Thank you everyone for your amazing support.  Both David and I crossed the line in 5 hours 54 minutes.  We started in the cool of the dark early morning but it was 30 degrees by the time we staggered home which may account for the slow time.  

 

It is never too late to donate!

You may well have donated 14 months ago when I staggered around 26.2 miles of New York (and promptly collapsed in the medical tent at the finish)  but of course this isn't about me or my midlife crisis.  It is about the children of Future Hope and my wonderful colleagues in Kolkata who work tirelessly to provide a home, education and opportunity to some of the city's most vulnerable children.

Last Sunday 4 new children arrived at our Rowland Road headquarters. Two boys and two girls - three of them just 5 years old and the other is 9.  All have been living on the streets, their families too poor even to be able to provide them with the basic necessity of shelter.  At this time of year it is very cold at night, as low as 8 degrees C.  

When Future Hope brings in children from the streets it is because there is no safe alternative for them.  If there are parents around (and often there aren't) we ensure that they as well as the Indian child welfare department are happy with the arrangement.  It is then that Future Hope embarks on what is potentially a 20 year commitment to each child.  

Without Future Hope's intervention the small boys are looking at a future of hard manual labour (if they are lucky) but perhaps more likely a life of petty crime, violence, sexual abuse and addiction to solvents or even hard drugs.  The girls can at best look forward to a life of drudgery, at first helping out their mother, caring for younger siblings and then an early marriage (sometimes as young as 12 or 14).  Many young girls are drawn into prostitution.  

Future Hope aims to provide these children with an opportunity to seek much better outcomes for themselves.  

There are 7 homes where the children can expect to be warm, safe, loved and fed.  Their physical and emotional needs are met by our dedicated houseparents who manage the day to day running of the childrens lives.  There is a medical room where minor ailments, routine immunisations and health checks are carried out. The school is a fully equipped institution taking children from Kindergarten right through to Class 12 and then, where appropriate, supporting the youngsters through to university applications.  Alongside  the first class education Future Hope provides is a wide range of extracurricular activities.  Sport is very important at Future Hope.  The boys play rugby and cricket and the girls enjoy netball, soccer and hockey.  The chess club is very popular and Future Hope has produced at least 6 ranked players from amongst our former street children.  

And the outcomes are very good.  We have old boys and girls in the teaching profession, working in international hotels, international banks, a tea garden manager, sports coaches and so on.

But it all comes at a cost.  Over the 25 years since Tim Grandage first started taking children from Kolkata's streets, Future Hope's children have been supported by people like you.  Please think of our 4 new children as they make their first halting steps on the road to a better future.  With your help they have an opportunity to participate fully in society, not to observe from the pavements and station platforms.

Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.

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So please dig deep and donate now.