Chief Minister wishes SOS Children's Village Bangalore on SOS Day
90th birth anniversary of Late Dr. Hermann Gmeiner, Founder Father of SOS movement celebrated
Tweet-- SOS Children’s Village Bangalore today celebrated SOS Day in remembranceof 90th birth anniversary of Late Dr. Hermann Gmeiner, FounderFather of SOS movement around the world and 60th anniversarycelebration of SOS Children’s Villages. Shri NarendraSwami, Minister for Women & Child Development, Govt. of Karnataka,who was the chief guest, praised how SOS movement had provided a new lease oflife to thousands of abandoned children of Karnataka. Shri Satheesh Reddy,Member of Legislative Assembly, Govt. of Karnataka presided over the eventwhile Mr. Krishnappa, MLA, Bangalore South Constituency was the guest of honor. Shri Rakesh Jinsi, SecretaryGeneral, SOS Children’s Villages of India welcomed the guest. Local guests, Village Director, Mothers, aunts,children, and co-workers attended the celebration. All guests were welcomedtraditional custom by the Village Director, SOS mothers, children andco-workers.
The event started with offering floral tribute to Dr. Hermann Gmeinerand prayer by SOS children followed by lighting lampin front of Dr. Gmeiner's portrait. The whole atmosphere was filled withemotions and nostalgia as Shri Rakesh Jinsi, Secretary General, SOS Children’sVillages of India in his welcome speech paid tribute to Dr. Hermann Gmeiner. Later, Chief Guest Shri Narendra Swami, Minister for Women & ChildDevelopment, Govt. of Karnataka, visited homes in the Children’s Villageand interacted with mothers and children. Children and mothers shared theirexperience with the chief guest. Shri Swamiwas overwhelmed with the whole experience and was mesmerized with splendiddance performances of little kids during his visit to Kindergarten. The eventalso was attended by SOS friends & well wishers, who profusely appreciatedthe efforts by the organization.
To make the day special and memorable various competitions wereorganized at the Village. Chief Guestawarded the winners in different categories.
In his message on this occasion Shri Rakesh Jinsi, Secretary General- SOS Children’s Villages of India expressed gratitude to the Chief Guest and said, “SOS Family is honoredby the gracious presence of the guests on the 90th birth anniversaryof our guiding force Dr. Hermann Gmeiner. We are overwhelmed by the continuoustrust and support we have received from the people and state of Karnataka forour Children’s Village at Bangalore since its establishment in 1989. This day serves as a reminder tostrengthen our resolve to provide long term family based care to parentlesschildren of Karnataka. “
About SOS Children’s Villages, Bangalore:
At SOS Children's Village Bangalore since itsinception in 1989, 368 children have found new home out of which 63 childrenare already leading a settled life and rest 305 children are living in thesecure environment of a family. An SOS mother who looks after her ten children,showering them with warmth, love and care head each family. The mothers aresimple women who have come from all parts of Karnataka. Children are providedwith good education in towns and many of them stand first in theirschools. The village is well equippedwith social amenities and education and medical facilities.
We have Sudha (BE Architecture), Mamata (BEInstrumentation) apart from Archana and Chetna (BE Information Science) doingvery well. We have great pride in Murugan who has cleared MBBS entrance and gotinto JSS Medical College. Kumar found a place in a reputed dental collegethis year; Rekha is doing her Masters in Biotechnology, Prema studies in Norway on a scholarship. Apart from them, there areboys and girls doing their MBA, B.Com etc. Even in extra curricular activities,we have young Master Vinod who got the National Balashree Award for Mimicryfrom the former President of India, Shri APJ Abdul Kalam. Most of the childrenare performing exceedingly well, making excellent careers for themselves.Family strengthening program run around the SOS village supports 351 childrencomprising 167 boys and 184 girls in 175 families.
Notes to Editor
AboutSOS Children’s Villages of India:
SOS Children’s Villages of India is a non profit,non-government, voluntary organization, committed to the care of children inneed and to strengthening families and communities as a preventive measure inthe fight against abandonment and social neglect. The aim & objective of theSOS Children’s Villages of India is to help parentless and homeless children bygiving them a family, home and a strong foundation for an independent andsecure life. SOS-India is a member of SOS-Kinderdorf International, operationalin 132 countries.
“SOS Children’s Villages of India” was registered as asociety and came into being in 1964 after Dr Hermann Gmeiner, the founderfather of the SOS movement visited India in 1963 at the invitation of the first Indian PrimeMinister, late Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru. The first SOS Children’s Village wasestablished in 1964 at Greenfields, Faridabad, Haryana.
Since its inception in the year 1964 SOS Children’s Villagesof India has expanded its services for children in need at a rapid pace. Today, there are 40 SOS Children’s Villagesincluding facilities for Tibetan children and a new village coming up atMumbai, 122 allied projects like Kindergartens, Schools, Social, Medical,Vocational Training Centres and Outreach Initiatives spread across the countryreaching out to over 15,000 children.www.soscvindia.org