Dolanji is a small village in Northern India, 17 kilometers away from Solan, and 400 kilometers from Delhi. In Dolanji is a Bon Children's Home – the only in the world, apart from Tibet a school next to a Monastery, where over 300 children study and live.

Every year more students arrive to study. Many of the children are orphans and refuges from China and Nepal where they are hunted by the ruthless armies of China and recruited to be soldiers. Some children are abandoned by their parents as they can't afford to feed them.

Bon Children's Home is the only facility that offers education in class rooms for many hours by car. Which makes it impossible for children to get to them especially by cold winter.

Whole families travel from place to place where woman take on small trade and men field work. In such society and educated person is considered to be someone who can sign their own name and can count.

Just recently arrived many children from Nepals villages. They managed to escape the Chinese soldiers enforced military recruitment, where young Children are kidnapped and made in to soldiers. One child that manged to get away from the capture, at the mare sigh military uniform, screams, gets frightened and paralyzed with fear.

Part of the children, who's parent's decide to make the difficult escape from Tibet to India, never survive the journey. They die from exhausting, cold and illnesses. For them the arrival to the school is like the arrival to paradise.

Just two years ago the children that studied in Dolanji lived in huts made from mud, on beds made from wood, two children per bed. Each child had two blankets, one to sleep on and the other to cover them selves with.

Thanks to aid from the Western countries a building made from stone was erected to accommodate young boys and older girls.

However, the youngsters are still in very bad living conditions as the buildings in witch they sleep are not heated. The bathrooms are outside and don't have hot water or showers. Such basics that we take for granted in the western world. They are waiting for the funds to arrive.

Each child gets 1 pair of shoes for the whole year. Two changes of clothes. They don't have underwear and a pair of socks is a luxury. Two semi automated washing machines are only for the youngsters.

'Would you like to have your own room? 12 year old Tsering does not seem to understand the question. 'Just only two months ago I got my own bed ... and a metal box for the clothes'.

The 300 children are cared for by 3 adults: one administrator, a woman, which mothers the youngsters and teacher. It seams impossible that such small amount of adults could govern over 300 youngsters of various ages. Tibetans have an inborn respect for adults. When the gong is sounded to announce the assembly, the children come at once. No one needs encouraging to do their homework or to study.

How does a day look in children's home in Dolanji? At 7 there is a wake up call and children go to wash in cold water and eat breakfast. Before every meal the children make a prayer. Till 4pm they have study with a brake for dinner. In the afternoon they have free time and at 7pm there is supper. The meals are very simple: there are no sweets, once a week meet, sometimes an egg, milk is only added to tea.

Please donate whatever you can. Here is a list of things the money will be spend on.

PERSONAL CARE

1.Buy each child more shoes. 1 for casual wear 2. for playing (i.e. Football) 3. sandals for indoor wear.

2.Personal care kit (box equipped with toothbrush & toothpaste, sop); 3 towels

3.3 sets of clothes (casual wear; smart wear (when i.e. In school); one for sleeping

4.Study equipment (books for learning English language; writing notebooks; pencils & pens for all)

5.Own bed with mattress and change of sheets to sleep on; pillow.

6.Loads of teddies and dolls and other toys (whole crate of them if possible)

EDUCATION

Build buildings for children to gain life skills in the fields of :

7.Mechanics

8.Medicine (nurses & sponsorship for gifted children to go to medical school)

9.Farming

10.Economics and trade

11.Other (please give ideas)

12.Library building with many books in Hindu, Chinese and English. Many children's color books. 50 computers with Internet and educational software (satellite link up with solar power and or wind)

13.Dojo/Gym

If you have any of the above and can donate please email me as all gifts are very welcome! Thank You and God bless

Most of the children in the home are lonely. If they have parents, those parents are far away. They love to be cuddled and hugged but there is no one to give them that kind of basic love. It is a big event when when one of the children gets a parcel or a letter from a relative or a friend. Mostly write the adoptive parents, strangers, who pay $25 per month for the education of the chosen child.

Perhaps the most important it is for the children to know that someone is thinking about them and not just sending money. Therefore it is much more valued to send personal letters than money!

Children love to know that someone is thinking about them and caring for them.

Sometimes the adoptive parent visits the child. They joy is hard to explain. Child hugs the parent and don't want to let go. But doesn't forget about friends and talks about their best assets and asks for and uncle or aunt to also adopt them.

The girls at night whisper to each other their inner most wishes and secrets. Girls love to dream. Some would like to be nurses and doctors and help the people in the country. However, they know that education cost.

It is very important to make at least one child happy and facilitate their development.