Constant Contact



ZOE TRIP OF HOPE, INDIA February 2016Day 1 Most of us arrived early in the morning then congregated with minimal sleep to begin our day. Jabez Williams, ZOE leader in India, gave us an overview of the India Gospel Mission (IGM) which is the sponsoring organization for ZOE in Chennai. IGM was founded in 1967 by Jabez's father, and it continues to be operated by the family. It is licensed by the state and is an umbrella for many ministries besides ZOE, including several orphanages, feeding programs, training programs and medical programs. We first met Angeli, 19. She had been in an orphanage but was put out at 15. She went to work as a house maid, which is like slavery (they are often paid only with food and clothes and locked in when the family leaves). She saw a ZOE group talking about child rights and came to Jabez and asked if she could join the group. She now owns two beauty parlors and makes $1000/month, more than ZOE's program facilitators. left986500We then went to visit Lakshmi at her candy making business. She makes peanut and sesame candies, packages them, labels them and sells wholesale. She employees five workers from the Change of Life Group (2014). It is hard work because they have to stand by the fire all day. Each package of ten individual packages sells for 180 rupees (less than $3). She plans to send her two sisters to college with her profits. Before ZOE she worked for others for very little money. 446278020637500Another member of the Change of Life group is Hemavathi who is 18 and has 2 siblings. She has a ready- made clothing business and sells dresses, sarees and scarves. She has a little shop but mostly sells door to door on the installment plan. So she must keep good financial records and go back to the homes and collect the payments. People always keep up their payments according to her. She buys the clothes for about $4 and sells for $5-6. She got a $200 start-up grant from the working group and has been in business for six months. Before ZOE she had a very hard life which she could not talk about because it made her cry. 0-1935Walking through the village, we came to the lake where we met Pandayan, a ZOE fisherman. Five members of his group and six in another group were given grants of fishing boats. He goes out early (3 am) in the morning and fishes with nets. When he returns at 5 am, there are people waiting to buy from him. He earns about $5 a day to support his two siblings and his mother. Before ZOE he had to wade in the water to fish and could not catch as many. He is very proud of his boat which has his name on it. 4114800174213We then visited the third year Change of Life Group. We met on the roof of the mentor's home which was covered by a beautiful tent. It turned out that it was an example of their group IGA. They buy the tents and rent them out for special events. The three leaders were introduced. The group changes leaders each year so more children learn leadership skills. Each child introduced themselves and the number of siblings they cared for and if they had received a start-up kit for their IGA. Training for the IGA's is done by people hired by ZOE. About 23 have received grants: 8 tailors, 5 fishing boats (including the first girl fisher), 3 cows (for dairy), 2 dress sellers,1 rice seller, 1 large water container distributer, 1 tent rental, 1 candy maker. Those who have not yet received grants work with someone in the group until they get enough skill and experience to start their own business. The group's projects also include making a crispy fried dough to sell as snacks, and they buy food in bulk and repackage to sell for individual purchase. 01889One member of the group, Janeeth, has problems with his legs and cannot stand well. He also has some cognitive challenges. He was outcast in his community and was dirty with long hair. He and his mother had no place to live so they moved into a small room in his brother and sister-in-law's apartment. Through ZOE he is clean and has started a business of renting sound equipment. Now he can support himself and his mother and they live in their own place. left27123400We then drove to another area where the Success and Challenge groups are located. We first visited some businesses. Jayachadin, 14, opened his little grocery store one month ago. He also sells hot coffee and tea. He is open from 5-10 am and 3:30-11 pm. Jabez has given him his cell phone number so if anyone tries to take advantage of him or his business, he can call, and Jabez will have the police there immediately. 9525015049500Next we visited SarathGuru who has opened a digital and typing service in a small room near a school. He gets a lot of business from the school. He plans to move soon to a bigger office. He types and prints and copies information. Before ZOE he dug ditches. 473392517780CathrinPrincy is 18 and has one sister. She buys rice in bulk and repackages it for individual sale. 35% is her profit. Before ZOE she was a housemaid, which is like slavery. She is pictured with her mother.0207BabuGanth, 18, is a member of the Success Group and has an electronics business. He sells, repairs and charges cell phones. He learned his trade from a friend of his brother, but he is going to vocational school to increase his skills. While he is at school, he takes calls from customers and sets appointments to service them. Bobby bought a charger from him.We also saw the cotton candy making machine of another ZOE entrepreneur. It was pretty scary watching him set it up, shooting fire when he plugged it in. We decided not to wait the 30 minutes it takes to get the sugar melted to make the candy. We then met with the Success and Challenge groups together. The Challenge Group has 27 members with a total of 44 children. Six have started businesses. Two have provision stores, one a rice shop, one a fruit shop, one a digital and typing service and one is a carpenter. Their group project had been selling spices, but two weeks ago they changed to making and selling snacks. 