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April Update

Dear Friends of dZi,

About six months ago, an old friend from my Vail days sent a former employer of his a dZi Foundation brochure and DVD. They contacted us and suggested we apply for a grant. They were impressed with our application and requested that we arrange to make a presentation at their home office on Buckingham Palace Road, London. Now London is not on my regular travel schedule and ponying up to fly over the pond for a “potential grant” may seem a bit of a stretch. But we do seem to be getting a better sense for these sorts of things. It all started to come together when I realized that I would be in Boston the end of February, and on the 27th I presented to our anonymous (and generous) corporate donor. They accepted our request for $35,000 to fund the dZi Health Clinic in Leh Ladakh.

This new centrally-located health clinic will give the dZi Foundation a permanent presence in the Ladakh community. Improved oral and vision health for the children of Ladakh will help create a proactive long-term healthcare strategy for the entire region. Our goal is year-round healthcare and education. Mobile dental and vision clinics and expanding healthcare services will bring positive impacts, affecting countless lives for generations to come.

Going back to the beginning of this story and seeing how this has played out reminds me of a recurring theme. Our biggest advocates are our supporters who are passionate about the life changing work of the dZi Foundation. It doesn’t take much; a well place brochure or DVD can change the lives of thousands of individuals. Gets you thinking, doesn’t it?

Your man in London,

Jim Nowak
Executive Director

Case Story of Ganga and Jamuna

Urgent - February 15, 2006
Som Paneru – Friendship House Director – Kathmandu, Nepal

Ganga and Jamuna are eight-year-old twin sisters working as domestic helpers in two different households in the Parsa District of Kathmandu. The day starts early in the morning for these little girls - not to go to school, but to clean house, wash clothes, do the dishes and other household chores.

Their father, Prem Bdr. Khadka, died of liver cancer two years back after suffering from it for many years. Their mother, Thuli Kumari, who's health condition is deteriorating day by day, is now suffering from breast cancer. Their eleven-year-old brother, Bhim, lives with their mother, but their fourteen-year-old brother left home for India to search for work almost six months back. However, his whereabouts in India are unknown.

Ganga and Jamuna were sent to Parsa District on the condition that they would work as household helpers and attend school side by side. But this did not come true. The two little girls do not attend school but work as servants around the clock!

When asked to tell what they know about the family, one of the neighbors says, “They are so poor that they go with only one meal a day.”

Ganga and Jamuna easily meet our criteria for entry into the Happiness Home, due to their age and social conditions. Although the mother is still alive, it is apparent she cannot take care of them.

Dear dZi supporters,

With their mother's blessing, we have moved these girls to the home.

The costs for all of our girl’s sponsorships are $2,000 per year. This covers all of their housing, food, clothing, medical & dental needs, in-house staff, tutors, tuition, books, private schooling and field trips. Our goal is to prepare these girls for a secondary education, give them an awareness of service as well as a sense of responsibility to give back to their communities.

We are looking for sponsors for these girls. Please contact us if you are interested or have questions regarding sponsorship of these or other girls. Get in touch using the links below or on our website, or simply by replying to this email

A new Sikkim Happiness Home!

Many of you will remember my article in December 2005, when I spoke of the city's encroachment on the Sikkim Happiness Home, creating a lack of space and play area for the girls. The noise, traffic and construction projects all around our girls' house made for a challenging situation. We then received the following note from Kelsang Phuntsok, our director of programs for Sikkim.

“I have located a new home for the Happiness Home Girls. The bungalow is located in an area very near to Mintokling Guest House which you know well. We have a separate gate and sufficient open space for the girls to play. It has one floor above and terrace for drying clothes, and is very quiet and I think it is ideal.”

This location is close to all of the girl’s schools, and offers all the opportunities these young ladies and girls need as they mature into adulthood. Kelsang Phuntsok continues to look for land to purchase upon which to create something brand new, and we hope to be able to build and be in control of our own facility within the year.

5.7 Earthquake in Gangtok Sikkim

Following a series of earthquakes in Sikkim, India in February, we received another message from Kelsang Phuntsok:

‘We experienced an earthquake of 5.7 on the Richter scale on the 14th of February. About 500 buildings have either cracked, tilted or are about to fall. It is not certain how many lives have been lost. Our old girls' house, Happiness Home in Tadong, witnessed cracks in the walls, so we moved to the new home just in time. There was no damage at our new home, and my house is fine, except for few broken crockeries and a small crack in the wall. The Happiness home girls, myself and family all are safe.”

Given the tragedy that befell Pakistan, this is all very disconcerting. We are going to attempt to be proactive and institute an emergency shelter education project in all of our regions this spring. We need to make an effort to ready these areas in light of the history of Himalayan earthquakes. If you haven’t seen the article in the current National Geographic on earthquakes, it’s sobering to say the least, especially in the Himalayan region.