Vinothini is in 5th grade at a school run by Isha Vidhya in Tamil Nadu, India. Her father left the family and thus she is being brought up by her mother alone. Her mother works in a hospital and is not able to earn enough to cover her family’s daily needs. Without a scholarship, Vinothini would not have been able to attend school.

Due to the valuable contributions from donors like you, Vinothini is receiving full educational support, including tuition, school supplies, and transportation to facilities. Vinothini also received two sets of school uniforms so she can easily fit in with the other children in her class.

Vinothini also receives a sumptuous school lunch, consisting of rice and greens vegetables. This ensures that Vinothini comes to school regularly. Her mother would never dream of preventing her daughter from going to school as it is the only place she can receive a full meal during the day.

Vinothini is a well-disciplined and bright student. She is very passionate about learning new things and she’s very good at singing and dancing. She will definitely shine in her future.

Thank you for setting a new future for Vinothini and her family.

Barath is a disciplined boy in the seventh grade at an English-medium school run by Isha Vidhya in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. He is an only child. His father, Mr. Srinivasan, runs a catering business. His mother also helps. They receive 5,000 to 6,000 Rupees (~$90-$110 US Dollars) per order but typically get work only once a month.

When Barath first started going to the Isha Vidhya school, he performed poorly in classes. With the help of his best friends, Arun and Rajarajeswaran, Barath has greatly improved and now excels at school. This 12 year old is even a district chess player!

Barath’s ambition is to join the army one day. He is loved by all his teachers. An active child in the classroom, he is even more active in the playground. He is also a cricket champ. Barath says: “I love Diwali [India's most important holiday]. I burst crackers and I wear new dress; I also exchange sweets and invite my friends!”

His mother is grateful for all of your generosity. Through your contributions, Barath can attend the Isha school free of charge for one year. “If we had not received the scholarship,” she exclaims, “I would have sent my son to a government school. We cannot afford to send him to a matriculation school [like Isha's].”

Thank you all for supporting Barath and Isha Vidhya!

Many children in rural India lack access to schools that provide the necessary skills and training that would enable them to pursue higher education or get good jobs. Isha Vidhya addresses this problem by running eight English-medium schools in rural villages in Tamil Nadu with a total of 31 spacious classrooms, where students are provided with holistic education, including computer training. Children who come from impoverished backgrounds also receive a nutritious lunch, which is often the only proper meal they get in the day. Most of these children come from underprivileged families and may be the first generation to get education. The children are now good at English and at par with kids of their age.

Thank you to all donors for coming together to support Isha Vidhya and their cause.

Sindhiveliyan is a very talented child studying in grade six in a school run by Isha Vidhya in Tamil Nadu, India. He has a younger brother, Povizhian, who is in grade four and a younger sister, Tamizhini, studying in the first grade. Their father was an alcoholic and passed away in a road accident three years ago. Sindhiveliyan’s mother, Mrs. Malarvizhi, works as a maid in a school to support her family. Her income of Rs. 4000 ($80) per month is barely adequate to feed the family. At times of medical emergencies, the family often goes without proper food or needs to borrow money.

When Sindhiveliyan started going to school, he performed poorly in all the subjects due to his family situation. He was a sullen child and many of his classmates disliked him as a result. His teachers worked hard and patiently on his temperament and performance and now he is one of the bright student in his class. He loves to play cricket and is active on the playground. He now has plenty of friends.

With the support and love of many donors, Sindhiveliyan and his siblings now enjoy a good education in Isha Vidhya. All the three children are enjoying the noon meal provided in the school as this is the only healthy meal they have in a day. They are also supported with free transport to commute to school.

Their mother Malarvizhi shares “If I had not received the scholarship, I would have sent my children to a government school as I cannot afford to send them to an English medium school like Isha Vidhya. A big ‘thank you’ to all the donors for their generosity in sponsoring my children.”

Thank you for your generous contribution to Isha Vidhya, an organization in Tamil Nadu, India that runs seven English-medium schools in rural villages, teaching computer skills and raising educational standards for children there, particularly girls. Your donations helped Isha provide a nutritious lunch to 350 unprivileged rural children at one of the schools.

The Children of Isha Vidhya schools come from families where both parents need to leave for work early in the morning. Consequently, the lunch these children bring from home is severely lacking in nutrition. Usually, these families cook once a day for dinner, a portion of which is kept aside for the children as breakfast and lunch as well. In the absence of any vegetables, fruit or proteins, the nutritional content of their food is very poor. This severely impedes the physical and mental growth of the children. By providing at least one tasty and nutritious meal to these kids, two issues are addressed — the health of the children and incentivizing the parent to send their child to school.

We are happy to see our children enjoying a nutritious lunch. By providing a school lunch, these children are also developing the habit of eating vegetables, which was not in place earlier.

Recently, Isha officials were able to prove the importance of these school meals through a medical camp conducted on campus. The children that received these meals at at school showed improvement in their health. Isha officials have also called the parents to stress the importance of a balanced meal, and many parents came forward to put their children in the school’s noon meal scheme.

