Dream A Dream

How many times have each one of us thought we wish we had someone to walk with us, help us negotiate this complex world! Well, the Dream Mentoring Programme does just that. We may or may not have had the benefit of a mentor, but sure have a chance of making that difference.

The Dream Mentoring program is now in its third year and has impacted about 80 young adults and 80 volunteers. This year, the response has been prolific and 50 pairs have been added to the program. This program is exclusively designed for Dream A Dream by Clinical Psychologists Dr. Fiona and Dave Pearson from the UK.

A glimpse of the Dream Mentoring Program just to help one answer the question about how one individual can make a lasting impression on someone else’s life.

Aiding skills, enhancing childhood and indirectly impacting the parent organization

Christine is one mentor who is excited about helping her mentee improve her English, become exposed to living in the wider society and savour the flavour of being young. On her mentee, Saraswati’s birthday, she decided to take her to Crossword. Christine gave her mentee the responsibility of managing the money for the day. Saraswati on her part was careful and did a very good job of it. Christine gifted her Pinocchio, giving her the wings of imagination. Without Christine’s mentorship, even a simple thing like going to Crossword would have eluded Saraswati. The centre where Saraswati lives usually does not prefer sending the children out of their premises, worrying that they will run away or get into trouble. But as the mentor-mentee relationship progresses outside the centre, the authorities have begun to see that the children (at least those in the program) are becoming more responsible and that providing exposure with g uidance can aid rather than corrupt these impressionable minds.

Giving life the correct direction and making a timely impact

Kishore is a young lad, an adolescent with a burst of energy. The ways he used to express himself invariably involved disturbing others, beating up people or teasing them. Punishments which involve being deprived of food were norm for him till Ramesh, his mentor, entered his life. Over the first few meetings itself Ramesh exposed Kishore to good books like “Finding Yourself in Difficult Times” and a talk about the important things in life seem to have calmed Kishore down. Reports of Kishore’s improvement from the parent organization have invigorated this relationship further. The boy who wanted to become a rowdy to beat up people to teach them a lesson, now wants to become a policeman!

Providing a reality check and a push in the right course of action

Kalavathi didn’t do as well as she had expected in her SSLC and still she wanted to take up BCom. Her neighbours and parents thought it might be good for her to start work; they lied about her age and enrolled her for an insurance training programme. Enter Sunita – she was instrumental in making Kalavathi realise that not only was it wrong to have lied about her age for the training, but also it wasn’t really her choice, going to work. Kalavathi wants to go to collge. Sunita helped her realise that a pass class may not get her into the posh college or procure her a commerce seat that she had been aspiring for. She advised her to apply to more than one college to avoid being left without a seat anywhere. Sunita also told Kalavathi that a caste certificate would get her a discount in a government college. She also provided the necessary support to procure the document. Would Kalavathi have been able to go through all this wit hout someone to help her negotiate the complex structures institutions like college and corporations?

Sonali’s mentee Shruthi expressed a desire to learn English in the formal environment of a Spoken English class. Sonali helped her visit different Spoken English classes and choose the one which would best suit her needs. Even though they found one institute that was cheaper than others and also one that seemed decent enough to meet Shruthi’s needs, the mentor made the young girl realise that Rs. 1600 a month might be a bit steep for her family. Sonali then extended a helping hand by saying she would find her a corporate sponsor, but Shruthi would have to prove that she was committed and would do justice to the course. Shruthi has asked for time to make up her mind. This young girl has learned to seek help, but also realise her responsibility towards those who help her.

Besides these, there’s always the fun times like grabbing a yummy dosa or slurping roadside chai or simply walking down the park talking of nothing in particular. Mentoring is not all fun, and not all boring either. Each relationship is unique, but equally gratifying.

To know more you can contact Anju Lavina at anju.l.dream@gmail.com

Ekta Hattangady

EKTA IS A FORMER EMPLOYEE OF DREAM A DREAM, AN ARDENT SUPPORTER, AND A MENTOR AT THE DREAM MENTORING PROGRAM. EKTA HAS BEEN A CONSTANT SOURCE OF SUPPORT, GUIDANCE AND INSPIRATION TO THE ORGANIZATION. SHE HAS COMPLETED HER MASTERS IN SOCIAL WORK FROM TATA INSTITUTE OF SOCIAL SCIENCES (TISS) AND CURRENTLY WORKS AT EDUCATION INITIATIVES, AHMEDABAD.

11 children from our Dream Rugby Programme were in the under 16 Karnataka probables list. They have been practicing with children from other premier international schools for two months. On October 28^th the final squad was announced and six boys from the Dream Rugby Programme made it to the squad. The six boys are Tamim, Yelappa, Nandish, Rakshith, Manja and Ranjith.

