AFFECXN (Read: AFFECTION), is a Newsletter published by Catalysts for Social Action (CSA). Established in September 2002, Catalysts for Social Action (CSA) is a Not-For-Profit organization dedicated to the cause of child welfare and rehabilitation for children living in orphanages.

CSA works as a “catalyst” focusing on a holistic approach to child care and optimal rehabilitation outcomes. In the area of enabling holistic child care, we support a number of child care institutions in the areas of Health & Hygiene, Nutrition, Education, Vocational skills, Infrastructure support and Recreation activities. CSA not only cares but also goes beyond, thus, enabling children to be self sufficient and become contributing members of society.

We continue to make a valuable difference to children across child care institutions in 4 states that we support.

As part of optimal child rehabilitation, CSA facilitates Adoptions in the country; we work with existing adoption agencies in rural areas to facilitate the quality, speed and number of adoptions in India. We have successfully facilitated over in India, so far. We believe that Adoption is the best form of child rehabilitation. Our intention is to ensure that every adoptable child should find a home.

2800+ 55+

215+ adoptions

n Support to Children in Orphanages:-

Health & Hygiene Support -

¬Follow up Health Check up camps

have been held to evaluate overall

health status. A detailed analysis

will be done & updates to be

follow in the next edition of the

newsletter

¬In addition, hygiene kits

comprising of toothbrush,

toothpaste, bathing & washing

soaps were handed over to

children

¬Global Handwashing Day is

celebrated on 14th Oct and in an

effort to emphasize the benefits of

regularly washing hands, CSA held

awareness sessions and staff as

well as health experts

demonstrated correct hand

washing techniques

¬We conducted eye check up for 14

year old Anna in Odisha. Her left

eye is damaged & she faces

challenges while reading.

Unfortunately her left eye cannot

be curred completely; however,

with regular monthly check ups

and spectacles, she will be able to read and do her daily activities

Education & Vocational Skills Support -

¬On the eve of International Literacy

Day, more than 200 children from

Mumbai Child Care Institutions

celebrated the joy of reading with

books sponsored by Pratham

Books. The aim is to encourage

children to inculcate a healthy

habit of reading books

¬17 girls from the Observation

Home in Bhivandi are all excited

and look forward eagerly to the

‘Hair & Beauty Parlor course that

has commenced since September.

They have already mastered the art

of different hair styles!

¬18 children from Sawali Kendra,

Mumbai were given new school

uniform sets

¬16 children in Odisha Children’s

home are now making use of the

computer that has been repaired

to hone their skills and as well

complete school project work

¬CSA had appointed a special tutor

in Odisha for a visually impaired

girl Stuthi to help her with her

NEWS FLASH - CSA Happenings!

Health Check Up - Odisha

Hygiene kit distribution - MP

Health Check Up - Height Measurement - Odisha

Global Handwashing Program - Goa

Computer support - Odisha

NEWS FLASH - CSA Happenings!

Annas eyecheck - Odisha

NEWS FLASH - CSA Happenings!

education. Today Stuthi is able to

write in Brail script - indeed a huge

step forward for her!

¬20 girls from Anath Hindu

Mahilashram in Pune have been

attending ‘Beauty classes’ and have

been honing their skills in different

haircutting styles!

¬Further to our feature in the last

newsletter on ‘First Aid’ sessions

conducted for children at CCIs, First

Aid training program was conducted

by the Indian Red Cross Society- Goa

Branch for 20 individuals

representing different CCIs in Goa.

Those trained have been provided

with certificates by Red Cross. The

whole day training was inclusive of

theory & practical sessions

¬4 computers have been donated to

Little Star Foundation in MP and now

32 kids will be able to make use of

these PCs to enhance their computer

knowledge and skills

Infrastructure Support -

¬40 kids from Pandit Jawaharlal

Nehru Udyog Kendra CCI in Pune

will benefit from the infrastructure

renovation work of the Computer

lab that has been undertaken by

CSA. Vendor has been contracted

for painting, electrical and furniture

job

¬13 children from GASVS, MP now

have access to clean drinking water

since a brand new water purifier

has been installed. Earlier the water

was drawn from the bore well, one

would expect contaminated water

with calcium content

¬Children in GASVS, MP have also

been provided with bunker beds,

bedding material – mattresses, bed

sheets, pillows and pillow covers

Special Tutor for Stuthi - OdishaSchool Uniform Distribution

- Mumbai

NEWS FLASH - CSA Happenings!

Water Purifier - MPBunker beds & bedding - MP

International Literacy Day-Mumbai

Hair & Beauty Course - Mumbai

NEWS FLASH - CSA Happenings!

Fun and Recreational Activities -

¬Children in children’s homes are

often thrilled with simple joys of life.

92 kids learnt how to make ‘apple

milkshake’ and many of them had it

for the first time in their lives! They

enjoyed the whole experience!

