The communities HFCF works with, are mainly in the state of Maharashtra and over the years we have built a reservoir of stories, sometimes hopeful, sometimes distressing. While researching for our projects and campaigns, we constantly unearthed life stories of children and their families which greatly inspired us.
The HFCF case study files run into volumes and continue to grow as we forge ahead and touch more lives.
Here we offer you glimpses of the extraordinary journeys that our young beneficiaries have undertaken to hopefully get a life of promise and happiness.
The Gaikwad family is a testimony to HFCF’s Holistic work.
This journey began when Renuka joined our Shiksha ki Asha program (SKA) in 2013. Renuka is a bright student and has been actively successful in her studies as well as at the SKA learning centre. Renuka wished to study in English medium school which, unfortunately, her mother could not afford as she had 2 other girls to take care of as well. With the help of HFCF, she got enrolled into the Mother Teresa English Medium School the next year. She worked very hard to master a language she could barely speak and successfully finished her academic year. After completing the Shiksha ki Asha program, she graduated from our new mentorship & life skill program, Disha Darshan. This program was conceptualised to help children like Renuka prepare themselves to deal effectively the challenges life posed them every day.
This year, Renuka’s younger sisters, Ruchika and Avantika have also been enrolled in the Shiksha ki Asha program. Their proud mother, Sarika has also enrolled herself in a program that HFCF offers called Atmanirbharata, a self-reliance program that helps single mothers like Sarika. Under our social entrepreneurship program, she learned various business courses and received a loan to start her own small enterprise of garments.
This dedicated family embodies the HFCF vision of comprehensive holistic empowerment.
Savita Chinaya and her daughters are an integral part of HFCF family
Savita Chinaya lives with her 3 daughters in a slum of Pune. Her husband died 5 years ago and since then it has been very difficult for her to support the need of her children. Her life was stuck in a rut when she approached us. HFCF gave her a glimmer of hope that she needed to live again. 2 of her children was enrolled in the Shiksha ki Asha program. Shivani the oldest has been with us since the start of this program. The girls have been doing really well and over the years we have seen them bloom and achieve great academic success.
Savita has also been very actively involved in all the activities of HFCF and the Atmanirbharta program, learning hands-on to become self-sustainable and self-reliant. Under our Social entrepreneurship program, she received a loan of Rs.10,000/- to start her new business. She bought a wheeled cart with the money received and now uses it to sell seasonal products and garments as per the need of the community. She also provides a door to door service by selling products such as papads, chutneys, masalas etc.
Unfortunately, In 2015, Savita lost one of her daughters to a degenerative disease. HFCF helped her with medical support but still, God had a different plan for her. With the love and support of HFCF, Savita continued to stay strong for her 2 other daughters and received an additional loan of 15,000/-. She used this money to buy more garments and food products and continued her door to door service with further more efficiency. This business has empowered her to become more self-reliant and she also found a new family, HFCF.
Meet the Mathew family - A testimonial of HFCF’s Holistic work.
The Mathew family has been under our wings since 2012. The journey began when Gracy Mathew joined our Atmanirbharata Project. In the first year, she attended various training & awareness sessions and also received food grains under the single mother program. For the past 2 years, she has been employed as a cook at out facility and cooks every day for the Shiksha ki Asha children at HFCF office. Gracy is also part of the social venture – The Mom’s Kitchen. In 2014, Philomena (her mother) received medical help from HFCF for a surgery to remove a chronic hernia. She recovered eventually with proper care.
Gracy has a son and a daughter. Her daughter Priya is a very bright girl and has received a scholarship for continuing her studies. She excels at school and has been with HFCF for the past 2 years. Her brother, Wilson finished his studies and graduated from the Disha Darshan program. He earns a decent living by repairing electronic gadgets and supports his family.
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