Friends of Mettupalayam not only raise funds to support rural development work in Tamil Nadu, South India, we also work in our local community helping to promote understanding and build links. This is illustrated by the work we have recently been doing with the Forest School in Knaresborough. This is a school for children with special learning needs, and following an initial contact, we have helped a Young Enterprise Group to design and implement a small business, packing and selling our tribal necklaces and bracelets to raise funds. We have also been into two other classes with our powerpoint presentation about life for a child in our village.
This is only one example from many of how we are able to tell a real story to children who sometimes have little initial understanding of life in a developing country. So often we are amazed at how the children's imagination is stimulated and the quality of the questions that we are asked.
