Mother sitting on a rush mat and boy sleeping on…

Mother sitting on a rush mat and boy sleeping on the floor, FSP Nagapattinam - Tsunami India.

Chitra lost her husband in the disastrous Tsunami. She was completely taken aback by this unexpected blow in her life. But she didn't lose courage and faced life boldly.

Chitra is able to give the best to her son

Chitra, a young lady from Nambiyar Nagar village in Nagapattinam, lives with her only son Bala in a small accommodation. She lost her husband in the catastrophic Tsunami. "It was a sudden and unexpected blow in my life,"' says Chitra with tears in her eyes.

But Chitra did not give up and showed courage to face life again. She started making 'idli' (a common breakfast in Southern parts of India) and began selling it. Gradually her idli's became popular and she started getting more orders.

"I was determined to send Bala to school and for this I worked very hard", says Chitra. "Those were hard days as I was beginning my life from scratch."

At that critical time SOS Children's Villages of India came to her help with its family strengthening programme. Bala was provided free books, uniform and his school fee was paid.

"This was a big help to me. Now with my income I could manage the household expenses quite well and Bala's education part was taken care by SOS Children's Villages," Chitra explains. "I don't have words to thank the organization for their wonderful support", she continues to say.

Now Bala is studying in class six and is very much interested in sports. He visits the SOS Community Centre in Nagapattinam regularly in the evening for coaching classes.

Chitra is also facing life more confidently. She has a clear aim - to give the best to Bala.