¬CSA encourages employees to

volunteer and visit children’s homes

to get a first hand feel of being with

children and experiencing life from

their perspective. Accelya Kale

employees have been coming

forward to engage with children

from the children’s homes we work

with on a number of occasions.

Akshay Perickathra, Kiran

Namboodiri and Nitish Narayanan

visited the Vivekanand Balakashram-

Thane and had a blast with the boys

there. They played games together

with the children and also spent time

interacting with the excited bunch of

18 boys.

¬CSA celebrated Independence Day

with 150 children at the Observation

Homes in Mumbai. We distributed

participatory prizes to all girls for a

drawing competition that was conducted and boys were gifted with

indoor games

CSA celebrated Independence Day

at Banabasi Seva Samiti with 450

children in Odisha. The day started

with a Flag Hoisting ceremony

followed by ‘march past’ by

children in colorful uniforms. In

the afternoon, various games were

conducted in 3 phases - 1st phase:

singing & balloon shooting

competitions were arranged for

100 visually impaired kids; 2nd

phase: drawing & bucket ball

competitions were organized for

100 speech & hearing impaired

kids; 3rd phase: wicket taking,

bindi game, musical chairs & many

other games were organized for

250 CCI children. The kids then

enjoyed a fruit treat with apples,

grapes, bananas. Prizes were

distributed to all the proud

winners!

¬In Pune, Independence Day was

celebrated with 400 kids from

BVJSS. 11 employees from the

corporate Eagle Burgmann India

Pvt. Ltd. were present & two senior

executives, Mr. Sakure and Mr.

Ingre did the flag hosting. Everybody enjoyed the cultural programme

put up by children. Kids also received prizes. Employees also collected a

NEWS FLASH - CSA Happenings!

Apple Milkshake treat - Mumbai

Accelya Staff Visit - Mumbai

Independence Day with Eagle Burgmann staff - Pune

Diwali Celebrations - Goa

Independence Day Rangoli-Goa

Independence Day - Balloon Competition for Hearing Impaired kids - Odisha

NEWS FLASH - CSA Happenings!

contribution and showed their

willingness to donate to essential

required in kind

¬In Bethesda Life Centre, 100 children

were part of the Independence Day

celebrations - Flag Hoisting, Patriotic

songs were sung by children, sweets

were distributed & a drawing &

rangoli competitions were organized

¬In MP, we tied up with 5 new CCIs in

July and had an Independence Day activity with 153 children. A

drawing competition was organized and top three winners were given

prizes

¬On the occasion of Ganesh Chaturthi, we sponsored lunch for 18

children from Sawali Kendra boys home in Mumbai. These children

rarely get an opportunity to relish a good meal & we were happy to

fulfill a long cherished dream for these kids

¬‘Joy of Giving’ week is celebrated during the first week of October. In

Pune, 8 employees from Accelya Kale Solutions ltd. celebrated the spirit

of ‘Joy of Giving’ with 100 girls from the Observation Home. They

played 'Dandiya' with kids and danced with them. Kids were treated to

Pizzas, Panipuri and Chocolates and were very happy to mingle with

the employees. In a short while, girls chose their favorite 'Didi' (elder

sister) and 'Dada' (elder brother). Employees then gifted them jewelery

sets (necklace, earrings & bangles) and also helped the younger ones

to put these on!

¬Diwali was celebrated across CCIs and children enjoyed sweetmeats &

bursting fireworks

NEWS FLASH - CSA Happenings!

JOG & Dandiya with kids - Pune

n Adoption Facilitation:-

¬12 adoptions have been successfully facilitated during the period from

April to Sep 2014 by CSA [Maharashtra-12]

n Stakeholder Training & Sensitization:-

¬CSA assisted Nehru Seva Sangh CCI in preparing registers as per JJ Act

guideline and trained staff on how to maintain records systematically

¬CSA staff in Odisha Mr. Anupam Subhadarshan was given an

appreciation letter by the Kalahandi DCPO Mr. Sailendu Sekhar

Mohapatra in appreciation of the work that CSA is doing for 200

orphaned children in the district of Kalahandi

¬On 29th October, CSA organized a sensitization & awareness workshop

on JJ Act and POCSO Act for 60 Police officers and 20 CCIs of Cuttack

District, Odisha

¬WCD Goa in Association with Child Welfare Committee organized a half

day orientation program for Registered Children's homes in Goa. CSA

Programme Officer was also invited to attend the event. Topics

discussed included Documentation as per JJ act, Producing children

before CWC, Child Tracking System

¬CSA along with Directorate of Women & Child Development, Indore -

Madhya Pradesh arranged a one day workshop for CCIs, Adoption

Agencies, CWC, Special Juvenile Police Unit, Juvenile Justice Board on

23rd Sept. 2014. Approximately 17 members attended. Workshop

covered JJ Act, current scenario on adoptions and the POCSO Act. A

healthy discussion ensued between all parties present.

