A Family Tree Grows Strong at Sambhali Trust
It is said that the deeper the roots, the stronger the branches. That is evident in the family tree that flourishes within Sambhali Trust.
Eight years ago, when Priya joined the Sheerni Boarding Home, she was 13 years old. She was part of only the second class of girls to enroll in the program. Priya went from being the youngest of five siblings at home to being the oldest of 25 girls at Sheerni. After years of studying hard to make up for the poor education she received at village schools, she became the first Sheerni girl to graduate from secondary school and the first to attend college. Today, she is a role model for the younger girls, who see in her their own potential.
Priya’s calm presence endears her to them while her determination drives their aspirations. Currently, she is a university graduate working on earning a Master of Arts degree in geography. She lived at Sheerni Boarding home for the first two years of college, but as more of her Sheerni sisters graduated and more room was needed, Sambhali Trust created the Abhayasthali Boarding Home.
Sambhali Trust founder Govind Rathore is in awe of what he sees.
“One seed has to be put in the ground under pressure to create a tree. And when I look at Priya, I think it was worth getting under that pressure to let this tree grow.”
But Priya’s isn’t the only branch. Her older sister Meena, who introduced young Priya to Sambhali Trust so many years ago, worked as the first teacher at the Setrawa Empowerment Center from 2007 to 2009. Today, Meena’s 13-year-old daughter is following in her aunt Priya’s footsteps as a class (grade) six student at Sheerni Boarding Home. Another niece, her brother’s child, is 11 years old and living at Laadli Boarding Home where she is in class four. And finally, the family matriarch, Priya’s mother, is also part of the Sambhali Trust family as a member of the Trust's Self-Help Group, a micro-finance project where women pool resources to be able to offer loans to each other. The loans are used either to develop businesses or to cope with emergencies. Priya’s sister and sister-in-law are also members.
Govind reflects on the lives that Priya, her family members, and her sister Sambhali graduates will lead. “Can you imagine what empowered mothers and wives they will be? How strong, individual, independent women they will be? I cannot explain in words what it means.”
The girls and women in Priya’s family today are nurturing their tree not only for themselves but for future generations. Their roots will continue to grow deeper, and their branches will extend beyond their foremothers’ wildest dreams.