Fall 2020
Dear Little Flock Friends,
I hope you are well and safe amidst these very unprecedented challenges and times. Thank you for being a lifeline to our children, staff, and the village community during this time with your continued prayer, thoughtfulness, and gifts.
Life at Little Flock was significantly altered for the children and staff. The school on campus had been under lockdown and will be all year. Most of our children travel to families or relatives for summer but due to all transportation being halted some were able to while others could not. However, they are all having a wonderful time being together. They worked in the vegetable garden and enjoyed mangoes, bananas, watermelons, and guavas.
Children picking red chillies | Green and purple eggplants | Coconuts
Several varieties of mangoes
They also grew corn this year along with sesame seeds and many other vegetables. Given the bounty of vegetables and fruit this year we had enough for Little Flock and sold the rest to the village community at a low cost.
Corn field | Watermelon
Children
Prashant and Saran Raj sat for government standardized exams amidst the lockdown and were able to graduate and are now enrolled in College. Ammu, Priya and Deepak are now in 12th grade. They will all have to prepare for their final exams which will take place next spring. We are concerned about their studies given that there is no good instructions for them with lockdowns. The grades they receive in High School will determine their admission into Colleges.
Creativity of the children
Henna drawing by Pavithra | Cake baked by Manoj | Little Flock cottage drawing by Pavithra
Staff changes
Helen, one of our oldest of care givers, retired. We moved her to an elder care home funded by a French nonprofit, but she preferred to live near her family and moved out. She keeps in touch with staff and staff visit her in Chennai. The other staff members and care givers Gracelin, Arun, Shoba and Madesh are an asset to Little Flock and the children.
Staff, children, laborers, trustees and visitors | Arun, Helen and Gracelin
Many people in the villages and cities lost their jobs and livelihoods during the pandemic. The recent rains have added to their woes. There continues to be a lot of suffering for the poor and the homeless. We are blessed to be able to continue employing workers from the village and support them and their families. We were also able to open our campus for the jewelry making ladies from the village to do their work. Their families are dependent on their income for day to day living.
We have continued to pay our schoolteachers and workers during the lockdown for which they are thankful.
All this has been made possible by your prayers, support for Little Flock and your genuine love and care for our children, staff, and the village community. Two passages from Scriptures comes to mind when I think of you.
Proverbs 19:17
Whoever is kind to the poor lends to the LORD, and he will reward them for what they have done.
In Acts 10 there is an encouraging story about Cornelius, a centurion from the Italian regiment. He and all his family were devout and God-fearing; he gave generously to those in need and prayed to God regularly. While at prayer one day an angel of God calls him by name and tells him that his prayers and gifts to the poor have come up as a memorial offering before God.
As we celebrate Thanksgiving, the board, children, staff, and community of Little Flock join me in expressing our deepest appreciation for your partnership and fragrant offerings of prayers and gifts on behalf of Little Flock before the Lord.
Gratefully,
Viji
*Little Flock is now enrolled with Amazon Smile—click here
