BHUMI's Speak Out

“I am running late to work, AGAIN! And my 6 foot tall – stern faced – I can’t smile boss is not going to pardon me this time! Stuck in a traffic jam that is as long as a giraffe’s tongue. I see a mason’s daughter by the pavement making a beautiful sand castle. If only she could afford Education!! Sigh… Will the current situation ever change? Will India see a few more Kalams and Bedis? Would “India, Superpower by 2020” be a dream forever?

Oh, the signal just turned green. Now, vehicles are gonna crawl like ants! If only Batman’s utilities were applicable in the real world. Sci-fi has never impressed me, nevertheless…”

Such writing would make this blog usual!

Welcome to BHUMI!

From a small group of friends teaching at a school in 2006, BHUMI is now a guild of 250 students and young professionals. While educational projects target children of all ages, our environmental and societal initiatives focus on improving the current conditions of the local community.

Our volunteers hope to share their personal experiences and special BHUMI moments on this blog. Kicking off with how our English Teaching programme evolved.

Successful completion of KANINI (our e-literacy initiative) at Anbu Karangal and SOS Village in 2007 meant extending this to more orphanages. That was when I learnt about HOPE Foundation. HOPE is an international organisation that provides shelter, personal and medical care for AIDS affected adults and children.

Even though the children took time to open up, we bonded within weeks. During the course, I learnt that children here did not have answers to many questions: why am I at HOPE, why do I need to pop in capsules day and night, why do I feel drugged all day, how does it feel to be with ‘family’, and many more.

My outlook with respect to the World and its People changed. I realised how one’s hasty decision/action can change the life of another (unintentionally). Tears trickle down every time I think about the quality of life such boys and girls, in contrast to us, lead.

Unfortunately, their level of English was a barrier in proceeding further. That was when BHUMI started discussing the possibility of teaching our children English.

Make a Difference (MAD) an NGO based in Cochin has been teaching destitute children English for the past two years. With assistance from their team, “Speak Out – Make a Difference” started taking shape. Effective campaigning at colleges and workplaces brought in more volunteers.

Now Bhumians are actively teaching at three orphanages and one community centre in Chennai. Trained by The Teacher Foundation (Bangalore) our volunteers are now well equipped with resources from the Cambridge University to make this journey of learning English as interactive as possible!

If you want to be part of this initiative, visit us at www.bhumichennai.org and register!