By supporting this lunch for 350 children per day in Cuddalore, a village in the southern state of Tamil Nadu you have given them an opportunity to enjoy having at least one good meal per day. Thank you William, Louis, Theodore, Kandaswamy, Microsoft, Adeline, and Phoebe for your kindness!

Swetha is in the fifth grade at the school run by Isha Vidhya in Tamil Nadu, India. Her father is a laborer and can support the family only when he finds work. Swetha’s mother is a housewife that can only afford to send Swetha to school with additional help.

Isha Vidhya is an organization that works to support children like Swetha who cannot afford to attend school without external aid. Isha provides Swetha with uniforms, transportation, and school materials because she would not be able to afford these amenities with only her parents’ support.

Swetha is very happy to attend school and receive an education. Because of her poor economic background, the meals provided by Isha will often be the only meal she receives during the day. With this incentive, Swetha’s parents will continue to send her to school so she can better her future.

Thank you, Sunny, for supporting Swetha by providing her with a year of education and so much more. Thank you, Jeeva, for providing Swetha with the uniforms necessary to attend school. She is excited to continue her education. Isha could not afford to support Swetha without your help, Sunny and Jeeva.

Vikky is a 10 year old boy living in Tamil Nadu, India. Vikky is one of three siblings and his father barely makes enough income to support the family. Vikky’s mother is a housewife with a severe medical condition and cannot work. Vikky is a bright student, but needed additional support to afford materials and transportation for school.

Isha supports children like Vikky to further their education. Without your support, Suraj and Ashwin, this organization would not have been able to help this child in need. Isha supplies Vikky with not only education, but transportation to and from school, two uniforms, and daily lunches.

Because Vikky’s parents struggle to provide basic necessities for the family, the nutritional lunch Vikky receives from Isha is often the only meal he will eat during the day. This provides Vikky with incentive to attend school regularly and further his education for a brighter future.

Thank you, Suraj and Ashwin, for supporting Vikky and his hopes to succeed. He is happy to be able to attend school this year thanks to your generous donation toward Isha.

Barath studies in the fifth grade in a school run by Isha Vidhya in Tamil Nadu, India. His father is currently a driver and his mother is a housewife. The family lives in a relative’s house while they try to earn enough income to return to their own house. Because Barath comes from a poverty-stricken family, he cannot afford to attend school.

Isha Vidhya is an organization that provides education for children like Barath. Isha believes that their students deserve the right to an education just as much as any other child. Isha provides Barath with uniforms, daily lunches, transportation, and a quality education.

Oftentimes Isha’s students will only eat lunch because their families cannot afford to fully support them. This lunch gives incentive for Barath to attend school regularly. Thank you, Sunny, Susmitha, and Kumaraswamy, for providing Barath with a year of education. Isha and Barath are grateful for your support.

Thank you for coming together to support Dhanalakshmi for an entire year. She is in senior kindergarten at a school run by Isha Vidhya in Tamil Nadu.

Dhanalakshmi’s father, Gunasekaran, and mother, Veeraselvi, are both dwarfs. Because of his physical condition, her father finds it difficult to find work, but he is a talented artist and makes a small amount of money by doing art work. Despite leading a hand to mouth existence, Dhanalakshmi’s parents are determined to give her a good education, and do everything they can to support her daughter.

Dhanalakshmi’s family lives much below the poverty line, and there is often no food in the house for several days. By providing her with a school lunch, Elaine, you will make sure that Dhanalakshmi will get at least one good meal every day. Each of you is like a savior to little  Dhanalakshmi.

A school means nothing to children like Dhanalakshmi, unless someone drops her off and picks her up everyday. By coming together to provide a year of transportation, Jeeva, Srivatsan, Sunil, Daniel, Shweta and Sripriya, you have ensured that Dhanalakshmi has access to the education that nobody in her family had before.

Thank you, Jeeva, for gifting a set of two school uniforms to Dhanalakshmi. She can now come to school looking neat and tidy, and feeling equal to the rest of the kids.

Thank you, Anita, Farida, Jeeva, Suresh and Chandra for coming together to provide an entire year of tuition to Dhanalakshmi.

Thank you for coming together to support Archana for an entire year. She has just been admitted to kindergarten at a school run by Isha Vidhya in Tamil Nadu.

Archana’s father, Sankar, works as a bonded laborer in Kerala, and earns approximately Rs. 150 ($ 3) a day, which is not enough to support the family. Her mother, Sudha, cannot go to work, because she has five children to look after. To make things even worse, Archana (along with her sister, Kuyili) was severely affected by fire accident, and she suffered burns on both hands and on her head. The family has to spend money on her medical treatment too. Despite not having any extra money, her parents are determined to give all their children a good education. Archana and one older sister are enrolled in a school run by Isha Vidhya, while the other three sisters are in a government school.

Her family lives much below the poverty line, and there is often no food in the house for several days. By providing her with a school lunch for an entire year you will make sure that Archana will get at least one good meal every day. Transportation is another reason why children are forced out of school, and you have ensured that Archana will picked up and dropped off from home every day.

Each of you is like a savior to little Archana.