NEWS FLASH - CSA Happenings! KEY HIGHLIGHT - CSA Annual Charity

Brunch 2014!

DWCD workshop on JJ Act n POCSO n Adoptions - MP

Kalahandi DCPO appreciation letter to Anupam - Odisha

WCD Goa Orientation program - Goa

Sensitization workshop - Odisha

Documentation Training - Odisha

CSA’s 5th Annual Charity Brunch was held on 2nd November

at the Taj Land’s End hotel in Mumbai.

Key highlights were dance performaces by senior company

executives & their spouses which was a massive hit & led to

loud applauses after every performance! This was followed

by an art auction with over 50 exclusive artworks on display -

both live and silent versions were supported by our guests.

All in all, it was a beautiful event & we thank all our

sponsors, performing couples, artists, guests & supporters

for their ever-willing support to CSA.

VOLUNTEERING WITH CSA - In Action!

Chelsea Elizabeth (right) with a friend

We recently had Ms. Chelsea Elizabeth come and volunteer with CSA for a period

of 2 weeks. Chelsea originally from the US has been working in India with the

organisation - A Family For Every Orphan. She is passionate about under

privileged children and is keen on understanding the adoption scenario in India,

with a view to helping prospective parents adopt children in India.

Here is Chelsea’s first hand account -

“I came to CSA with one hope. I simply wanted to understand the domestic

adoption process in India and be able to communicate it to others. I’ve searched,

asked, and dug in so many places, trying to figure out domestic adoption in

India. I’ve only come up with contradictions, confusion and more questions. CSA

in a sense was my last hope.

My expectations were blown out of the water by CSA's extensive knowledge.. and

wisdom concerning the adoption process. I spent an all too short two weeks

learning from CSA and then collaborating to document the adoption process in a

way that would free others to understand the process with ease.

Not only did I learn a ton, I was surprised by the friendships I made at every turn.

The people working at CSA have hearts of gold and truly are working hard to

make children's lives better.

CSA has immense potential to radically alter opportunities for the orphans in all

of India. They're already doing it - in four states. After working with them for two

weeks though, I've seen the need for CSA's work to spread all throughout India.

I've grown weary of NGOs and their quick fixes, short term vision and lack of

follow through. CSA was a pleasant surprise. They have set sustainability as their

standard, holistic care as their vision and are in for the long haul.

While adoption is my passion, it’s not the only work that CSA does. CSA

understands that many children in India will never be adopted - millions will call

an institution their home. In order to bring hope and opportunity to these

children, who otherwise would have little support, CSA partners with institutions

to offer vocational training, health workshops and life skills to these kids, but

they do this with concentrated effort. CSA comes alongside institutions to

strengthen them by giving them training, resources and materials. CSA doesn’t

step in and do all the work themselves. They want to help improve infrastructure

- again keeping sustainability as their standard.

Working with CSA has opened my eyes to the realities involved with orphan care.

This is not a single faceted project. You

can’t just throw an education program at

these kids.. You can’t drop off

toothbrushes and call it a day. Think of

your own family. Can you imagine if

someone came in and taught your kids

how to brush your teeth, then twice a

year someone would come in and do a

health check up and then maybe (if you’re

lucky) a volunteer came to your home to

drop of books and encouraged your kids

to read?? When we think of it in a family context it seems preposterous. However,

this is what we as a society think is good enough for these children. We want to

do our part by donating our sum of money, our bags of rice or a stack of books.

CSA knows better and is working to care for children holistically, and in a way

that will give children a shot at having a future.

I would highly recommend volunteering with CSA if you're interested in true

restoration and growth for the children of India who are in need. That being said

- come knowing that CSA and these children have far more to offer you, than

you’ll ever have to offer.”

“The smallest act of kindness is worth more than the grandest intention”

Donate today and become an active 'catalyst'!

Online Bank Transfer:

Volunteering:

We have a long way to go before we can truly say that sustainable, value based

care and support is being provided to children in adoption agencies and

orphanages.

CSA believes in the highest standards of governance and transparency and will

share project specific information with you.

We invite you to support our cause in the form of individual or corporate

donations / sponsorships. We have a host of donation options to choose from

and you can select appropriate options that suit your philanthropic needs.

Kindly get in touch with us for further information on donation options

available.

Cheque: Made payable to “Catalysts for Social Action” and sent to -

Address: CSA, C/o Accelya Kale Solutions Ltd, 3rd Floor, Modi House, Eastern

Express Highway, Naupada, Thane (W), Mumbai 400 602

To know more, call us or write in

To know more about how you can volunteer, get in touch with us

Landline: Mumbai - 022-67808888 | Pune - 020-66083777

Email: | Website:

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https://www.facebook.com/CSAadoption

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