News Archive
Where were you when you were nine?
One sunny day in August our daily mail came with a heartwarming letter (and a lovely check) from a young woman and her sister, about their recent fundraising. The Schilling sisters saved 11 girls with their creativity and perseverance- it’s amazing what a flier and a t-shirt can do! (Theirs is pictured above) We were so inspired by them, we’d like to share their story:
“The project was a joint effort between my sister Krista and I. I am an 18 year old college freshman and Krista is a 22 year old college senior. We got involved in helping these girls about two years ago when we heard about the trafficking situation in Nepal and India. It was hard to possess the information of the girls’ childhoods being stolen, when ours are so bright and cheerful. So we set to work building a fundraiser with the ultimate goal of putting 10 girls in school. Without the amazing efforts of the American Himalayan Foundation none of this could of been possible. It was lucky for us to find an organization that worked directly with the people in Nepal and Tibet and offered the option of donating to a specific cause. We were ecstatic to be able to send enough money to the AHF to sponsor 11 young girls!
Sincerely,
Kaitlin Schilling and Krista Schilling”
For eleven years, AHF has worked with the Rural Health and Education Services Trust (RHEST) to save poor Nepali girls from the threat of prostitution traffickers. Eileen Moncoeur, AHF Program Director, recently visited Nepal and brought back this update:
“Just back from a day and a half in the field with Dr. Aruna Uprety, our powerhouse director of RHEST, the Nepali NGO that keeps girls from being trafficked. She took me along on a “Speak Up” Session with the girls, their mothers (or grandmothers, aunts or uncles if the moms aren't alive or well), teachers, principals and RHEST volunteers. You can imagine. The first gathering was with the girls and moms who had walked ten hours the day before to reach the meeting. The moms were completely nervous when they saw me – I was definitely the first westerner in their lives. They hid behind their shawls. Aruna encouraged, cajoled and outright threatened until the moms would talk. It was quite effective - none of the moms, in any of the schools, had gone to school.
I asked why they decided to let their daughters go and nine out of ten cried when they spoke. They're quite aware of how hard their lives are and know they are being exploited because they can't count money, read signs or do anything that involves literacy. I asked our coordinator how they count and use the money since both parents are illiterate and she said they often memorize the colors but, of course, they are exploited. They all said they want their daughters to have a better life. Some said they wanted their daughters to marry later than they did and "be able to stand on their own feet" – like these women aren't.
Some of the older girls were aware that girls in their villages were trafficked and they didn't want that to happen to them. One said that four girls in her village went to the circus, but only one returned.
We’re making sure, every day, that 6,000 girls are in school. We’re not only saving these girls from brothels, we’re helping to change the face of Nepal for the better. It’s amazing.”
This extraordinary work would not be possible without generous donors like the Schilling sisters. It only costs $100 to keep a girl safe in school for a year.
Click here to make it possible.