Republic Day 2009

Republic Day was celebrated on January 26, 2009 at FFC. The children put on an impressive show including yoga, dance, karate, singing and gymnastics.
The event ended with awards being presented to FFC children with for the highest marks (Nirmila and Praveen) and for outstanding general character (Jagadesh).
It was an enjoyable day for all involved.

Mini Marathon

On Sunday (23.11.08) 45 FFC children participated in the "Mini Marathon" in Coimbatore. The FFC Physical Education coaches trained the boys and girls prior to the event and they did well. The run started from Nehru stadium in Coimbatore. Manikandan and Gowripriya came in at 7th and 8th place in 3km race. They each received a medal and a certificate. After the event a spectator approached the FFC coaches, congratulated our children and said that he would like to donate sport uniforms for them. It was a fun event for all involved.

FFC School Listening Centre

The FFC School has a room called the Listening Centre, this room has many tapes and books that the children can listen to and follow in the books. This is a great way for the children to learn how to read. The children love putting on the headsets to listen to the next new book.

Special Care Section

The special care section at FFC is home to over 90 children and adults. The adults have been with us since childhood and will stay with us their entire lives. Ram Kumar our oldest special care resident is 45 years old. Each person living in the special care section is taught according to their ability. We have play group and 4 other classes where the students are taught the basics such as how to bathe and dress themselves up to how to read and write.
Some of our special care adults work in one of the training sections on the project. They receive a salary and in return pay a small room and board, this allows them to have as much independance as possible.

Harry's House

Harry's House was build with funds donated by Harry Van Nes. It is home to our small boys. They move from the toddler house to small boys house when they reach school age. The boys stay at small boys until they are 12-13 years of age after that they move across the street to the Big Boys House.
Currently there are 46 boys living at small boys. We have a wonderful house mother named Jay Mary who has been with FFC since the beginning. She has a very good influence over the boys in her care, many of them come to visit her on weekends from Big Boys House.

Diwali Celebration at FFC

Diwali is a festival celebrated by a diverse range of religions and cultures. It is commonly called the "Festival of Lights". This year it took place on October 28th.
This light is a symbol of good overcoming evil and hope for humanity. It is a time of renewal and reflection celebrated with family and friends.
The staff and children at FFC celebrated with lots of sweets and of course a display of fireworks.

FFC School

Construction of the new FFC school building is complete and the students have moved into it. Funding was provided by a group of donors in Ontario.

Mission of the FFC School:
To provide a quality education for the orphaned and special needs children living at the Families for Children (FFC) project in Podanur.

History of the School:
Beginning in 2006, Sandra Simpson, the Founder and Director of FFC, realized the project needed a small school to serve the needs of a group of about a dozen children. For various reasons, these children could not attend public school as do the majority of FFC children. The special needs of this group are primarily health issues such as being HIV positive, speech problems with repaired cleft lips, mild cerebral palsy, one with a very disfiguring congenital skin disease, one with a terminal brain disease, blindness and deafness.

Since 2006, approximately 50 other children have been admitted to our preschool and kindergarten. The majority of the original group has progressed to grade two.

The FFC Canteen Patio Grand Opening

The FFC Canteen patio had its grand opening this week! The York School student group 2008 donated the money and Katie Richards, some FFC boys and Katie's 3 brothers Kimball, John and David worked hard to have it built and beautifully decorated.

The new patio seating area frees up the cooking area and will now allow the canteen to be used as a cooking training centre for our older children. They will learn how to cook for themselves and be able prepare their own meals when they move away from FFC.

We plan to plant a kitchen garden around the patio so that the canteen can have fresh herbs available.

Thanks to York School 2008 and the Richards Family!
Canteen Patio Site Before Construction



Canteen Patio Under Construction


Canteen Patio Grand Opening

Dance Program

The Pinto Dance Academy dance with dance master Richi organized a program for FFC and other Children's Homes in Coimbatore. Jothimani, a young woman who grew up with us and still lives at FFC sang the opening song. A number of young men from FFC who are post polio also participated in the program.
Our young men and Jothimani did a great job, made lots of new friends and enjoyed themselves.
The Pinto Dance Academy donated 10,000rs to FFC at the end of the program.
A big thank you goes to the Pinto Dance Academy!

Swimming Mania!

Katie took a group of boys to a local swimming pool. They all had a wonderful time. It is a great way to spend a hot day.

Indrani's Marriage

Indrani came to FFC through childline when she was 17 yrs old. She worked at FFC in the silk project. Indrani keeps in contact with her sister who is studying in a hostel in Coimbatore.
Indrani is 23 years old now and married a young man from Coimbatore. Her husband's name is Vijay Kumar. He works in a petrol bunk as a cashier. They had a Hindu Wedding date- May 26th 2008 and the reception was at FFC. Indrani has been back to visit FFC since her wedding but seems to be happily situated in her new home.

John Graham

John Graham was born in 1983, he grew up at Families for Children. He moved out in 2000 and has been working as a cook in a hotel. He and his friends from the hotel have started to donate school books to the FFC children. They now would like to donate a special meal for each section at FFC every month. They will cook the meal themselves. This will be a real treat for the FFC children.

We are very proud that he has grown into such a responsible young man and happy to have him return to help the others. Below is a photo of John Graham and one of him donating notebooks to our older boys.