It is a year since Zakir took over officially as Director of Bhola’s Children Protibondi School, now renamed Bhola’s Children Special School – Bangladesh (BCSB). Anne and I were delighted with what he has achieved. The atmosphere in the boundary was excellent, everything indoors and out was neat and tidy, and  the staff seemed happy – although stretched to their limits since we now have 53 children – 31 boys and 22 girls. We urgently need another teacher and a full-time labourer to help Dipok and Iqbal.

My great joy was seeing our three deaf boys Ahasan Ullah, Hassain and Sharadat going off to the secondary school having passed their exams. 

Zakir’s improvements to the boundary are good. The Director’s accommodation on the roof of the tailoring building is excellent. The able-bodied boys all sleep in the old tailoring room, those with mobility problems have a room on the ground floor. Asma seems very happy to use the old physio room for tailoring, and physio next to the entrance works very well. We now have a visitors’ door with a bell so the gates don’t need to be opened  and  a small waiting room. Faruk is pleased with his doorman’s office. The girls all sleep on first and second floors of the hostel, with Shefali and Sima as house mothers. We noticed how quiet it was in the early mornings without the boys below!

We had a very friendly and productive Committee meeting early in the week, with all our BCSB trustees present. They are a really helpful, intelligent and influential group of men – but we hope to have a woman on board soon. We agreed a new Memorandum of Understanding which Shawkat and I signed later in the week. They have asked to use our logo, which of course pleases us and new letter heading has been designed.

We have a new DC (District Commissioner) with whom we had a useful meeting. Unlike the previous very unpopular man (Freda and I had experience there!) he saw us promptly, was extremely charming and positive about our work, and visited us on Saturday morning. He has only just arrived in Bhola and told me it was his first official visit. As well as a tour of the boundary and a dance show by Sima and the girls, he and I laid the foundation bricks for the wall around the land I bought only about 8 years ago, and for which  the dispute has been settled at last!  It has been named Goyal Ghar which means cowshed, although I see it more as a pasture. The wall is being built now and we hope to have cows in residence next year!  

The vegetables in Valumia are spectacular. I have never known the land looking so tidy (that goes for the gardens in the boundary too) and so productive. Kamal is doing a great job and has become a valued member of the family.

Zakir and I work well together, which meant we got all the business out of the way early in the week so we could all enjoy ourselves later. We had the usual sports day and I won my first ever prize – third in musical chairs against the female staff, Anne and Zakir’s wife Neera!! The picnic was not the usual ordeal: due to a wonderful thunderstorm one night and heavy rains, which cleared the air, most of the river banks were muddy, and the women said taking food to cook outside was no picnic for them! Instead we all had an excellent lunch together at home, dressed in our best. We then piled into microbus and tractor trailer – Ronazid kindly drove the latter, it being a Friday – and went to a river bank where the boys swam. Zakir found a little motorised sailing boat which we ladies boarded for a trip up the river. Games afterwards, and everyone thought the day was a great success.

Surma weds!

When Surma was ten, she refused the advances of an older boy and he threw acid in her face. She survived although for some years she didn’t want to go on living, until she fell in love with a distant cousin Bacchu. They had a little boy, whom we call Babu, who is nearly ten. Bacchu came to live in Bhola Garden, where he was a hard worker responsible for agriculture and market.

Unfortunately Bacchu was led astray by one of our older students, whom he has married. We miss Bacchu as a worker, but he now employed in a similar institution some way away.

We were delighted to learn that Surma has found a new husband. It was a second marriage for both, so the wedding was a low-key affair but Surma looks very happy and her new husband seems nice. We wish them much happiness.

Bhola’s Family - by Freda Graf

It was great to return to our home for disabled and orphaned children on Bhola Island and to find there was a great feeling of a family again.  Everyone is much happier and working well together.

Our new Director has created an effective team and the staff responds to him extremely well.  Zakir’s family fit in very naturally and Neera (Zakir’s wife) has a good relationship with the staff.  It is a happy place to be and like all families they have their arguments but Zakir is kind but firm in keeping discipline.

Our new Housemother, Shefali appears to be a very positive member of staff, firm and slightly aloof which is what is needed to cope with the tittle-tattle that inevitably goes on. Shefali is responsible for the kitchen, cooking and buying produce although all the staff and some of the children help with the preparation of the meals. She manages the kitchen quietly and efficiently. She is responsible for the smaller children but needs help with the older girls who can be very naughty.

A number of new children of different ages, with a variety of disablements have joined us. They have settled very well into the home and have become part of the family. It is not difficult to find new children because there are many disabled children on Bhola. This is sadly due to the poor level of maternity services and the prevalence of first cousin marriages.

