Art by- Shruti              

Shruti was abandoned by her own mother at 3 years old when she was left with her grandmother to be raised in a brothel. Shortly after, the brothel where she and her grandmother lived, was set ablaze by the local people. Not only did Shruti lose her home, her grandmother was tragically killed, leaving Shruti abandoned all over again. An Aunt agreed to take Shruti in, but unfortunately, her new home would leave her resigned to life in the Red Light district. Shruti’s surroundings made life both shameful and dangerous. Daily, she was bullied by classmates for her association with those in the sex trade. Even more horrifying was the pressure she received to get involved in the sex trade, being targeting by local criminals at the young age of INSERT AGE. Shruti tried to remain strong in spite of her circumstances, but was overwhelmed with depression and thoughts of suicide. She has confessed to those in our ministry that she saw death as her only escape. Thankfully our ministry reached out to Shruti and she responded. That was two years ago. Today, Shruti is protected and thriving in a safe home. 

Thia

Like many children living in the Red Light area, Thia was abused by her own family member. Every day she was terrorized by sexual abuse at the hands of her uncle. While these types of cases aren’t uncommon, they do require specialized intervention. The Red Light slums have no privacy. Alcoholism is rampant. Some children are raped on a daily basis. To protect family pride, these assaults against children are covered up, leaving victims with no protection. Like Thia, they suffer from intense trauma. When Thia was rescued, it was discovered that she suffered from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. She has a long road of healing ahead of her, but she is being treated thanks to our ability to keep a domestic violence specialist on staff. With this type of training, along with a team of volunteers advocating for children living in slums, our ministry can be proactive in finding girls just like Thia and connecting them to programs that can help them heal in a safe place.

          Rithu 

Rithu and Aasma were both regularly exposed to sex work in their own home. Their mothers were sex workers who would conduct business in their presence. They were given alcohol and exposed to the dangers of life in a Brothel. Thankfully our ministry intervened, not only to save these children, but both of their mothers as well. Within a few years of escaping the Red Light district, both mothers secured work in a safe place. While Brothel owners do occasionally try to find and attack these vulnerable women, they continue to be courageous! Both of these mothers and their girls are now in a safe location.  

Rejected babies 

When undesired babies are delivered in the slums, they are often rejected by their own parents. In some cases, babies might be killed and discarded into the river. We partner with NGO’s to find adoptive homes for these abandoned babies. The baby in the above photo was the seventh girl born to a poor family. The father was an alcoholic and saw no value in his own child. Expecting the baby to be born a male, he even considered this sweet baby girl to be a curse. Our ministry reached out to this couple and counseled them on the value of all children and the equal worth of boy and girl babies. In the end, we were not able to convince them to accept their child. Thankfully, we were able to speak to other families about adoption so that this baby, and others like her, can be brought up and nurtured in a stable and loving home