Joshua Care Centre

The steep mountainside area around Joshua Care Centre within the city of Kodaikanal is called Kallukulil. Joshua Care Centre is located on the second floor of a two-story building and has two rooms for activities, a small kitchen, a bathroom, and a small outside play area.

A Day at Joshua Care Centre, Kallukulil, Tamil Nadu

The 30 children in the Early Childhood program (ages 3-5) begin arriving at 8:30 am, bundled up against the morning cold. Every day begins and ends with prayer. The children are taught scripture verses, action songs, Bible and morality stories and how to pray. During the day they also learn discipline, basic hygiene, and correct social interactions with staff and fellow students as well as numbers and the alphabet. Play is included as part of their days, with dancing, music and drama being their favorites. They are fed two nutritious meals every day along with healthy snacks. Were you to visit, you would be treated to dances, songs and recitations of the Lord’s Prayer, the books of the Bible and Bible verses. When the children’s parents pick them up at 4:30 pm, they are very grateful that their children have spent the day in the protective care of The Bethania Foundation India TM.

When the children graduate from the Early Childhood Program and begin school, they return to Joshua Care Centre from 4:30 to 6:30 pm for After-School Care. This ensures the 40 children (ages 6-14) continue in the healthy habits they already learned and that they will succeed in school. They are fed a snack, get help with their schoolwork from the two teachers on staff, play music, and continue to hear of God’s love for them.

Medical Help

In July 2012, the FIMRC (Foundation for International Medical Relief for Children) began to provide weekly medical services to the children of Joshua Day Care Centre. Mr. Arun Selvaraj, the Director of FIMRC, Dr. Arun Kolhatker, a local physician and orthopedic surgeon, and the FIMRC medical team is assisted by the staff of Joshua Day Care and After-School Care in conducting medical examinations of the children. Minor sicknesses such as colds, coughs and fever are treated at the centre while more major problems are referred to appropriate hospitals depending on the nature of the ailments.

Serving the Needs of the Community

On the recommendation of the staff, the FIMRC team under the leadership of Mr. Arun Selvaraj, has provided smokeless chimneys to 60 village houses. These smokeless chimneys carry the smoke from cooking fires outside the house, creating a far healthier environment and reducing the incidence of chronic respiratory problems, especially among the children. In the parent meetings held by the staff of Joshua Care Centre, the importance of education is stressed, and now every child in the community is educated. There are teachers, lab technicians, electricians, pastors and hotel management personnel among those who have benefitted from the services of The Bethania Foundation India TM. The importance of the toilet facility is also stressed in parent meetings, and now in the Kallukulil area each house has a toilet.

Curriculum

The Day Care curriculum is primarily activity-based, and the children enjoy learning. The children are taught songs, Bible verses, rhymes, numbers and the alphabet. They have regular games and extra-curricular activities. Their performance in local celebrations is stunning! When the children reach 5 years of age, they graduate from Day Care and go to government-run local schools where the medium of instruction is the Tamil language and the fees are affordable. The children who graduate from the Day Care are confident, focused and leaders in their schools.

Meet a Child from Joshua Care Centre: Kathiline Maria Benita

Three-year-old Kathiline Maria Benita is typical of the children who attend Joshua Care Centre. Living in severe poverty, when she first came to Joshua Care Centre she was lethargic, sad, and underweight with multiple health problems. Temper tantrums were her primary method of communication, with the result that she would often hurt herself and others. With the loving and compassionate care of our staff, nutritious food and medical treatment, she is now gaining weight and showing positive behavioral changes. She plays well with the other children and shows interest in learning and interacting with others. Because of The Bethania Foundation India TM’ Joshua Care Centre and the support and sponsorship of people like you, Kathiline’s life has been transformed.