Life seems to be very cruel and brutal especially for orphans, abused women, and old age people who have been struggling hard to lead their lives. Many old age homes and ashramas which exist, lend their helping hand to such needy people and Sumangali Seva Ashrama (SSA) is one such organisation. A gateway of hope for a new beginning that helps in wiping the tears of unfortunate women and children, it offers residential facilities free of cost.
“It was in 1975 when three children needed care and shelter. I decided to help them which motivated me to take the first step and with merely `15/- in hand, the ashrama came into existence. Money was the most persistent problem during those days. It wasn't easy, but the support of generous hands helped us to reach our goal. Over the years, we have been receiving funds from the government and various donor agencies, both national and international. We do not work for the cause of awards or mementoes. Our mission is to improve and uplift the society in general and the downtrodden in particular which gives me happiness” says S G Susheelamma, the President of SSA, who is respectfully known as Amma.
The ashrama built its foundation for imparting education with a nursery and higher primary school, but today it has two schools within its premises and a number of education programs for adults and children which includes adult literacy program, regular health check up camps, holiday camp for children, vocational training for women, self employment, empowerment for women in distress and many more. The ashrama also has many community activities as well as spiritual sessions like yoga and meditation which help in overall personality development of the children and women.
Jayanthi Hebbar, a committee member said, “I have spent 25 years with amma and from the beginning, she has dedicated herself to this ashrama. Today it's because of her initiative, we are leading a life of dignity. I sincerely appreciate the hard work of all the staff who have stepped forward to help us. Our aim is to bring happiness to each individual we come across in the society.”
A visit to the ashrama clearly shows their untiring efforts, serving and working to make a difference in the lives of the under privileged. Spread across an acre of land, SSA is a home for over 100 children and over 50 destitute women. Equipped with all modern amenities, the ashrama is maintained by a well trained staff and supervisors who take care of the day to day needs. The modern kitchen feeds over 800 people a day.
Meanwhile, SSA has been honoured with National awards which includes Rajiv Gandhi Shiromani Award, Rajyothsava Award for social work, Dr Baba Saheb Ambedkar Award, Karnataka State Award for Child Welfare etc.
Over a period of time, Amma has been individually accoladed with more than 25 awards, a few include Smt Yashodhara Dasappa award, Ajantha Vishwa Nidhi award, Samaj Seva award, Basava Puraskar, Grama Jyothi award and the recent one, Dr Durgabhai Deshmukh award. She is a mother, a good teacher, thorough counsellor and a motivator to thousands of people who had lost hope of living. In fact, she is known as the Mother Teresa of Karnataka.
Sumangali Seva Ashrama has successfully completed 37 years of dedicated service to the society. It is always bustling with numerous activities and programmes, also acting upon major issues like food security, women empowerment, health, sanitation and micro finance.
They hope to reach their milestone of planting one crore saplings across Karnataka, building toilets for each house in rural areas, supporting farmers, promoting rain water harvesting, bio diesel usage, waste management and other environment-friendly initiatives. Their voyage of wonder needs many willing hands who can support, donate and become a ray of hope for the ones waiting for light.
For more details Contact 080 6530 1388 / 6530 1393.