Saad

Chandrakant shoulders the responsibility of a wife and two sons who are studying. He works tirelessly, to provide for his family. He is a cook at a hotel. A few months ago, he started complaining about poor vision and realized he was unable to see clearly at times, especially during the night. Initially, he ignored the problem, but it kept getting more and more difficult for him to see properly at night. As a result, soon, he started suffering from poor vision at daytime too. He got fired, due to poor vision, and this impacted the family financially. He visited a local ophthalmologist and got it checked. He was given some medicines but that did not help him. His problem was worsening and ultimately, he couldn’t see anything. He heard about the eye camps at SAAD Foundation and he attended one of those camps. He was diagnosed with cataract in both the eyes and was referred for cataract surgery. He underwent cataract surgery, free of cost, with the support of All Cargo Logistics, and now, he can see clearly with both his eyes. He regained complete vision and is now working again and providing for his family. Chandrakant and his family, thanked SAAD Foundation and All Cargo Logistics.

Under this project, we cover a variety of topics that will help an adolescent to cope with the multitude of emotions and vulnerabilities that come with this age. One of those talks about “Building Resilience”. While facilitating this session at one of the schools, our facilitator came across a young girl, who expressed that she at times feels extremely low and vulnerable and gets thoughts about dying by suicide. But, our facilitator, expertly counselled her, gave her space to talk by creating a safe space for her, and asked her to express openly. The girl shared her life story and following that the facilitator talked about one’s strengths and weaknesses and resilience management which resonated with the child. Our facilitator follows up with the girl, every time she visits the school, and now she sees a visible difference in the child’s behavior.

Saif was admitted to Manav Shelter Home in June, 2019, when he was 11 years old. Saif has an older brother of 16 years and a younger sister aged 6. The family lived in Panvel, His father passed away when he was merely 4 years old, and mother works as a rag picker. When he was staying with the family, Saif would look after the younger sister while mother would go to work and was irregular at school. Eventually, he stopped going to school completely and would wander off with his neighbor’s kid and get involved in fights and stealing. Neighbors started complaining to the mother on a daily basis and Saif would always make excuses. He was in grade 6 when he entered the Shelter and didn’t know how to read or write. The staff at the shelter was patient with him and taught him the basics from him to cope with studies. Saif can now read and write and will be appearing for his 10th boards this year!! He is now interested in studying and also teaches his younger sister at home. Saif has moved back with his family and his mother now works as a house help while his older brother works with a company. His mother and Saif are very happy and we are now supporting his education.