Aarti was eleven when she arrived at Naini hospital in Uttar Pradesh, India.  She had clawed hands, could not lift her feet properly and she was unable to close her eyelids.  She spent three years at Naini.  Through reconstructive surgery on her hands and feet, she has been transformed physically, emotionally and mentally too.  For a long time, Aarti was reluctant to smile for photographs; due to leprosy nerve damage her mouth became crooked and she felt self-conscious about it.  Surgeons at Naini agreed to correct this.

For the future The Leprosy Mission will provide her family with financial assistance so Aarti can go back to school.  Then she will be able to attend one of the Vocational Training Centres to learn a professional trade, giving her a firm foundation from which she can begin the rest of her life.

Your support will help many people like Aarti overcome leprosy and build a better future.

Naini's hospital facilities include 110 beds in the patient wing, a 40-bed snehalaya (a Mercy Home which offers holistic care including shelter, healthcare, love and spiritual support to elderly residents) for severely disabled patients, and a host of other services such as X-ray, physiotherapy, laboratory, surgery, ophthalmology and more. 

Our special East Central area project for 2010 is to raise £8,000 to help support those with leprosy.  We will do this by providing protective footwear, reconstructive surgery and home therapy;  teaching self-care, ulcer care and heath education;  training local, non-government and government health professionals in various aspects of leprosy care; community rehabilitation, self-help groups and low cost housing, and community education through the Catch Them Young  programme and stigma education.

Please consider whether you could support those affected by leprosy who come to Naini for help, either by making a donation (please quote F10027) or by participating in one of our 2010 fundraising events. 

Your prayers and financial support are greatly needed in this part of His kingdom. 

Return to East Central page