Village Journals
Resonate your identity with Naseeb journals. Express your opinions, share your thoughts, post your writings and connect with like minded people through the power of expression.
Resonate your identity with Naseeb journals. Express your opinions, share your thoughts, post your writings and connect with like minded people through the power of expression.
A personal appeal
Dear All:
I sincerely apologize for the length of this email but hope that you are able to take a few minutes of your time to read through it -- I would really appreciate it.
As many of you know, I am originally from Kashmir -- the region hit exactly a week ago by the devastating earthquake. Fortunately my parents, sister and extended family are all well given that my hometown has not seen the kind of devastation that we have observed in other parts of Kashmir. However given the death and destruction, it doesn?t make the tragedy less significant to any great degree for there are so many who have lost their lives and who are homeless. And as is always the case in such tragedies, it is the poor who suffer the most. The magnitude of the devastation is really unprecedented. My Uncle who has been working in a town called Uri in Indian-administered Kashmir for the past several years reports that his town is 80-90% destroyed and thousands have died there alone.
With the death toll fast approaching 40,000 based on reports, the October 8, 2005 earthquake that hit Pakistani and Indian administered Kashmir has turned the region into a graveyard. Hundreds of thousands more are injured and approximately 3.5 million are homeless. In the earthquakes aftermath diseases are spreading and with no hospitals standing, the injured as well as others needing medical attention have no where to turn. As people are left stranded in the open at the mercy of the elements they are threatened with a second wave of deaths that was largely averted in the aftermath of the Dec. 26 tsunami.
My family further reports that the situation is far worse than we can imagine. Though various aid agencies are working hard to provide humanitarian and other relief, the victims of the tragedy continue to suffer due to various reasons. From road bottlenecks and the inclement weather to poor planning and bureaucratic webs, people affected by the earthquake continue to be in need of help. As various news reports also collaborate, the much needed aid delivered into the region is not reaching the victims of the catastrophe on a timely basis and with the winter fast approaching the situation will only get worse. The future looks very, very grim.
As some of you might know, together with some friends from Kashmir and the U.S. a few years back we started an organization called Child Nurture And Relief (Website: Chinar.org). The organization is an independent, officially registered non-profit, tax exempt organization working for the psychosocial rehabilitation of orphaned and other vulnerable children in conflict areas ? irrespective of race, religion, culture or gender.
In Indian-occupied Kashmir, a war torn land, CHINAR has opened an orphanage that is working for the welfare of children by equipping them with the means to have a productive and peaceful future. In addition to this, last year CHINAR was instrumental in collecting funds for the child victims of the February 2005 avalanche in Kashmir. The money was used to buy clothes, shoes, socks, hygiene kits and school supplies for over 180 children living in a tent village in Vasaknag, one of the worst hit areas. We also donated water tanks for 3 tent schools.
Over the past week, we have been working hard on the logistics of another such concerted effort for the victims of this new tragedy. CHINAR's Kashmir volunteers have assessed the situation first hand in Indian-administered Kashmir and have already organized and started work to help the victims of this devastating earthquake. I personally know the Board of Directors of CHINAR, the CHINAR volunteers working on the ground in Kashmir and working with them to coordinate a relief effort is far more satisfactory to me than donating to a large organization. Though large organizations do great work, I personally feel a greater degree of accomplishment at having been directly helpful to the victims when I hear from first hand accounts of our volunteers that we are making a difference. Together we are all working to do the little bit that we can to help those in need in the valley.
On that note, I am sending this email to everyone I know to ask for help. Now that CHINAR is ready and well situated to take further action to help the victims, we are in need of your help. I would like to personally request you to please donate to the CHINAR Earthquake Relief Fund so that we can provide the much needed aid to the victims of this tragedy. Please go to www.chinar.org to donate online or send a check to the address listed. Your contributions are tax-deductible.
Given that smaller organizations such as our CHINAR are not well known and don't have the same kind of credibility as a large organization might, I just want to reassure you that if you know me you should also feel confident that the money you give will be going directly to provide the necessary medical and other humanitarian relief to the victims.
CHINAR is an officially registered tax exempt non-profit organization in the U.S. and officially registered and recognized in Kashmir and it maintains up to date records and has yearly independent third-party audits of its financial books and records.
CHINAR also holds all its officers and board of directors accountable for its actions and I am personally in touch with them and working to make sure that the money collected goes directly to help the needy victims.
Though the television reports and the pictures convey what has happened, my family tells me that we really cannot know the extent of the situation without being there. They repeatedly tell us that the situation is extremely critical. After the initial deaths, far more are likely to die given the collapse of infrastructure and the impending winter. People ? as young as month old children -- are literally outside in the cold with broken bones and broken spirits waiting for someone to come to their help.
I sincerely hope that after reading this email you will find it in yourself to be that someone.
Although we are stretched thin with the recent tsunami and the hurricanes, please know that every little bit helps -- if you cannot afford more than a few dollars, please give those few dollars for it will mean a meal or even a pair of winter socks for someone in Kashmir. And together it can really mean a world of a difference for those who have nothing but a prayer and hope left.
Thank you so much for your time. I know the email is long and repetitious and I apologize for taking up your time but given the circumstances of what has happened back home, I cannot help but write to you and make this personal appeal to you. And if you can, please forward this to your friends and family and if you can ask them to also contribute even a little bit, it will mean a lot to the victims of this tragedy.
