In the photography, (left) Dick Smith and his wife. Photo: FacebookThis miraculous three-day task is bound to lift your Christmas spirits.
Dick Smith, an American businessman, was traveling across India by train a few weeks ago. The train had passed a homeless family living under a bridge. The family included a young girl wearing nothing but a pink bracelet. He had taken a few pictures on his iPhone, noted down the GPS position.
Families lived under this bridge in Vadodara, Gujarat. Photo: FacebookSmith, later, asked if photographer Chris Bray and his partner Jess would be able to go to India, find this same girl as well as her family. He wanted them to help them find some suitable accommodation, secure the girl an education, buy them a basic necessities and open a bank account in her name for Dick to regularly deposit into. All of this had to be done in three days!
So how did Bray and Jess do it? The pictures say it all
(Left) Chris Bray with Dick Smith. Photo: FacebookDick Smith showed Chris and Jess the photos he had taken on his iPhone of the homeless family (including a girl wearing nothing but a pink bracelet). He said that that he spotted living under a train bridge in India a few weeks ago. Aware that they might not be there anymore and might not need or want help, he still wanted us to try.
This distant photo of the family and the Google Map location is all they had to rely upon. In a country of 1.25 billion people, trying to merely find this family was indeed an adventure in itself.
Day 1
The team had reached Vadodara, Gujarat. A receptionist girl, Jayati, was keen to try and help us, acting as our Hindi/English translator.
(Right) The receptionist named Jayati. Photo: FacebookJayati suggested before they try to find the family, they should first buy some gifts like sandles etc to make their intentions clear. But they failed to locate the family.
Day 2
Chris and Jess went to the bridge. There were many families living in the area but the two of them were unable to recognise anyone from the photos. They couldn't communicate with anyone either.
(From the right) Dr. Chellani, Chris and JessThe team became desperate. They walked into a bank to meet the bank's manager, Ratan. He had introduced Chris and Jess to Dr. Chellani, a staff at a university, who had agreed to help.
(Right) Dr. Chellani began showing the photograph of the girl and her family to the others living under the bridge. Photo: FacebookThey had begun showing the photograph around but everybody said that they couldn't recognise the family or the girl.
The man in the red Tee Shirt could recognise the girl in the photograph. Photo: FacebookBut then the team saw a man in red with a prosthetic leg, who was also in the photograph! He agreed it was him, and then others started to admit they recognised others too
They finally found the girl. Her name is Divya. Photo: FacebookFinally they had spotted the girl with the pink bracelet. Interestingly, she was still wearing the bracelet.
Divya with her family. Photo: FacebookThe team had explained the whole story to the family. The girl is named Divya and she has two brothers. One of the brothers is seven years old while the other is two years old.
Divya and her family at the Bank. Photo: FacebookDivya and her family had entered the office of Bank Manager, Ratan.
The family was told that Chris and team wanted to pay their rent, help them move into a house, educate Divya, help the father earn a better wage and help them to help themselves.
Day 3
(Left) Bank manager Ratan. Photo: FacebookChris and team wanted to open a bank account for Divya, with her mother as the guardian, so that Dick could deposit some money every month. But they didn't have the any proof of identification. They also did not have any fixed address. Interestingly, Ratan found a way to help them by opening a 'Smile' bank account. This is an initiatve for people with no proof of identification.
Divya's mother is illiterate. So the authorities had used her fingerprint in order to proceed with the application procedures at the bank. Photo: FacebookAs Divy and her mother are illiterate, an ink-pad and fingerprint were used. The forms were verified by Ratan. But the documents needed passport sized photographs of Divya and her mother.
Passport sized photographs of Divya and her mother. Photo: FacebookThey managed to find a place to take the passport photographs.
The photographs were attached to the forms by Ratan, the bank manager. Photo: FacebookThe photorgrahs were then handed to Ratan, who had attached them to the forms. The photographs were stamped as official, and the bank account was activated!
(Left) Dr. Chellani help Chris Bray draft a formal contract that is linked to the account. Photo: FacebookDr. Chellani suggested had helped Christ and Jess to write a formal contract linked to the account, specifying what the funds were allowed to be used for (Rent, and furthering the girls education), and to give them confidence that this was to be ongoing, a minimum guarantee of 2yrs of an agreed level of funding, after which it will be reviewed (although the plan is for it to be more than 10yrs). We later added a condition that Divya must attend school regularly, else the funding can be stopped (the principle will provide monthly attendance reports to Dr. Chellani, who is also a second signatory on the account, to oversee and ensure the funds are spent correctly).
The team deposited an equivalent of about three months rent into the account. Photo: FacebookWith the account open, Chris and Jess got all the account details so that Smith could regularly deposit into it. The team had also deposited the equivalent of about three months rent into the account.
The team took Divya and her family shopping. Photo: FacebookSoon after, they had taken Divya and her family shopping. They bought stationery, clothes, bags, a few utensils are other basic necessities.
(From the left) Dr. Chellani, Jess, Divya's father, Divya, Divya's mother, Chris Bray, Ratan. Photo: FacebookIndeed it has been a Merry Christmas for this young girl from Vadodara.
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