Ongole

8 years ago SCH started with a handful of kids in a small village by the sea called ongole. Today SCH is home to over 150 children and almost 30 have been adopted. Most of the kids now love in Hyderabad where there is better access to schools and medical care. However some still live in ongole. On Monday I was able to meet there kids and see the beautiful village for myself.

After a 7 hour overnight bus ride (not nearly as bad as it sounds!) We arrived in ongole, just a a the village was waking up. We ate some dosa, got some chai then headed to faith home to meet the younger group of kids living in ongole. The children there, like the rest of the village, live a simple life. They do not have access to the same things as our children living in Hyderabad however they are doing so well. They all receive education, either at a local school of with teachers who come into their homes and are clearly very loved by their ayahs. The school boys live going to the park and the beach and were keen to show us photos of them when we arrived. It is so easy to think that buying things for these kids will make problems disapear. Seeing the ongole kids reminded me that is not always true. They showed me that a little can go a long way and reminded me to use what we have wisely, rather than getting new things.

After lunch we visited victory home. This is now home to the older boys but was once the only SCH home. It is amazing to see where the organisation I love so much started and to be able to see how much it has changed and grown. The boys are working on starting a vocational program in the village focused on agriculture and were keen to tell us how they had been learning to ride a bike!

After spending some more time with the younger kids we spent the evening exploring ongole. It is physically a very small city but I'm typical Indian fashion they cram a lot in to a small space. We headed to one of the main shopping streets where I got some new ankle chains (I was told they were super by selah this afternoon!) And then out to dinner before getting the bus back to Hyderabad.

It was a crazy day! Still can't quite believe it all actually happened but it was wonderful to see where SCH started and have some time to acknowledge how much it has developed over the last 8 years. I hope it continues to develop and improve over the coming years ad there is always work to be fine.