I attended a very positive meeting with the Bangladeshi Trustees, where many issues relating to the home were discussed. It was good to welcome two new Trustees, an ex headmaster of the local school and a Principal of the local college who has recently retired. Both the new Trustees are very interested in the home and are well respected members of the community. Zakir hosted a barbecue for the Trustees and staff to meet together. He is an excellent chef and it was a very enjoyable and positive evening.

My visit coincided with the celebration of Cow Cutting Eid, which was a fascinating experience for me. I had images of blood everywhere and it being a rather unpleasant situation, however I have never seen such a clean and gentle killing of an animal. It was done in such a humane way and I found the subsequent butchering fascinating but then I am a nurse and it was so much cleaner that working in the operating theatre!

The Boundary (the home and garden) is looking smart and has been cleaned up since our last visit. The main buildings have been washed; in fact I thought they had been painted. The vegetable gardens have been organised and have been divided into rows. Groups of boys have responsibility for weeding and caring for the crops. New concrete pathways have been made around the side of the campus and some vegetation has been removed to protect the boundary wall. The boys and staff under the direction of Zakir have done all the work.

It was my first experience of visiting during the monsoon, although it should have ended before I arrived. Yes, it is wet and when it rains – it is a downpour. I will never grumble again about our heavy showers! The humidity is very exhausting especially when it stops raining and the sun comes out!  I shouldn’t complain as I was only there for a short time. Consequently, much of the land at Valumia was under water but it won’t be long before the new planting will start.

It was wonderful to see how the home was moving forward under the excellent leadership of Zakir. It was the best visit I have had and it was very positive to hear Zakir’s plans for the future especially with the ideas for the rehabilitation of the older children.

New website and Director for Bholas Children as Ali Retires

Welcome back to our new website which we have updated to reflect the changes in Bhola.

Ali turned 62 in March and decided it was time to let a younger man take Bhola’s Children forward. We were lucky enough to persuade Zakirul Haque, whom we have known for many years, to join us as our new director.

Here he is with his wife and two daughters. As soon as we have created appropriate accommodation, they will join us in Bhola.

Meanwhile we now have a strong local committee, with whom we work closely. The Managing Trustee was a Lt. Colonel in the Bangladesh army who, on retirement, set up a successful life assurance company.

He speaks perfect English, as does Zakirul, so telephone conversations are now easier. He is known to his friends as Manik. He and his wife, and another trustee, have all been in London for a few days which gave us an opportunity for a very productive Trustees Meeting.

 

On Sunday we had Open House here in Cornwall Grove, so that as many donors as possible could meet Manik. Luckily it stopped raining just in time for us to lunch in the garden.

Freda runs for Bhola's Children

Yesterday our wonderful trustee Freda, who has not done any serious running before, completed the 10 k run in Regent’s Park in aid of Bhola’s Children. To date she has raised over £800 for our charity. Back in Bhola, our children ran at the same time. They sent their good wishes. Here is Freda’s account of her marathon: As you may be aware, the date of my momentous running event coincided with the arrival of a certain Hurricane Bertha. It was thus with some trepidation that we arrived at Regents Park this morning. Running with umbrellas (or 'borrowing' bin bags from the friendly street cleaner we passed en route) was contemplated, but it was soon all too apparent that we would not have been wetter had we decided to swim to the start and thus all further attempts to stay dry were futile. However team morale was as high as the water level, and with a determination and stride pattern that Mo Farah would have been proud of, we set off only a mere 20 minutes after most of the field (as you know punctuality is not our strongest event). In fact Amy started so late that the 'start' line had been turned into the 'finish' and thus when she tried to cross the line she was accosted by a somewhat irritable race organiser. It only dawned on us later that had she been allowed to she would had inadvertently 'won' the race! With true courage in the face of adversity (some would say akin to that of the Jamaican sprint relay team in Glasgow) we battled on against fierce winds and thrashing rain overcoming everything that Hurricane Bertha could throw at us. A strong 'sprint' finish resulted in a 'Team Graf' personal best time of 1 hour 24 minutes. As you might suspect we are expecting to hear from the Olympic GB selection team in the next few days regarding our availability for Rio. Joking apart there was no way on earth you would have got me running around a flooded Regents Park for an hour and a half without knowing I had all your support behind me. Your generosity has humbled me and will make the pain I endure getting out of bed tomorrow (when my entire body has stiffened up in protest to today's exertions) seem completely worthwhile. The children in the home at Bhola went running at the same time as my run in support of our effort. I am sure their run was equally as wet with the added discomfort of the heat. Many thanks again for your support Freda “just call me Mo” Graf PS I couldn’t have done any of this without the support of my Team – a big thank you to Bethan and Amy

