Abhilash*  is a fatherless boy, whose mother, Rajakali, is a housewife. He has 2 sisters, one of whom is married and living her family and the other is a college student. Currently, his family income is just 12,000 rupees (260 dollars) per year.

The training in welding that Padma Industrial School provides will allow Abhilash to support his family and add to their income.

Thank you very much, Leo, Molly, Ganesha, Rao (x2), and Juliea (x7), for coming together to support his tuition fees, which will allow him to complete his studies!

Thank you for your generosity.

* Name changed to protect identity

Neppolien hails from the village of Pakkam in coastal Tamil Nadu. His father, Veeraiyan, is a an unskilled laborer, and his mother, Tamilarasi, like other women in her village stays at home. Neppolien is the oldest of three children- he has a brother and a sister who are studying in grades 9 and 8 respectively at the local village school. His father earns approximately $ 1 per day when he is able to find work, which is insufficient to meet the needs of the family- they survive on such low wages only because the family is able to barter their services for goods.

Neppolien, who was named after the famous French general, is as ambitious as his namesake. He wants to break out of the poverty cycle that his family has been in for generations. He wants to learn a trade, so he can command better wages in the market than his father and uncles are able to do. He enrolled himself at the Padma Vocational Training Centre in Manjukuddi and is learning the Automobile repair trade.

Thank you, Jeffrey, Subhash (x3), John, Arlene, Julian, Stacy (x2) and Felix (x3) for bearing the cost of Neppolien’s training course for a month each. Thanks to your generosity, in a few months, he will graduate as a skilled mechanic, and will be able to earn enough to pull himself and his family out of poverty.

Who knows, he might even achieve his dreams of sending his younger siblings to college? With your support, an ambitious lad like Neppolien can achieve anything he sets out to do. Thank you!

Madhavaraj is an ambitious youth living in the village of  Manjakuddi in coastal Tamil Nadu. His father, Ravi is a farmer, and,  his mother, Mala, is a home maker. He has four sisters studying in Grades 9,7,5,3 respectively. The family income barely makes ends meet.

There are limited educational and livelihood opportunities in his village. Madhavraj  wants to start contributing to the family income, and in order to ensure that he gets a well paying job, he enrolled in the Automobile Trade Course offered by Padma Vocational Centre.

Your donations, Susan and Paul (x11), will enable Madhavraj to enroll in and complete a year long course in the Automobile trade conducted by the Padma Vocational Training Center. Once he graduates, he is confident of getting a good job, and ensuring that his sisters continue their education.

Thank you, Susan and Paul, for coming together to give Madhavraj  and his family a good chance of moving out of poverty, and making a decent life for themselves.

S.Rajmohan is an ambitious youth living in the village of Kodavasal in coastal Tamil Nadu. He is fatherless, and his mother, Usha, is a home maker. He has one sister studying in Grade 12 and another sister doing her Bachelors in Science. The family income barely makes ends meet.

There are limited educational and livelihood opportunities in his village. Raj wants to start contributing to the family income, and in order to ensure that he gets a well paying job, he enrolled in the Automobile Trade Course offered by Padma Vocational Centre.

Your donations, Akiko (x3), Craig, Leslie, Gillian, Lowry, Candace, Shawna, Ted and Pam, David, and James and Julie, will enable Raj to enroll in and complete a year long course in the Automobile trade conducted by the Padma Vocational Training Center. Once he graduates, he is confident of getting a good job, and ensuring that his sister continues her education.

Thank you, Akiko, Craig, Leslie, Gillian, Lowry, Candace, Shawna, Ted and Pam, David, and James and Julie, for coming together to give Raj and his family a good chance of moving out of poverty, and making a decent life for themselves.

Vignesh is an ambitious youth living in the village of Perumpannaiyur in coastal Tamil Nadu. His father, Dhanushkodi, is an agricultural laborer and his mother, Amutha, is a home maker. He has one sister studying in Grade 6. The family income barely makes ends meet. There are limited educational and livelihood opportunities in his village. Vignesh wants to start contributing to the family income, and in order to ensure that he gets a well paying job, he enrolled in the Automobile Trade Course offered by Padma Vocational Centre.

Your donations, Ravi (x8), Don, Kim, Howard, and James and Julie, will enable Vignesh to enroll in and complete a year long course in the Automobile trade conducted by the Padma Vocational Training Center. Once he graduates, he is confident of getting a good job, and ensuring that his sister continues her education.