The Karnataka Rugby and Football Union is trying to schedule matches with teams from Pune and Srilanks before the grand finale – The Nationals. The National Inter-state Rugby championship is taking part in Orissa from December 9^th to 12^th. According to Coach Dave Armstrong, “We have a very strong team and the minimum I am expecting is a top 4 finish, if not winning the nationals.”

KRFU had organized a meet with the parents of the squad members on 1^st November to brief them about the tournament and take the children into confidence. 3 of our children with single parent couldn’t bring their parent as they work as domestic help and couldn’t take holiday even on this Sunday.

This selection opens up great opportunity for the six children. The National selectors will be in attendance at the tournament. These children for whom pursuing a sport was unthinkable, are now getting a chance to showcase their talent at the National level. The best thing is most of the 6 boys are in their 8^th standard and are 13 or 14 years old. This means they still have 2 to 3 years to play at this level and improve the game and they have a real chance of making it to the next level.

Dream a Dream’s goal is not making children excel in sports but we are committed to promoting promising talent in our programmes. We are very happy and excited for the 6 boys and wish them all the very best for the Nationals.

- Rakesh Kumar N (Programme Champion, Sports)

When I was a kid, I remember reading about the explorer David Livingstone and day dreaming about one day becoming an explorer like him and discover a new world. I had cooked up stories of perilous expeditions and achievement. For days, I lived like David Livingstone in my heart. I wonder what happened to the dream of being an explorer in me.

As a ten-year old, I was fascinated by the characters in Asterix comics and would read each book many times over borrowed from my neighbourhood library. The characters of Asterix, Obelix, Cacofonix, Vitalstatistix and Getafix kept me entertained for days on end. I started making pencil sketches of these characters and soon I had an entire drawing book full of Asterix characters. My treasured gift to me. I loved making pencil sketches of cartoon characters and the joy I experienced everytime I made a drawing is inexplicable. It’s probably been 3-4 years since I last made a pencil drawing.

In the rigmarole of daily living, do we ever stop to realize our dreams? Do we ever stop to wonder ‘What makes us Happy’? Or is it a question we have forgotten to ask ourselves?

In this festive season, Dream A Dream brings to you an opportunity to realize your long-cherished dream. Do something that makes you immensely happy and also in realizing your dream – you now have the opportunity to help a child at Dream A Dream realize their dreams.

The Joy of Realizing Dreams is a unique fundraising and community engagement campaign being organized by Dream A Dream. It is a 3 month long campaign from October 2, 2009 to December 24, 2009.

The Joy of Realizing Dreams encourages you to do that one small thing you’ve always wanted to do or can do, and in doing so, help children from vulnerable backgrounds, who face larger struggles to realize dreams like – an education, to pursue his/her favourite sport, or talent in arts.

If you always wanted to paint – go ahead and make 10 pieces of your painting, sell it to you friends and contribute the funds to Dream A Dream.

If you always wanted to learn cooking or love cooking – host a dinner for your family and friends, ask them to make a contribution for the dinner and donate those funds to Dream A Dream. Here is your chance to fulfill your long-cherished dream to dance, travel, trek, cycle, volunteer or whatever else it is and be assured that you are helping another child realize their dreams.

The Joy of Realizing Dreams is based on the belief that involvement with charity work could be fun, engaging and extremely fulfilling for an individual and extends beyond just giving money.

I have decided to go back to my passion for pencil drawing and I will be making 15 drawings from the Asterix comic series. I will sell them to my friends and raise money for Dream A Dream.

What dream would you like to realize?

For more details, go to http://dreamathon.wordpress.com

Vishal Talreja
Co-founder & Director
Dream A Dream

Dream A Dream has completed 6-months of its Financial Year 2009-10 (April-September) and we thought it’s a good time to reflect on what has been achieved in the year so far and also communicate our achievements to our stakeholders – YOU.

The last six months have been nothing short of exhilarating at Dream A Dream and as we celebrate some of our achievements, we continue to humbly realize that we are still just about touching the tip of the ice-berg and renew our commitment to our vision.

Our Vision

Empowering children from vulnerable backgrounds by developing life skills and at the same time sensitizing the community through active volunteering leading to a non-discriminatory society where unique differences are appreciated.

