From The President’s Desk

If it’s March, it’s Holi… naturally

It was a riot of colours on Holi at our Marunji premises. Our Friends celebrated this festival of colours with volunteers from Emcure and eCoexist. To say it was great fun is an understatement. For us it was more than a celebration of the festival. It was a celebration of our bond with our friends from Emcure and eCoexist. This is the fourth consecutive year that they are celebrating Holi with us.

A special feature of this event is the dry natural colours that eCoexist provides. In fact, eCoexist provides natural colours to many organisations. This is a great initiative that eCoexist has started.

At Navkshitij, it was an enjoyable combination of colours, fun, dancing and good food that marked the celebration. Emcure Pharmaceuticals Ltd. sponsored this event. Mr. Girish from Emcure and Ms. Lalita from eCoexist led the teams with great enthusiasm.

We truly feel privileged to be associated with both Emcure and eCoexist. We sincerely hope to celebrate this festival of colours with the same enthusiasm in the years to come. We are sure our Friends have given the volunteers moments of great happiness.

How parents approach rehabilitation matters a lot

In December 2013, Kunal Shevade joined our family. He came from Kota, Rajasthan. He adapted to the routine at Navkshitij routine very quickly, almost immediately. He is one of the few people who adjusted instantly, without any hiccups.

In the case of any new admission, the first few days are very crucial for us. We need to understand them, especially their behavioural patterns and problems. This is a very tough job and it keeps everyone on their toes.

Parenting plays a very vital role in rehabilitation of Friends because they have to make their child ready for this new journey. It is very important for parents to take the decision to send their son/daughter with a positive frame of mind, keeping in view the happiness of their ward. Very importantly, they should trust the organisation in which they wish to place him or her. The parents’ positivity, confidence and trust reflect in their body language and in their discussions;

it gets automatically communicated to the Friends. Special friends are very perceptive. Hence, it does matter how parents look at rehabilitation.

I am happy to say that Kunal’s parents really took the effort to ready him for his future with us. They did it with great care, love and in a positive frame of mind. Kunal is very happy here, taking part in all the activities, be it sports, workshop, trekking, drama, or dance and music. He likes dancing the most.

When his parents visited him last month, Kunal excitedly told them about his life here. His parents were very happy about their decision.

I really hope parents of all special children learn from this example.

Upcoming Happenings

• April 9: Dance competition organized by Umed Pariwar
• April 12: Annual Shopping at Kakade Mall
• April 16: Medical Camp to be conducted by Aditya Birla Hospital
• April 19: Trek from Chaturshringi to Vetaltekadi
• April 26: Meeting with parents; summer holiday begins
• April 27 to May 5: Trek to Nainital

Last Month’s events

• March 8: Visit by members of Dilkhush Sansta, Mumbai
• March 12: Traffic Awareness Programme at Pune Vidyapeeth Chowk
• March 15: Celebrated Holi with volunteers from Emcure and eCoexist
• March 22: Celebrated Holi with volunteers from Praj
• March 29: Trek to Taljai
• March 31: Celebrated Gudi Padva

Navkshitij Now Needs

• 1 Two wheeler – Approximate cost Rs. 50,000
• Repairs in workshop roof – Approximate cost Rs. 20,000
• Boundary wall on one-side (for the second unit in Kusgaon) – Approximate cost Rs.3, 50,000.

·  Mr. Siddharth Satpute

·  Jakson Limited Elc.Ac.

·  Tuff Plast Pune Pvt. Ltd.

·  Mr. Mohan Salvi

·  Dr. Sucheta Sathe

·  Mr. Prasad  B. Sathe

·  Dr Ashwini Kulkarni

·  Atmasanman Trust

·  Mr. V. Chandrashekhar

·  Anna Talwalkar Trust.

·  Fiserv India Pvt. Ltd.

·  Grind Master Machines Pvt. Ltd (Mr.Sameer Kelkar)

·  Mr .Jaideep Kulkarni

·  Sushila Dinkar Godbole Trust

·  Mr. Sameer Madan Alve

·  Mr. K. Srinath (Chennai)

·  Lalita Sathe

·  Rotary Club of Pune Gandhi Bhavan Charitable Trust.

·  Saidatta Tourism.

·  Firoza Baria

·  Girija Vyankatraman

·  Vimal Patil

·  Indira College, Wakad.

·  Sankalp Consumer Products Pvt. Ltd

(A monthly newsletter published by Dr. Neelima Desai and edited by Kanaka Cadambi on behalf of Navkshitij)