46357961415489The Success group has 23 members with a total of 39 children. Twelve children have begun businesses: two jewelry sellers, two clothes sellers, three rice shops, one caterer, one hair stylist, one grocery shop, one digital typing service, and one event ticket seller. The group project is making and selling snacks. Both groups brought their snacks for us to sample. Day 205006Out in the country we met Gunasundari, a 15 year-old girl who is a member of the 2014 Angel Group. She got a grant of 250 ducks. Now she has 350 ducks. It was fascinating to watch the boys who help her herd the ducks back and forth across the pond. She has two brothers, 6 and 10, who are in school. When her parents died, she had to drop out of school at 8 years old. They moved to this area to be with her grandfather. She cleaned houses to earn money for the family. Now she lives on this public land with her ducks, even at night to protect them from wolves. Her ducks produce eggs which sell for 250 rupees (about $3.65). Ducks will lay for 90 days then have a couple of months’ break. Ducks that lay eggs she keeps for 4 months than sells. Ducks that don't lay she raises for 3 months then sells for 150 rupees ($2.19). She lost 150 of her ducks in the flood last November. In the dry season, this pond dries up and she must herd the ducks 8 km to another pond in a neighboring village. She was shy but was very pleased to see us and accompanied us all the way back to the van waving as we left. Next we met Sivakumar, 19, who belongs to the Joining Hands group. He has one sister. Just last month 0169545he was awarded a grant of 18,500 rupees ($270) to buy musical instruments. His business is playing for temple functions, weddings, funerals, and parties. His band's name is The Love Birds, and they played for us. Rising To Win Working Group (Hickory and Hendersonville FUMCs)0-3762We first met Visnupriya at her home. She raises goats and has 4. She began with the one goat she got through the group IGA (Income Generating Activity).4173220215289From Liji, Jabez’s wife and program leader of ZOE in India, we learned that it was difficult to organize this group because they couldn't find a Christian woman to be a mentor. This is a predominantly Hindu area, so they had to search a long time to find a Christian. ZOE in India prefers to have women mentors in order to protect the girls. The group reported that they have IGAs of grocery stores, music, snack shops and goats. Their first IGA was a goat for each family. They are planning a group project of rice cultivation and peanut growing on leased land. They also have plans to construct a house. For community projects they clean trash and burn it and take the sick to clinics. Before ZOE most of the boys did construction work. 017272000439769838840We also visited Sam who has had a store for 5 months. We bought soft drinks from him. He was very diligent about keeping track of how many he sold. Several of us, including Cassidy, enjoyed Mirindas.We had an unexpected break in the afternoon. One of the boys in another group had been killed in a motorbike accident. Jabez had to go and identify the body and take it to the funeral. All of the staff attended the funeral. He was the sixth boy in ZOE’s program to be killed on his motorbike in the past year.After the afternoon break, we went to the Indian Gospel Mission (IGM) for a tour, program and dinner. We learned about the mission of IGM which was founded by Jabez's father in 1967. It is still run by the family, including his mother. His brother Joe is the director of the mission, and Jabez is pastor of the church. The orphanage has several buildings in the area and houses a total of 190 orphans, boys and girls separate. They also have a medical mission. Jabez shared with us that they do get threatened by radical Hindus at times but not when he or Joe is around because of their good relations with the police. This is a common theme for Jabez--he is very protective of those he works with. All the children in ZOE have his cell number and can call him any time if they are threatened. He can have the police there in minutes. The program for the evening was a performance of traditional and folk dances by the girls and the boys did two very lively dances. We were totally entertained. Two of the boys went to the state dance championship. The director of the dance program is Joe's wife, Eunice. Following the performance, we had a chance to talk with the children who speak English. Then we had a dinner of chicken, potatoes and broccoli, along with some traditional Indian food.Day 3left8183Our morning was spent back at IGM attending worship. We arrived during the praise service of alternately singing and praying led by Joe Williams. This was followed by a sermon by Jabez. Although we couldn't understand the sermon, the service was very moving. Following the service, we had time to mingle and talk with people. From Ligi I learned that ZOE groups have constructed 3 houses (You Can Do It, Young Star, and Sunrise) and 10 latrines have been built. ZOE provides the materials and the children provide the labor working in teams of 5 or 6. After the children complete trainings in Health and Hygiene, they receive toiletries, laundry soap, mosquito nets, blankets, mats and bedding--although not all at once. They must show that they are making progress. left12185654673600532765After lunch we drove into the slum which consists of 5,000 homes having 8-10 people in each, a huge mass of people in poverty. We met with the newly formed groups: five groups from five different gangs in the area, over 220 children. The group names are: Chosen People (40), Joyful (32), Way To Success (60), Creating Victory (35), We Will Win and Show (54). The leaders were introduced. Then Jabez gave the group a lecture on Health and hygiene. Toiletries were distributed after we left so that it didn't seem that we were giving them. We took group pictures, which was a lengthy process, and afterwards they all wanted to shake hands, which was true of all the groups. So, much time was spent shaking hands, saying hi or how are you, I'm fine. In all of the groups children were fascinated by Cassidy, someone their own age, and Bobby, whom they thought was a movie star--maybe Ice Cube. 455394876647000Jabez shared with us that he had started in July 2013 going to the slums working to create trust and relationship with the gangs. No one would talk to him. Other mission organizations had come with ministries and then had left; so the children had no reason to trust that he would stay. One day he was there and heard a terrible scream. He ran into the building and found a young teenaged girl tied up and her left arm cut off. It was cut it off because her brother had sold her as a sex slave and she would not cooperate. When her brother saw all of the blood he ran away and left her. Jabez called the ambulance and took her to the hospital. People thought he was trafficking her. So when she came home, he sat outside her door to protect her, day after day. One day, children started coming to talk to him, and trust was built. By April 2014 he was ready to form groups. That young girl is in one of the groups. 