Highlights of the last six months

1. Reaching out to 9 NGO Partners impacting over 1178 children through regular life skills development programs
2. Impact 644 Boys and 534 Girls through our programs
3. Average attendance in all our regular programs is about 88% showing the tremendous interest in the various life skills programs
4. Actively engaging over 648 community volunteers who have contributed over 6600 volunteer hours
5. Continue to run and build strengths in our 5 core life skills development programs – Sports, Creative Arts, Mentoring, LearnIT and Adventure.
6. Dream A Dream has 17 people on the rolls working to provide a meaningful experience to children and volunteers alike
7. Ms. Hema Hattangady, Managing Director – Schneider Electric Conzerv India Pvt Ltd and Mr. Bhasker Sharma, Director Operations – Mformation Technologies Inc. have joined the Board of Trustees of Dream A Dream
8. Dream A Dream has established an Advisory Board in UK which includes Arvind Malhotra, Ed Williams, Pierina Arul and Rajesh Gandhi – all of them long-term supporters, volunteers and contributors to Dream A Dream.
9. Dream A Dream has been able to raise 50% of its Funding requirements for the FY 2009-10. Our key supporters include NIKE India, WNS Services, Hans Foundation, ERSF-UK, TPI amongst others.
10. Dream A Dream has revamped its website with a new look and updated content – www.dreamadream.org and also enhanced its online presence through our own Twitter, Blog, Youtube and Facebook pages.

Finally, our success lies in the impact that we have had on every single person who has come in contact with Dream A Dream and we leave you with a few reflections from a volunteer and a child.

“I really look forward to the mentoring program. Everyone thinks we are useless and rowdy. No adult has ever come to us and said we would like to be your friend. I feel happy when I think of that. Dream A Dream really cares for children like me.” ~ A child in the Dream Mentoring Program

“An example of how I love their spirit is one day the girls forgot the cones that they use as goal posts in the auto rickshaw. The kids didn’t even pause for a moment- they got coconut shells and played with those as goals instead. I also came across problems like the cows on the field that I would never ever imagine happening in the United States. We played around cows sometimes, which was kind of funny to me! Nothing kept these kids from playing, not even rain. One day it was pouring and we all got soaked, but we played anyway. They only get to play football three days a week, and they were so enthusiastic about it that I had to be enthusiastic as well! They played in the rain until a teacher came out and told them to come inside.”

~ Aisha, Volunteer

Thank you for your continued support and belief in us. It means a lot to us and gives us the strength to stay focused on our vision.

Ali Oh Baba is the third production in the partnership between Dream A Dream and Bangalore Little Theatre. The partnership commitment to an annual fundraising theatrical production is aimed at combining wholesome family entertainment with social development objectives. All proceeds of this play go towards programs of Dream A Dream for children from vulnerable backgrounds.

In the past two years, we’ve had two shows from Indian folklore, The Ungrateful Man (2007) and The Magic Drum (2008). Bangalore audiences have witnessed highly creative and vibrant performances in the past which was extremely well received by children and adults alike. We promise you the same magic on stage in this year’s production of Ali Oh Baba!

This year’s production, Ali Oh Baba is an original adaptation for the stage by Bangalore Little Theatre and is a contemporary adaptation of tales from the all time classic ‘One Thousand and One Arabian Nights’. The story unfolds on the stage in the form of day dreams of a little boy discovering the 1001 Arabian Nights. He and his friend, a little girl, share their discoveries with the children in the audience through games, narratives, song and dance. In the process the key figures in the 1001 Arabian nights are also drawn into the play. The two friends manage to narrate the entire tale without bringing Ali Baba on stage.

As in the past, BLT culminates its prestigious annual workshop with a play for the partnership with Dream A Dream. The production is being written, played and produced by the Bangalore Little Theatre – the city’s oldest and widely respected theatre society. This production is jointly directed by Shashank Purushotam and Priya Venkatesh, assisted by Vijay Padaki.

This year the magic of Ali Oh Baba unfolds on stage from October 29^th to November 1^st at Gurunanak Bhavan, Vasanth Nagar (Next to Karnataka Badminton Association), Bangalore. We have special shows for schools in the mornings and public shows in the evenings at 7.30 pm with additional shows at 11.00 am and 3.00 pm during the weekend. Tickets are available at www.indianstage.in and you can call 9880036611 for any queries. More details at www.aliohbaba.com.

Please join us and spread the word to make this event a huge success to help realize dreams of children from vulnerable backgrounds

Jeeno has been interning with us for over 3-months. Coming from a background in PR and having worked with The PRactice, Jeeno was keen to explore opportunities in the social sector. From the very first day Jeeno has been a tremendous source of inspiration to us at Dream A Dream. As an intern, he has jumped into planning and organizing two of our biggest events with ease. Be it putting up with the high-energy at the office or managing the workload, Jeeno has, in his own quiet way, brought an air of excitement by helping us launch the Joy of Realizing Dreams campaign and helping out with making the play public.