If you have any questions please feel free to email me at [email protected]
Sincerely,
Sami
Please donate online at: www.chinar.org
I sincerely apologize for the length of this email but hope that you are able to take a few minutes of your time to read through it -- I would really appreciate it.
As many of you know, I am originally from Kashmir -- the region hit exactly a week ago by the devastating earthquake. Fortunately my parents, sister and extended family are all well given that my hometown has not seen the kind of devastation that we have observed in other parts of Kashmir. However given the death and destruction, it doesn?t make the tragedy less significant to any great degree for there are so many who have lost their lives and who are homeless. And as is always the case in such tragedies, it is the poor who suffer the most. The magnitude of the devastation is really unprecedented. My Uncle who has been working in a town called Uri in Indian-administered Kashmir for the past several years reports that his town is 80-90% destroyed and thousands have died there alone.
With the death toll fast approaching 40,000 based on reports, the October 8, 2005 earthquake that hit Pakistani and Indian administered Kashmir has turned the region into a graveyard. Hundreds of thousands more are injured and approximately 3.5 million are homeless. In the earthquakes aftermath diseases are spreading and with no hospitals standing, the injured as well as others needing medical attention have no where to turn. As people are left stranded in the open at the mercy of the elements they are threatened with a second wave of deaths that was largely averted in the aftermath of the Dec. 26 tsunami.
My family further reports that the situation is far worse than we can imagine. Though various aid agencies are working hard to provide humanitarian and other relief, the victims of the tragedy continue to suffer due to various reasons. From road bottlenecks and the inclement weather to poor planning and bureaucratic webs, people affected by the earthquake continue to be in need of help. As various news reports also collaborate, the much needed aid delivered into the region is not reaching the victims of the catastrophe on a timely basis and with the winter fast approaching the situation will only get worse. The future looks very, very grim.
As some of you might know, together with some friends from Kashmir and the U.S. a few years back we started an organization called Child Nurture And Relief (Website: Chinar.org). The organization is an independent, officially registered non-profit, tax exempt organization working for the psychosocial rehabilitation of orphaned and other vulnerable children in conflict areas ? irrespective of race, religion, culture or gender.
In Indian-occupied Kashmir, a war torn land, CHINAR has opened an orphanage that is working for the welfare of children by equipping them with the means to have a productive and peaceful future. In addition to this, last year CHINAR was instrumental in collecting funds for the child victims of the February 2005 avalanche in Kashmir. The money was used to buy clothes, shoes, socks, hygiene kits and school supplies for over 180 children living in a tent village in Vasaknag, one of the worst hit areas. We also donated water tanks for 3 tent schools.
Over the past week, we have been working hard on the logistics of another such concerted effort for the victims of this new tragedy. CHINAR's Kashmir volunteers have assessed the situation first hand in Indian-administered Kashmir and have already organized and started work to help the victims of this devastating earthquake. I personally know the Board of Directors of CHINAR, the CHINAR volunteers working on the ground in Kashmir and working with them to coordinate a relief effort is far more satisfactory to me than donating to a large organization. Though large organizations do great work, I personally feel a greater degree of accomplishment at having been directly helpful to the victims when I hear from first hand accounts of our volunteers that we are making a difference. Together we are all working to do the little bit that we can to help those in need in the valley.
On that note, I am sending this email to everyone I know to ask for help. Now that CHINAR is ready and well situated to take further action to help the victims, we are in need of your help. I would like to personally request you to please donate to the CHINAR Earthquake Relief Fund so that we can provide the much needed aid to the victims of this tragedy. Please go to www.chinar.org to donate online or send a check to the address listed. Your contributions are tax-deductible.
Given that smaller organizations such as our CHINAR are not well known and don't have the same kind of credibility as a large organization might, I just want to reassure you that if you know me you should also feel confident that the money you give will be going directly to provide the necessary medical and other humanitarian relief to the victims.
CHINAR is an officially registered tax exempt non-profit organization in the U.S. and officially registered and recognized in Kashmir and it maintains up to date records and has yearly independent third-party audits of its financial books and records.
CHINAR also holds all its officers and board of directors accountable for its actions and I am personally in touch with them and working to make sure that the money collected goes directly to help the needy victims.
Though the television reports and the pictures convey what has happened, my family tells me that we really cannot know the extent of the situation without being there. They repeatedly tell us that the situation is extremely critical. After the initial deaths, far more are likely to die given the collapse of infrastructure and the impending winter. People ? as young as month old children -- are literally outside in the cold with broken bones and broken spirits waiting for someone to come to their help.
I sincerely hope that after reading this email you will find it in yourself to be that someone.
Although we are stretched thin with the recent tsunami and the hurricanes, please know that every little bit helps -- if you cannot afford more than a few dollars, please give those few dollars for it will mean a meal or even a pair of winter socks for someone in Kashmir. And together it can really mean a world of a difference for those who have nothing but a prayer and hope left.
Thank you so much for your time. I know the email is long and repetitious and I apologize for taking up your time but given the circumstances of what has happened back home, I cannot help but write to you and make this personal appeal to you. And if you can, please forward this to your friends and family and if you can ask them to also contribute even a little bit, it will mean a lot to the victims of this tragedy.
If you have any questions please feel free to email me at [email protected]
Sincerely,
Sami
Please donate online at: www.chinar.org