For the past 5 years I have travelled to this small village in rural Rajasthan in India. The 70 or so girls I teach in India come from very poor village communities, some are orphaned, handicapped or from scheduled castes formerly called 'untouchables'. They have very little opportunity at the Government Boarding school to create anything for themselves. All that they learn they learn by rote, subjects that will be of little benefit to them when they return to their villages, at 14 or younger, to their pre-arranged marriages and to work on the land. The money I raise will be used solely to get materials for them to use, whether its buttons, bows, beads or needles and to give them an outlet for both their creativity as well as a chance to make something for themselves and give their worlds a little chink of light. As with every year I will produce a book of the year for the school to keep, and a copy of each of their photo's for each of the girls.

I sincerely hope you can all help in some small way, even if its just foregoing a couple of cappucinos...a little really goes a long way....the price of a coffee in the UK would mean 10 skeins of embroidery thread!!!