Starting with a few unsure steps, Jeeno has quickly moulded into an inspiring changemaker. In his own words, “I actually stumbled upon Dream a Dream. My former boss had referred me to Dream A Dream when I was looking to work or intern with an NGO and so I joined Dream A Dream as an intern with the communications and fundraising team. I wasn’t quite sure if I was at the right place and couldn’t connect with the dots for the first few days, till I attended a few sessions of creative arts and sports programs. I now see how every piece of an NGO can lead up to the larger picture for change in the lives of these children. So yes, I’m glad I was a part of that effort.”

Jeeno’s energy and drive comes from – The people, the silliness and the simple humour of everyday at work. Knowing that the small things he does, could in a small way contribute to helping a child realize his or her potential.

The experience has also been tremendously introspective for Jeeno as he reflects, “I guess it did reclaim a certain amount of awareness of ordinary things in life I may have taken for granted in the rush to move ahead in my career, some things you lose track of in the everyday of corporate life. I think it may have helped me introspect a little more about things I do and what I could possibly do to change things around me or help someone in need.”

Dream A Dream has become richer with the contributions of Jeeno and thanks him immensely for this time, skills and energy. We wish him all the very best and hope that he continues to impact and enrich lives with his volunteering efforts. You can congratulate him on jeeno.philip.jacob@gmail.com

It gives us tremendous pleasure to announce that Dream A Dream is one of the 5 short-listed organizations for the Japanese Award for the Most Innovative Development Project.

2009 Global Development Awards and Medals Competition
Top five semi-finalists announced for the Japanese Award for the Most Innovative Development Project

GDN is pleased to announce the top five semi-finalists in contention for the Japanese Award for Most Innovative Development Project. Over 200 submissions were received in this category. GDN would like to thank all applicants for their interest and participation. Finalists will be announced in the month of December.

The top five semi-finalists (listed alphabetically) are:

· “Cyclic Incubator for Rural Co-op” by Liangshuming Rural Reconstruction Center (China)

· “Empowering Refugees through Sustainable Technology” by Border Green Energy Team (Thailand)

· “Empowering Vulnerable Children through Life Skills” by Dream A Dream (India)

· “Non Formal Education for Out-of-School children” by The Society for Door Step School (India)

· “The Financially Self-Sufficient School” by Fundacion Paraguaya (Paraguay)

These projects are being implemented in Latin America; South Asia; and East Asia. They cover different development issues ranging from education, income-generation activities and migrant issues.

The Japanese Award for Most Innovative Development Project is a competitive grant program administered by GDN that identifies and funds innovative, early-stage projects with high potential for development impact in developing and transition countries. Finalists win a round-trip air fare with all boarding and lodging expenses paid to travel to GDN’s Annual Global Development Conference where they present their on-project before an eminent jury for the final round and win cash prizes. This year the final selection will be held in Prague, Czech Republic.

For more details, visit http://www.gdnet.org/cms.php?id=2009_awards_top_proposal_announcement

There were colors,

and smiles.

there were gifts,

and designs.

A few light fireworks,

for young and the old,

and there were lights

big and small.

Even if you are away from home, Diwali cannot be spent alone. Just cannot.

Hope you all had a bright Diwali.

Rani Rege, Volunteer

Dream A Dream and Bangalore Little Theatre are back with another fun filled entertainer for everybody. In the last two years, we have had a great time producing two shows for you from Indian folkfore, The Magic Drum and The Ungrateful Man. This year from the land of all things magical, we bring you ‘Ali Oh Baba!’.

Ali Oh Baba is a retelling of the all time favourite tale of Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves. The story unfolds on the stage in the form of day dreams of a little boy discovering the 1001 Arabian Nights. He and his friend, a little girl, share their discoveries with the children in the audience through games, narratives, song and dance.

This year’s production of Ali Oh Baba will serve the dual purposes of encouraging theatre appreciation among Bangalore communities and raising funds for Dream A Dream’s programs which empower children from vulnerable backgrounds. This play is jointly directed by Shashank Purushotam and Priya Venkatesh, assisted by Vijay Padaki.

Come join us in the fun from October 29^th to November 1^st at Gurunanak Bhavan, Vasanthnagar, Bangalore. Tickets are priced at Rs. 100 and are available at www.indianstage.in for purchase or you call 9880036611 for home delivery of tickets and phone bookings.

Support Dream A Dream and help realize 2000 dreams!