Today we visited Harpur, a village in Uttar Pradesh that is 60 km outside of Delhi. We witnessed the disbursement of funds to two women's groups funded by SVCL in addition to seeing the application process. It was so nice to meet enterprising women including Sheela Devi who is taking a loan to buy sewing machines to make and sell clothes, Virwati will be starting a corner store, and Babita is buying a rickshaw for her husband to drive. The women were shy at first, but quickly opened up and shared their hopes for the future.
My favorite part of the village visit was definitely the children. They ran around after us all day playing, singing songs and laughing hysterically for no reason at all. It was especially touching when one of the girls asked me to promise to come back!
The women were incredibly warm, and one invited us into her home. Kavita had 3 buffaloes outside, 150 square feet of living space with clay floors and 50 square feet dedicated to the Mandir. She lives here with her 3 children.
Such a humbling experience!
ReplyDelete