LIFT

LIFT is a program focused on providing poor, yet extremely talented children, with “leadership excellence training” in India. Currently, 50 plus members have been selected as members of LIFT, and the program plans to start building its first school in the not too distant future.

Reflections from LIFT members who traveled to India in July 2006 for the LIFT ground breaking ceremony in Tamil Nadu, India.

Overall, my experience in India can be described as nothing short of spectacular. The trip accentuated the concept one need not have materialistic things in life to achieve a “higher” level of satisfaction. The majority of people we met had minimal personal assets and wealth, but they had wide smiles, confidence, and a level of spirituality that is rare to find anywhere in this world. I thought best to encapsulate my trip with a few anecdotes.

Arrival in Tamil Nadu

After a long plane trip to Madurai, and a two-hour car ride to the Tamil Nadu region, we were all pretty exhausted by the time we arrived. Our energy was quickly revived when more than 200 people at a medical camp greeted us. We literally stepped out of the car and were enveloped by a greeting ceremony arranged by Fr. Jamels James, (the leader of LIFT). The ceremony included floral necklaces, traditional Indian dances, and the placing of Kumkuman and Sandal Paste, Indian dots on our foreheads.

People expressed how grateful they were that we came to visit their country as they reached out their hands to greet us — it was overwhelming! More importantly, this was an opportunity to see our students in action. Our 50 plus students were helping local doctors administer eye and hepatitis B exams to the poor people of the region who could not afford those tests — the poor helping the poor. We had the privilege of meeting our students in the line of duty, exhibiting an important facet of the LIFT training platform: giving back to the community. They were engulfed in their activities, but also loved having their pictures taken by their strange (and I mean strange!) new friends.

Lights — Camera — Action
One evening, we traveled to the boarding school that housed most of the LIFT students for a presentation by the students followed by dinner. After dinner, the students and other LIFT members engaged in singing and dancing in the hall. While this was going on, I had the opportunity to film many of the students and local mentors who volunteered at the boarding school. A few, select memories:
n the confidence exuded by these young students was such a welcome surprise;
n most children aspired to be top professionals in their country;
n when asked “who is your hero?” one orphan student responded by pointing to one of the founding members of LIFT, Fr. Sundar, and stated “Fr. Sundar has been a father figure for me.”
n when asked “why do you devote time to the LIFT program?” Joe, one of the mentors, opined “because we are helping the poorest of the poor, I see the face of Jesus in them.”

The Mother Teresa Experience and the Connection

We had the opportunity to spend a day in Calcutta and visited an orphanage founded by Mother Teresa, her first home for the dying, and her residence. We were escorted by Fr. Hansel, who was a close friend of Mother Teresa and administered her last rites before she passed away. How lucky we were to hear all those personal stories about Mother Teresa! The simple, understated way she conducted her life was awe-inspiring. As many of you know, the Missionaries of Charity reached out to the “untouchables” of Calcutta. One piece of literature a nun handed to me at her residence, read “The Missionaries of Charity, whose ministry remains service to the poorest of the poor, seeing in them the “face of Jesus” A chill ran up my spine, because this is exactly what Joe, the mentor, had mentioned about our students a few days earlier. The connection to LIFT was powerful. Additionally, I had learned later in our trip that Fr. Jamels was hand picked to give the welcoming speech for a visit Mother Teresa had made to his school in India years before — another powerful connection.
Being present for the actual groundbreaking ceremony, on that beautiful July night brought my connection to LIFT to a whole other level; it is a program I will be involved in for the rest of my life. Donating time to any charity is a fantastic use of one’s time. What is so appealing to me about LIFT is not only does it focus on helping the poor in their current state, but also looks to change the future by using education as the antidote. My involvement with LIFT has been an amazing and rewarding experience for the past 18 months. I would urge anyone who is looking to develop their spirituality, or just simply get involved with a fantastic, charitable organization (with a remarkable, kind, and fun leader in Fr. Jamels) to sign-up so we can use your help. If you would like to get involved or chat about the experience, please contact me at lhealy@williamblair.com, or 312.296.2845.

Meeting and Identifying Children Pre-school Age and Younger

In order to create a foundation for Leadership Excellence as early as possible in a child’s life, LIFT will meet, identify and invest in our children even before their formal pre-school education begins. Our plan is to create relationships with the people in approximately 100 villages, and to visit and develop connections with families that have young children. We will train educated young adults to identify and nurture leadership qualities in pre-school age children by conducting informal group learning and activity sessions (“Camps”) for three to four hours a day in each village. These “teachers” will recommend a small number of children from each village to go to one of the three primary schools that will be created.

Primary School

Three primary schools will be created and strategically located in the district that will be served so the children do not have to travel more than twenty minutes to get to their school. During the course of their primary school education, students will be evaluated based on several dimensions of character including intellectual, emotional, interpersonal, social, personal and leadership skills. Those who excel in these areas (we anticipate approximately 30 percent of the class) will be given the opportunity to attend the Higher Secondary School (from sixth to twelfth grade).

Learn more about the Higher Secondary School in future issues of The Crossroads bulletin.

Contact

Alison Niederkorn
aniederkorn@hotmail.com
773-230-0480