019, from 4pm – 7pm. Indoors, in a beautiful home close to Straffan village, Co Kildare. A big thank you in advance to our host. Photo shows our last Afternoon Tea in 2014 as the rain started, can you believe it was almost 5 years ago. Contact Vera at info@nlt.ie for exact address details. All welcome.
It is the time of year again for sharing the joy and smiles from these guys. We have just just replenished our felt gnomes and batik cards from our Kathmandu workroom.
November 1993 was the start of a new born church on the outskirts of Lalgadh Hospital. The church has grown many fold since that time and this week we celebrate with much joy, its silver jubilee, 25 years.
Many people visited Lalgadh Hospital this week for the celebrations, reminiscing, music, dance and of course good Nepali food and prayer. Lots of people were thanked for their spiritual and physical support and encouragement. Norman Meeten, whose had been a wonder influence from the beginning spoke about ‘a church is not a building…it is inside each of us individually … we are the church’ and collectively as community we are the church. More photos and updates to follow.
Nepal Ireland Day in Farmleigh, Phoenix Park, Dublin was held on 9th September 2018. Another great family day out combining cultures, crafts and foods, in the sunshine.
We sold lots of our felt craft cones and batik cards, which have been made in Nepal. These support the small cottage industries and talented artisans.
Crafts and travel exhibition, Farmleigh.Above photo credit: Hannah Dennison
President Higgins and his wife Sabina were guests of honour at a special ceremony commemorating the establishment of diplomatic relations between Ireland and Nepal.
The event was held on Saturday 18th August 2018 in the Hilton, Charlemont Place, Dublin. His excellency Ambassador of Nepal to Ireland Dr Durba Babadur Subedi organised this event to mark the commencement of the 19th anniversary of Nepal Ireland friendships. We would like to extend sincere thank to His Excellency Dr. Durga Bahadur Subedi, Nepal Embassy, Nepali for a very successful and enjoyable evening.
His excellency Ambassador of Nepal to Ireland Dr Durba Babadur Subedi and Mrs Sabina HigginsPresident M.D Higgins speaking at the Nepal Ireland Friendship celebrations, Dublin. 18th August 2018President Higgins and his wife (centre) and Dr Durga Bahadur Subedi and his wife
Above photos thanks to Alison Irwin, Nepal Ireland Society
The potential of an Irish coffee morning, or similar event, to support a small village with micro finance in Lalgadh, south-eastern Nepal.
A total amount of €2,173 was donated to Sunderbasti Village Women’s Group for micro finance. This was the result of 3 Irish fundraising events, a coffee morning, a supper night and an afternoon tea party. The events were held in the hosts home and included friends and neighbours which, as well as creating a lovely atmosphere, has the added advantage of spreading the news about our work and about the lives of others.
We are extremely grateful to the hosts and to all who attended, your interest and encouragement in our work with the Nepalese people is greatly appreciated. We take this opportunity to thank you, on behalf of the women’s group, for your wonderful support.
Brief Project Details:
NLT Ireland fundraises, supports and enables NLT Nepal to eliminate leprosy and its associated stigma and provide human rights for individuals, empowering the most rejected to become respected community leaders. Our Sunderbasti Women’s Micro Finance project is to provide finance and support for 28 women and their families, enabling them to work towards empowerment, stigma elimination, social inclusion, human rights and dignity.
Sunderbasti Village is located 3 km south east of Lalgadh hospital. It is a rural area in the Terai (lowlands) in south-eastern Nepal. The 350 (breakdown below #) inhabitants are landless migrants from the time of the Maoist insurgency and are living in this area since 2009. Sunderbasti is a very poor community, lacking basic human needs. The women’s group have requested funds for micro finance to provide food for their family and to sell produce.
# Sunderbasti Village
Number of inhabitants
Male
Female
Notes
350
157
193
85 of the total population are under 15 years of age
Access to funds for the women will help provide food for their family as well as generate an income eg., a goat can provide enough milk for a family and the excess produce sold for income. The role of business owner can elevate the social status of an entire family.
Empowerment and participation in one’s own development process can bring lasting change to females and to their families. Our micro finance scheme includes money-handling skills, decision making skills and veterinary skills if relevant. Confidence in these areas has been proven to aid the presentation of potential sufferers for early diagnosis of leprosy to our compassionate hospital and community care staff.
This request from Sunderbasti’s Women’s Group is the result of a successful project we support in the nearby village of Khoksikhola. Khoksikhola have built a new community centre, have benefited from a new fresh water supply and large reservoir tank, new toilets and 15 women have received micro finance. This village has been transformed and the people’s self-development in clearly evident. Such improvements have happened in dozens of villages where NLT works with the villagers undertaking the laboring tasks. The main benefit of this success to the wider community is a revolution of empowerment, one small community’s success influencing another. We support this empowerment and stigma elimination one person at a time, one self-help group at a time and one village at a time.
Our support with Sunderbasti community has developed over the last few years and will continue with support gradually reducing when appropriate. Re-paid micro finance funding will continue to be reallocated to new beneficiaries, so the project will have long term impact and duration.
From our experience, access to and on-going support in 3 core areas can aid empowerment and bring lasting change to females, their families and the wider community:
Self-help group
Clean drinking water
Micro finance
Sunderbasti Village’s current development:
Self-help group – a Self-help group has been established and the members are meeting all their monthly requirements including making consistent savings
Clean drinking water- the provision of clean drinking water and the installation of toilets is currently under construction with development aid funding acquired by NLT Ireland
Micro finance – with the generous help of above fundraising endeavours this part of Sunderbasti’s community development is now currently being implemented.
If you wish to hear more about this project or to hold a coffee morning do get in touch with vera at info@nlt.ie
The story of Nepal Leprosy Trust, from its early beginnings in 1972 right up to today, has been published, entitled A Touch of Providence. Many of our supports are already enjoying it, gaining new insights into the story of NLT and of its founder Eileen Lodge. You can get a glimpse of Eileen’s remarkable story in this book, she still lives in Kathmandu today.
I have just spent an inspirational week working in NLT’s Lalgadh Leprosy Hospital in south-eastern Nepal. Reviewing and discussing our projects and working with the community outreach teams as they go about their daily work. I was also assisting Dr Sarah Jay as she collected survey responses for research assessing the group approach to empowerment.
Lalgadh hospital’s outreach work in village communities is the focus of this research. CSI-R University of Limerick Irish Research Council
The only downside to the trip was the icy cold fog that lingered most of the week preventing the sun from breaking through. The cold weather adds to the discomfort of village life especially were many families are still living under tarpaulin or straw. A short video giving a brief view of one of my days there, Vera for NLT Ireland 2018.
Thank you for supporting Nepal Leprosy Trust (NLT) Ireland in 2017. Your contributions – financial, practical and prayerful – are hugely appreciated.
In the last few years Nepal has endured earthquakes, aftershocks and, most recently, massive monsoon floods. Our colleagues and field workers in Lalgadh have managed to continue their work throughout, and NLT Ireland has raisedfunds, practical help and profile in each of those years. We are especially grateful for your support and encouragement in our mission to work with the beautiful people of Nepal.
We would like to take this opportunity to wish you a very blessed year in 2018.
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