Sphoorti Visit

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Today I visited the Sphoorti Foundation’s Children’s Home, which is an orphanage located just outside of Hyderabad. The premises contain one housing area for the boys, one housing area for the girls and a common area for cooking, eating meals and other shared experiences. The mission of the NGO is to provide full care for underprivileged children who are orphaned, abandoned, or destitute and includes children who have lost at least one parent, are from poverty-stricken families, have physically/mentally challenged parents, and children from families devastated by HIV/AIDS. Currently Sphoorti has 80 full time residential children and another 30 who come part time, ranging from ages 4 to 13.

When I arrived and walked into the common area, the first thing I saw was about 40 of the brightest smiling faces you could ever wish to be confronted with and instantly felt all those little pairs of eyes following me. I felt there was nothing that I could say or do to possibly keep this many children entertained but soon discovered that they were more than content to just observe and be in the presence of someone new. They all sat very close, lined up on a long bench, looking ahead inquisitively and whispering with their neighbors. The founder, Srivyal, was kind enough to spend some time with me explaining the origination of the organization and to show me around the new facility currently being constructed for the girls housing. He showed me the building which would be move-in ready in a few short weeks. What was most notable was that even with a limited budget, he made it a green building. The lighting system around the premises is solar powered, the water heating will be done through solar power, there is a stormwater harvesting system in place and recycled materials are being utilized wherever possible. The benefits are even farther reaching in that Srivyal not only wants to use the building as an example for other facilities of green building practices but he also said that he wants it to be an example to the children so that they are conscious about environmental impact and are surrounded by positive examples of sustainable living. He mentioned that he routinely explains the features of the new building to the children in order to increase their awareness. In time, he hopes to build a schoolhouse on the premises that will be the first and only green school building in Hyderabad. On top of being environmentally conscious, Sphoorti sources items like soaps and textiles from the local villagers versus purchasing from the MNCs in the marketplace helping to sustain the vitality of the local industries and craftsman. The organization’s holistic approach was commendable and the fact that Sphoorti can do this with limited resources should serve as a model, as many organizations with considerably more human and financial resources fail to consider the human and environmental ecosystems around them when making decisions.

Srivyal also mentioned in the course of our conversation that in no way did he ever want the children to feel like they were in any way indebted, or owed something for their care. He wants them to find their way in the world just like any child might and not feel that they owe something for being cared for in a way that any child deserves. If you are wondering as I was how Srivyal, with a Masters in Economics, got to start an orphanage, it is a nice story. He came back to India after pursuing his masters in the U.S. and started working on research focused on governance in the non-profit sector. From here he started having more interaction with and awareness of the growing numbers of street children in Hyderabad (over 100,000 in the city alone) and was inspired to do something to make difference and support these children.

Back at the main building the children showed me their artwork and their dancing, both of which were wonderful as well as the recently planted vegetable garden. They also tried to teach me a running game, but I missed a key rule and ended up cheating mercilessly. I will be better prepared next time and plan to play by the rules. Plus they won’t go so easy on me for cheating next time, rest assured. Despite the language barrier, at least ten people accurately expressed to me in one way or another that I was forgetting a rule. Unfortunately I could not interact with everyone, but of the interactions I had, it was easy to see this was a very curious and bright group of children, with a variety of talents. I was told that one of the girls had recently been offered the opportunity to receive a scholarship in fine arts if she chose to pursue it after winning a prize at a local art show.

One of the most memorable moments of the day occurred when I made a paper fortuneteller from a flyer I had picked up. You put your fingers inside the paper and move them around and its shape changes and opens and closes but really that is about all it does. After making it, I put it on the fingers of a small girl who was standing just next to me looking curious and then showed her how to move it back and forth. She looked at it and moved her hands awkwardly at first. But then she got it right and her eyes lit up and she just started smiling, first at what she was doing with her hands, and then up at me. Then every time I saw her for the rest of the day she had that little fortune teller in her hand and that little smile on her face. In fact, she had me make her one more before I left.

It is hard to capture in words, but the 80 children that I had the pleasure to meet were really a sight to behold. It was a very happy, well adjusted group of children who also genuinely seemed to care for each other and had formed very meaningful bonds. It was a great opportunity to be a part of an incredibly loving 80+ person family for a day. Sphoorti has much to be proud of and with the appropriate funding and support will hopefully continue to grow and prosper as it is truly changing the destinies of these children. I would recommend to anyone coming through Hyderabad to stop here and experience this: www.sphoorti.org.

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