Christmas is a time for celebration and unlimited fun. Children all over the world eagerly wait for their beautifully wrapped Christmas presents. The stark reality, however, is that there are millions of children around the world who are deprived of this experience because they are from poor backgrounds and cannot afford to celebrate Christmas.
Slum children usually just watch others celebrating the occasion. Realising their plight, members of the Bhubaneswar-based RED E Pathsala try their best to bring the joy and light of Christmas into the lives of such underprivileged children by carrying gifts for them, some of them even donning the guise of Santa Claus every year. The slum kids not only enjoy the celebration to the fullest, they get the opportunity to participate in games and win prizes.
With Christmas approaching, Sunday POST meets the young volunteers who leave no stone unturned to make the day a special one for the underprivileged children.
Slum children often spend their days doing household chores, fetching water and supplementing the family’s income. So, the members of RED E Pathsala make it a point to be with them on Christmas Day. They play and sing with them so that they have an enjoyable day.
“Christmas is around the corner and it’s that special time when we offer gifts to our family and friends. We would love to share this special feeling with the slum kids by having a joyful celebration. We sing and dance with them, share food and celebrate the birth of Jesus. The children are excited as only they can be, and we make them feel included,” says Sonali Priyadarshini Swain who is the founder of the organisation.
Sonali, a civil engineer by profession, explains how she came up with the idea of celebrating Christmas with slum kids. “When I was posted in Chennai for a short period by my company on an assignment, I noticed the difference between Chennai-based primary school students and the primary school students of our state.
Here, many of the students enrolled in government primary schools belong to slums. They have an untidy appearance and in their pale faces you cannot find a spark. There was a primary school near my home in Bhubaneswar, and I used to see these children every day.
During my stay in Chennai, I saw the students of agovernment-run school. They wore neat clothes and were never without shoes. It was then that I thought of doing something for the underprivileged kids here. Though I had been celebrating Christmas and other important occasions like Children’s Day, Gandhi Jayanti, and Ganesh Puja with these kids since 2012, I started doing it in a more organised manner after forming RED E in 2015.”
Sonali continues: “Apart from celebrating festivals with them, we teach them so that they can join the mainstream. Jalimundasahi slum and Nalco slum are the two places where our members teach slum kids everyday for two hours. In spite of the enforcement of the Rights to Education Act, hundreds of kids don’t have access to proper education. Our aim is to reach out to as many of them as possible, with the help of our volunteers.”
Priyabrata Satpathy, treasurer of the outfit, says, “Our volunteers take secret Santa gifts and sweets for the children. We sing and dance to the tunes of Christmas songs and make it an occasion to remember for the children. We also visit old-age homes and spend time with the inmates. We try to make them happy by organisingan entertaining programme. It’s our effort to touch many more lives every Christmas.”
On how he joined RED E Pathsala, Priyabrata says, “I am from Jagatsinghpur. I completed my primary education from a government school. I went through many hardships to complete my education. Seeing the Instagram postings of Sonali, I contacted her to become an active member of her voluntary organisation. I feel good that I am able to do something for these kids.”
Recalling a touching incident, he says, “We went to Khandagiribari slum on Christmas last year. Apart from chocolates and gifts, we distributed text books. A Class VI student came to me, smiling.He said, ‘I asked my father many times to get me these two books, but my father was unable to buy them as he did not have the money. Now I will top in my class as you have got me the books. You are my Santa Claus.”
Dharitri Sahoo, who is preparing for competitive exams and is a member of RED E, says, “I was a good student. We siblings were living a happy life. Our life took a U-turn when our father incurred losses in his business. We had to sell our property and move to our village. I was sent to a relative’s house to complete my education.
I stayed there as a paying guest. From an early age, I started coaching junior students so that I could get money to buy study materials and other essential things. It was then that I realised the plight of slum kids who are deprived of the basic necessities of life. I always wanted to do something for such kids.
I remember I was at a marriage party when my brother told me about RED E Pathsala. Without giving it a second thought, I contacted Sonali and joined the organisation.”
She adds: “Whatever I earn from tuitions, I give 10 per cent for the cause. If I get a job, I will share a hefty amount for the upliftment of such kids. Christmas is a special time when children get presents from family and friends. Thus, we make sure that these kids too get gifts from Santa. Some of us dress up as Santa and we visit slums and old-age homes. The smile on the faces of the happy kids is priceless. We usually give gifts which can be used in their education.”
Biswabhusan Behera, a civil engineer, has dedicated his life for the well-being of such kids. He says, “We are a few like-minded people who choose to spend our Christmas holiday organising and participating in celebratory events for the underprivileged children living in the Jalimundasahi and Nalco slums. We give them goodies and help them enjoy the festival with zest. Our aim is not to just celebrate each festive occasion. We also provide daily tuitions to these children and teach them how to live with dignity.”
Biswabhusan continues: “My father was a peon and it was almost impossible for him to bear the educational expenses of his four children with his meagre salary of Rs 1,200. As he was the sole breadwinner and only son of his parents, he had to look after so many things. It was my grandmother who bore our study-related expenses by selling cow milk. I am an engineer, my elder sister is a schoolteacher, my elder brother is a mechanical engineer in the Defence Research Development Organisation and my youngest sister is pursuing graduation, all because of our grandmother.
Thus, I feel bad when I come across slum kids who are leading a life of deprivation. It was my dream to do something for such kids. When I heard about RED E pathsala, I joined it without hesitation.”
“Though the state government has launched a slew of schemes for the betterment of such children, the kids as well as their parents are unaware of them and fail to take advantage. Apart from teaching them, we also ensure that we make them aware about different welfare schemes meant for them. We not only help them complete schooling, we also provide aid to students to pursue higher studies,” Biswabhusan adds.
About Christmas celebrations, Biswabhusan says, “When I was a kid, I had a dream to get presentsfrom Santa which was never fulfilled. However, now we try to fulfill such dreams of slum kids. We reach the slums early morning, some of us dressed up as Santa, and surprise them with gifts. We make their day a fun-filled one. Besides, we spend some time at an old-age home to bring some happiness into the lives of elderly persons residing there. We organise different interesting programmes and competitions for them. So, Christmas is a fun-filled day for us, slum children and elderly citizens.”
Shakti Suman Choudhury, also a civil engineer, says, “I was a student of Sonali ma’am. I used to follow her Facebook posts regularly and it motivated me to join her organisation. Generally, slum children have a difficult childhood. They start working early in the morning and go on till late in the evening.
Sometimes, the children are given the additional responsibility of looking after their younger siblings and cannot go to school. We have started an initiative to bring positive changes in their lives. Apart from educating them and celebrating festivals with them, we teach them how to make handicraft items using waste material.”
About Christmas celebrations, he says, “On Christmas day, children are very happy as they get gifts. Many parents wear a Santa cap and costume to celebrate this day with their kids. However, such days hardly come in the life of slum kids. That’s why we love to be their Santa and make them happy.”
