Girls Orphanges and School Days.....

The Barbhaya Girls Orphanage at Vile Parle

There are very few orphanages exclusively for girls. Running an all- girls orphanage requires a lot of responsibility and care about a number of things. It can be best run by females only. My first hand experience of an orphanage was the one run by my own school - St Joseph's High School (for Girls), Agripada. The school premises housed an orphanage and a dormitory, where we had no access. In higher school, we were assigned to various social activities as part of our social work. Every class had one hour of such activities once a week after school i.e from 3.30 pm to 4.30 pm.

Some were assigned to go to Asha Daan, Agripada where 'special' children were housed. This was a few mins from our school. The same place also had an Old Age home attached. I remember going to the old age section as a school girl. It was a touching as well as a scary moment for me. 'Touching' because the old people were shunned and thrown by their own children and relatives as they considered them 'useless' and a 'burden' as they grew old. The stories they told us through tears and reflecting back can shatter anyone emotionally. And we were still kids. But girls after all ! And they say girls mature faster and understand emotions better. The experience was 'scary' because some of the people were very old and had developed illness and diseases and bed sores while some had no control on their bowels and movements. The people there did their best but had their own limitations. Later the authorities there might have realised that we were still kids oursleves to spend time with older people. On our later trips to Asha Daan, we were mostly asked to play with the 'special' kids there. We used to also help the sisters and other staff there with other petty work like folding clothes etc. It was sweet when the kids (some big, yet small) used to come running to us and hug us saying 'didi, didi' (didi means elder sister) recognising us when we used to go there again after a week! The kids there were girls only as far as I can remember.

One class used to be divided into several groups and assigned different places or activities on rotation. One activity used to be going and helping the orphange in our own school. The kids there were really small and some just born. Some had some disabilities, but most were just not wanted by their parents! It used to be fun feeding them baby food provided to us by the staff there. We used to just assist the sisters and staff there with small work and making the babies smile and wiping their tears. Many of these babies (boys and girls) used to be adopted by Indian as well as European families. They used to send snaps of the kids progress to the school authorities through pictures. I had a few of such cute snaps through a fellow inmate, who was also my sister's classmate. Some girls were brought up there only and stayed in the dormitory and studied in our school itself. I wonder where the boys who were not adopted as kids were sent. Because I never saw any boys there. Maybe they were sent to some other orphanage run by some other convent. Later the girls were married off or found their own soul mates.

Our social work also included staying back and tutoring kids from economically weak background who were not good at studies and also not afford a tuition teacher. We had to teach kids from the primary section. All these activities instilled a sense of responsibility towards the society in us even as kids, thanks to our school.

Recently I was looking for a good girl's orphanage in the suburbs, when my sister told me about one at Vile Parle. She'd got to know about it through her bank, which had taken up some social programme to help them. Later too she'd been there with one of her colleagues and liked the well organised place and the attitude of the women running it. The place is near Irla Nursing Home at S V Road, Vile Parle (West) and is called 'Shri Barbhaya Vanik Bala Orphanage'. I never had a chance to see the place until 26th Jan 2010. I'd gone there with my sister and bro-in-law. The place is run by Gujarati women.

You can call them (022-26713123) before you go there and ask if they have any immediate requirement. They will tell you of the same, whether it is rice or some pulses or books or whatever. Their requirements are simple and they do not force you for any donations. Instead of showering them with unwanted stuff you can give them what they require by asking them. And if you're giving away clothes, please do not give such clothes that you do not want for yourself or are planning to throw away because they are in bad condition! Always give away what you'd want for your own self! Because the lady there was complaining saying that she had two cupboard full of clothes, which were given by people but just lying there.

Check this UTube link of the orphanage : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NGO4CBtbt2M