Allan's report on his first visit

I found my first visit to Bangladesh and to Bhola an extremely exciting and happy adventure. Ali greeted and welcomed me on arrival at the airport and in the first few hours I experienced travel by rickshaw, auto rickshaw taxi and by evening overnight ferry – fantastic! The care and attention given to us by Ali continued when we arrived at Bhola’s children. Thanks also to experienced travelers Anne and Simon who helped guide me through the many wonderful experiences in Bangladesh. Highlights of my trip included being with the children at Bhola, their warmth and friendly nature only exceeded by their energy, fitness and agility. I loved the morning run and brisk walks with the children. Several exercises as warm up routines seemed to go down well with the boys and lost little in translation. Together we played cricket, catch and a game of ‘footie’ - all in temperatures of 30+ degrees! Trips out with the children were a great experience. The willingness of the children to help and support each other was impressive. Peer guidance and order seemed to come naturally to the group, demonstrated by everyone helping to load breakfast onto vehicles that would transport us to Valumia. Here, in what we might call a garden or allotment site, we were served an al fresco breakfast in a lovely, tranquil environment. One of my most vivid memories is of the Bhola boys and girls climbing trees and positioning themselves on high branches for their picture to be taken. Their fantastic fitness and agility gave me some wonderful, colorful pictures. Allan Gall April 2014.

Anne's report on her recent visit

Back in Bhola 8th – 15th April 2014. We arrived in Bhola early on the morning of the 9th April. At this stage, it’s a homecoming for me as I’ve been to Bangladesh a dozen times; Simon at 3-and-a half is on his second visit, and for Allan, a fundraiser and supporter, also from Scotland, it was his first time anywhere in SE Asia – it was a great introduction. After the thrill of a ride in our new auto-rickshaw, the children, armed with Bangla flags and bright flowers, were on hand to greet us – a wonderful, warm welcome for all three of us, but clearly Simon was the one they were waiting for… He had a fantastic time playing with the ‘big boys’ and was using sign language in no time; it took him longer to accept the girls as they were, apparently, a bit ‘kissy’! Allan, a marathon-runner, was accompanied on his early morning runs by up to 10 boys in flip-flops, on other days Ali led them in a brisk walk. It was a pleasure to see so many new faces amongst the familiar ones. A couple of the younger girls had only just arrived and were busily settling in, whereas old friends had – just as they do in all families – grown up and moved on. Not moved too far though: we spoke to Tasnur and Dilruba, and met Maksud in the street. Everyone appeared to be healthy and in good spirits. The older children are going daily to the local primary school. It’s not easy for anyone, as they don’t have an interpreter, but they are persevering, and signing and lip-reading classes continue in the boundary. There was much singing and dancing too – there always is – and cricket was the name of the game most evenings. Official awareness programmes and day-long picnics were shelved for this visit, given the average temperatures of 35 degrees, but we managed trips to Valumia (the new access road is shaping up and the pond is being dug out - very slow and hot work), Supari Bagan, the river, the second bridge – for the sunset – and Bhola town. One highlight was the ‘water melon’ trip: Ali, the three of us, 32 staff and children, and twenty gigantic watermelons on an outing in the tractor/trailer combo. With the crowds that followed, there was certainly plenty of unofficial awareness-raising! Our last day coincided with the Bangladeshi New Year and Nahian’s ninth birthday, so an evening party, with Ali’s signature dish of ‘sweet rice’ – and when the Bangladeshi’s call something sweet, they really mean it – and a lot of fun and games. There were the usual types of challenges! The new air conditioner on the third floor caused the electrics to fuse and added to the thrice daily power-cuts… Eventually the very tenacious electrician triumphed (at 11pm) and the system, used sparingly, is a nice addition. The microbus kept breaking down due to the lack of clean fuel but again was eventually fixed and fixed again. But on the upside, the brand new gas supply, promised to Bhola Island for years, finally arrived. This long-awaited main-line gas means there is a viable alternative to the outdoor wood-fire method of cooking, which is welcome during the hottest days and the wettest monsoon. On the plane on the way home, Simon asked me, wistfully, if he could, please, have four big brothers, ‘just like my new friends in Bhola.’ Clearly, Ali and Bhola’s Children worked their usual magic on all of us and I remembered over again why this is such a very special place and part of my very extended family. I would say it was one of the best of visits ever… except that I say that every time! Anne Hamilton 08/05/14