Project India 2K8

In the spring of 2008, myself + ten others from NCC embarked on a 33-hour trip to Calcutta, India to volunteer our time with Calcutta Mercy Ministries [CMM] for two weeks. During our stay, we had the immense privilege to work alongside the staff + volunteers at CMM to learn about the organization + what it's doing for the community.

Promoting Care for the Young + Spirited

We also had the humbling opportunity to personally sit down + meet 8 children from Divine Fellowship, a children's school for the blind, + capture their stories as they are still in need of the support required for them to be cared for. Some are candidates for surgery, which could restore their sight. Others are children who have been abandoned by their parents because the stigma of having a disabled child is too daunting to keep them at home [in Indian culture, having a disabled child is seen as a curse]. Still, others have loving families who are unable to care for the child, so they send them to the school where they’ll be better cared for. The blind school then becomes home, school, + playground.

Surveying the Hospital to Preserve Valuable Lives + Years of Good Service

When we left the States, we thought we’d measure and paint a few rooms, then move on to other tasks, such as staffing the feeding program, assisting at a rural clinic or working with some of the children’s programs. When we were asked to survey the entire hospital as built, we were a bit surprised but were excited that they had a specific and urgent need that we could fulfill.

The reason we were given this task is because the hospital does not have a fire plan or evacuation plan. This is not out of the ordinary for Calcutta, where most old buildings have buckets of sand rather than fire extinguishers. The lack of an evacuation plan is also a concern because the city does not have great firefighting capabilities. If a fire were to occur at the hospital, it would be devastating not only from a loss of life and injury standpoint, but also could wipe out decades of trust and goodwill that the ministry has built.

The idea of surveying an entire building is daunting enough. But we haven’t been surveying empty rooms. We’ve had to climb over numerous objects – bedpans (sometimes used), wastebaskets full of syringes, nasty toilets, and patients, to measure grubby walls and grimy floors.

Architecture and engineering are not skills listed on any of our resumes, nor is math or interior design. But we’ve rolled with the punches. We’ve managed to get our work done, while taking the time to show compassion to suffering patients and overworked nurses.

Care for Calcutta