4792980211455We also travelled to St Thomas Mount, the site where the disciple Thomas was martyred. There is a Catholic Church and mission there. Mostly Indians were visiting, worshipping, and studying. We were among the few Westerners present. Jabez said that this place is a frequent target for radical Hindus who come and destroy the statues and buildings. In 1996, a catholic priest was killed by one of the mobs. There is a memorial to him. Day 40342900Today we visited the Challenge II Working group partnered with Creekwood UMC. On the way we stopped at a cafe operated by ArulDass "Shiva." He received his grant six months ago and built his cafe on this piece of public land next to a hospital. His grant helped him buy a cart to carry his food and equipment to the cafe each day. At first he served breakfast, opening at 6 am. Now he serves breakfast and lunch. At first he did all of the work himself. Once it became successful, other family members wanted to help. His aunt was helping the day we visited. The business supports his family of himself and two siblings. He makes $5/ day. From there we went to the group meeting. The group has 49 members. It began with 31; they lost some and gained some in the first couple of months. Now they are a family. Before ZOE they had many 0342900difficulties. Now life has changed for them. Their group projects are rice cultivation and selling fertilizer. Every three months they hire a truck to go into Chennai to buy big bags (800 rupees each) of fertilizer. They mix the fertilizer with equal parts sand and sell the bags for 800 rupees. 4362450520700In the flood 10 homes were destroyed. The children were put up in the school. It took a week for the water to recede. They then went out and helped clean up their community and repair homes. They take care of the sick, transporting them to medical care. Their initial IGA was a goat for each family. Now they have given 10 grants. individual IGA's include rice shops, music system (which was demonstrated for us following the meeting) and fast food shop. After picture taking and much handshaking, we went out for music and dancing (a few of us). After lunch, we visited the Sunrise Group which is partnered with Chris and Susan Graebe. left66675We first met Mohamed, 20, who is treasurer of the group. He owns a provision store which he opened 10 months ago. He is open 8 am to 10 pm. He had a challenge opening the store because no one in his group knew construction. So he had to find someone to teach him, and he built it himself in front of his home. He makes about $5/day. He likes his group because from them he gets friendship and help with his store. 5106390158948Rachel, the leader of the group was very articulate in sharing about the group and her life. When the rains came 2/3 of the homes were flooded. They were moved to the school to stay. The group worked to repair and reconstruct homes. Rachel lost both of her parents in 2014. She didn't know what she would do. ZOE came just at the right time. She got a cow as her initial IGA grant. With the money she made from selling milk, she bought a sewing machine and opened a tailoring business. Now she is doing well. Another girl shared her story of her father dying and shortly afterwards her mother became sick and bedridden. Then her brother was in a train accident and now cannot walk. She broke down in tears as did other girls. It is obvious that their lives have been very hard. They are glad that there are people who will help the poor and needy (ZOE partners). They shared their dreams: tailoring, grocery story, beauty parlor, clothes selling. 35626858932At the end of the day we went to the ZOE office where Liji had set out Indian jewelry, clothes and paintings done by her mother for us to purchase. Then Jabez gave us the history of ZOE in India--his vision of empowerment for children in the slums and how it came together when he met with Gaston in Florida in 2014. It officially began in India April 14, 2014 with four groups, then one additional. Then in 2015____ groups were added. This year five groups have been formed in the slums, and he hopes to add another one. He wants to work primarily in the slums. He grew up in Chennai among the slums and feels the need for ministry there. So for future groups, he plans to have 80% in the slums and 20% in the villages. Because he started in the villages, he does not want them to feel abandoned. His and Liji's work was very much appreciated and affirmed by the group. Members of the staff include Emmanuel, Kumar, Joshua, Program Facilitators, Saranya, financial officer, Jabez and Liji Williams, Program Directors.Day 5Our last morning in Chennai we visited the archeological site of Mamallapuram, the site of a 1300 year old temple, a gravity rock, a monument to a woman who married five brothers, and a monument of bedrooms. They were all carved from rock, a massive undertaking. We had our last group picture here.The inaugural Trip of Hope Team to IndiaWill and Lea Posey, Steve and Scottie Lu Brandt, Randy Wiersma, Carol Watson Cassidy and Stephanie Kreuser, Bobby Thompson, Janice Holliday, Teri Carlo, Annie Fritschner, Lyndsey Thompson ................
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