Thank you, Ravi, Don, Kim, Howard, and James and Julie, for coming together to give Vignesh and his family a good chance of moving out of poverty, and making a decent life for themselves.

Gurumoorthi  is an ambitious youth living in the village of Manjakuddi in coastal Tamil Nadu. His father, Selvaraj, is an agricultural laborer and his mother, Shanthi, is a home maker. He has one sister studying Bachelors in Education. The family income barely makes ends meet. There are limited educational and livelihood opportunities in his village. Gurumoorthi wants to start contributing to the family income, and in order to ensure that he gets a well paying job, he enrolled in the Automobile Trade Course offered by Padma Vocational Centre.

Your donations,  Mahendra, Corina, Mark and Lynn, Kandace, and Ravi (x8), will enable Gurumoorthi to enroll in and complete a year long course in the Automobile trade conducted by the Padma Vocational Training Center. Once he graduates, he is confident of getting a good job, and ensuring that his sister continues her education.

Thank you, Mahendra, Corina, Mark and Lynn, Kandace, and Ravi, for coming together to give Gurumoorthi and his family a good chance of moving out of poverty, and making a decent life for themselves.

Sakthivel  is an understanding and ambitious youth living in the village of Manjakuddi in coastal Tamil Nadu. His father, P Marimuthu, is an electrician and his mother Ms. Mallika is a home maker. He has two sisters. One of them is studying Computer Science and the second works as an office assistant in a school. The family income barely makes ends meet. There are limited educational and livelihood opportunities in his village. Sakthivel wants to start contributing to the family income, and in order to ensure that he gets a well paying job, he enrolled in the Automobile Trade Course offered by Padma Vocational Centre.

Your donation, Julia, will enable Sakthivel to enroll in and complete a year long course in the Automobile trade conducted by the Padma Vocational Training Center. Once he graduates, he is confident of getting a good job, and ensuring that his sister continues her education.

Thanks to your generosity, Julia, Sakthivel and his family have a good chance of moving out of poverty, and making a decent life for themselves.

Veera Kalidas  is a sensitive and ambitious youth living in the village of Valagaiman in coastal Tamil Nadu. His father, Mr Ramachandran, is a petty shop owner and his mother Ms. Shanthi is a home maker. He has one brother studying in Grade 3. The father’s income barely makes ends meet. There are limited educational and livelihood opportunities in his village. Veera Kalidas wants to start contributing to the family income, and in order to ensure that he gets a well paying job, he enrolled in the Automobile Trade Course offered by Padma Vocational Centre.

Your donation, Julia, will enable Veera Kalidas to enroll in and complete a year long course in the Automobile trade conducted by the Padma Vocational Training Center. Once he graduates, he is confident of getting a good job, and ensuring that his brother continues his education.

Thanks to your generosity, Julia, both Veera Kalidas and his brother can brave all odds and make a decent life for themselves.

Thangaraj is a sensitive and ambitious youth living in the village of Valagaiman in coastal Tamil Nadu. His father has passed away and his mother Ms. Latha is a home maker. He has one sister studying in Grade 10. The family income barely makes ends meet. There are limited educational and livelihood opportunities in his village. Thangaraj wants to start contributing to the family income, and in order to ensure that he gets a well paying job, he enrolled in the Automobile Trade Course offered by Padma Vocational Centre.

Your donation, Julia, will enable Thangaraj to enroll in and complete a year long course in the Automobile trade conducted by the Padma Vocational Training Center. Once he graduates, he is confident of getting a good job, and ensuring that his sister continues her education.

Thanks to your generosity, Julia, both Thangaraj and his sister have a good chance of moving out of poverty, and making a decent life for themselves.

Manikandan  is a discerning and ambitious youth living in the village of Annalagaram in coastal Tamil Nadu. His father, Mr Kannan, is a welder and his mother Ms. Jayalakshmi is a home maker. He has one sister studying in Grade 8. The father’s income barely makes ends meet. There are limited educational and livelihood opportunities in his village. Manikandan wants to start contributing to the family income, and in order to ensure that he gets a well paying job, he enrolled in the Automobile Trade Course offered by Padma Vocational Centre.

Your donation, Julia, will enable Manikandan to enroll in and complete a year long course in the Automobile trade conducted by the Padma Vocational Training Center. Once he graduates, he will be able to get a good job, and the  entire family will be much better off.

Thanks to your generosity, Julia, Manikandan and his family have a good chance of overcoming poverty, and making a decent life for themselves.