“Think of gift giving not as a duty, but as a privilege” John D. Rockafeller
At this time of year, there is a lot of focus upon giving gifts. It is often said that it is better to give than to receive as the giver often receives greater psychological benefits than the taker. Giving a gift can be seen as an act of love, a showing appreciation for those who you love and care about. Other people argue that the tradition of giving gifts at Christmas has become materialistic and has created a consumerist society. Whatever your take on gift giving is, it is a festive tradition that is as popular as ever.
As the festive season approaches, it is important to remember that not everyone is lucky enough to have a warm, safe & secure home in which to celebrate with family & friends whilst overindulging. The Pendsey Trust thought it would be a good time to reflect back upon some of the work we have funded this year and how this has helped one young girl,who will be known as VB.
VB is a 25 year old young lady, educated only to primary level as she never attended high school, neither did her parents. VB was married at 22 years old, which was an arranged marriage and she fell pregnant soon after. Sadly, VB experienced a miscarriage at 6 months, her husband was alcoholic and abusive, eventually he divorced her.
After the divorce, VB had to move back in with her parents, her mother is a maid and father is a helper, there are also two brothers and one sister living at home, who are attending school. The family income is 6000 rupees per month, which on todays exchange rate is £71.
Earlier this year, VB developed rapidly maturing cateracts in both eyes, causing her to be totally blind. Further to this, in June, VB was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes and her blood glucose levels were above 33.3 mmol at diagnosis. VB immediately started on regime of intensified insulin and as her blood glucose levels lowered, it was possible to operate on both eyes. VB had surgery and received intraocular implants and subsequently regained full vision in both eyes.
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VB can now see, she has had her sight restored and has access to diabetic supplies, but the support does not stop there. The Pendsey Trust will now give a grant to VB which will cover the cost of training in tailoring, a sewing machine and business start up advice which in turn, will not only provide an occupation for VB (in a culture where there is still a lot of stigma surrounding this condition and therefore diabetics can struggle to find employment), but VB will eventually become self sufficient with her insulin costs. A grant from The Pendsey Trust has clearly given the gifts of life, health, sight and education to VB, but we could not have done this without your support.
Are you stuck for gift ideas for someone you love but they already have everything? Maybe someone is difficult to buy for, or are saying they don’t want anything? Perhaps you need to buy for a person who does not believe in gift giving? Or a last minute gift idea? The Pendsey Trust has a solution, we have gift vouchers available and these gifts really do give the gift of life to the young people like VB who we support in the developing world.
Click on a picture below to go to our donate page, buy a gift for someone you love, but of course the real gift is the gift of life and a bright future for the people we support.
“It’s not just about being able to write a check. It’s being able to touch somebody’s life.” Oprah Winfrey