Old age home for 350 abandoned elderly women

Dear Maitri Friend,

Amidst struggles and survival, Maitri Ghar  once again witnessed how the power of celebrations can transcend over life and bring different colours.September was the month of festivities and celebrations. Durgashtami and Dussehra were celebrated beautifully by all the widows in Vrindavan and Radha Kund, the two ashrams supported by Maitri India. Widows are discouraged or banned from celebrating festivals which symbolizes the inauspiciousness they apparently bring to holy and happy occasions. Maitri breaks these stereotypes by making participate and lead the different festivals as a mark of making them feel a part of the joyous festivals and occasions enjoyed by the rest of the society. Navratri is 9 days long holy period of fasting which is proceeded by Dussehra, the 10^th day which marks the end of evil. According to mythology, King Ravana was killed by King Rama on the 10^th day symbolizing the win of good over evil. The eighth day of Navratri celebrations is called Ashtami and is considered as one of the most significant of all the days of festivities and prayers. Devotees maintain a strict fast and worship goddess Durga on this occasion, to mark the victory of the goddess over demon god Mahishasura. According to Hindu mythology, Kali Mata is said to have emerged from the forehead of Durga to kill Chan da and Munda, the demons of Mahishasura. 

The widows celebrated Durgashtami and Dussehra in both ashrams. This year like previous years, Durgashtami and Dussehra were celebrated by the widows with great fervor. They sang hymns and danced together to mark the end of Navratri. Special meals were prepared and they were distributed to the widows along with sweets to celebrate the aforementioned festivals. 66 widows in Maitri Ghar Vrindavan and 62 in Maitri Ghar Radha Kund received 6987 meals and 2924 fruits in September with your support and donations!

The month of October was very exciting. Diwali was celebrated with a lot of festivities by the beneficiary widows. The ashram was decorated with lights and flowers. The widow beneficiaries lit diyas and candles and did pooja to welcome the various Gods and Goddesses on the solemn occasion of Diwali. They all sang bhajans and were served special meals. The police superintendent gifted the widows of Maitri Ghar Vrindavan, shawls and sweets as a gesture of Diwali celebration.

 Apart from distribution of money and gifts, October has been an auspicious month with Diwali and Govardhan Puja. Diwali was celebrated with a lot of festivities by the widows. The ashram was decorated with lights and flowers. The widows lit diyas and candles and did pooja to welcome the various Gods and Goddesses on the solemn occasion of Diwali. They all sang bhajans and were served special meals. The police superintendent gifted the widows of Maitri Ghar Vrindavan with shawls and sweets as a gesture of Diwali celebration.

The Maiyyas were visited by the students of Sri Ram School, Delhi on 28th October to make them feel loved and cherished. The visit by these students really made the Maiyyas very happy. They even danced and sang with the students. Each Maiyya was gifted with a saree, soap, shampoo and a biscuit packet. The students even made drawings of Radha & Krishna and gifted them to the Maiyyas

As a mark of celebration, 63 sarees, 214 hygiene kits and Rs.4250 was distributed as gifts to the widows. The widows thanked the staff and were very happy to receive these gifts.Due to bursting firecrackers, there was a lot of smoke leading to asthma attacks to the vulnerable widows. They had regular medical check-ups to tackle various health ailments. 382 medical checkups were done in September to address their various health issues.

We want to thank everyone and extend the colors of these festivities. Your support has helped us light Maitri Ghar. Thankyou