Fourteen-year-old Usha Madhu is today a happy, thriving student who dreams of being an engineer. However, her life was not always easy. Usha says her father was always drunk and that he treated her and her younger sister very badly. Usha’s mother passed away after her younger sister was born, and the girls were shunted between the homes of relatives as no one was willing to take care of them in the long term.
To help keep the children safe and give them a good education, Usha’s uncle enrolled her sister and her in the Swami Dayananda AIM for Seva Chatralaya for Girls in Yelahanka, Karnataka. Today, Usha is in class 8 at Viveka Balamandir School and is doing well in her studies. She says, “I have not seen my father since I left our village in Andhra Pradesh. This is my home, and I am guided and encouraged to study well here. My sister and I get nutritious meals. We read the newspaper every day and do a lot of arts and crafts as well. I’m very happy we came to this hostel. We share a special bond with the 41 girls living in this hostel, and we enjoy every single day.”