Day 1 at Rising Star Outreach

Today has been such an amazing day. I love Rising Star Outreach. We left Chennai this morning to come to RSO and its been amazing. Everyone here is so kind and so beautiful! When we got here we had orientation and got situated, and then we had play time with the kids.

BEST PART OF THE DAY. 

I got to meet the little girl my family is sponsoring, Roseline. She is seriously the sweetest little thing I have ever met. 

It's her first year at RSO, so her English isn't very good yet, but I just love her. 

She calls me Aunty Sponsor and tells me I am so beautiful. She is either sitting on my lap or holding my hand. I love it. 

Mary took this picture right after we met

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So sweet. 

All the kids are so wonderful. 

They braided my hair, pinched my cheeks, and told me I had lots of things wrong with me. 

I had a Transderm patch on behind my ear that helps prevent and treat motion sickness. 

I have permanent retainers on my bottom teeth. 

And they wanted to know why my two front teeth were different. 

Thus, me having lots of things wrong with me, in their eyes. 

They kept asking me what happened because the patch kind of looks like a bandaid. They thought it was the funniest thing that I had fake front teeth and that it happened because I hit a stop sign riding my bike. I think I got asked to tell that story about 7 times today, and every time their laughs would get louder and louder. The gift that keeps on giving? 

They also love Justin Bieber. They know EVERY SINGLE WORD to Never Say Never and to Baby. If hilarious. 

One little girl named Suba took one of my rings and put it on my left hand on my ring finger and told me I was married. I asked her to who, and she responded with Justin Bieber. Classic. 

I never want to leave here. It's the end of day one and I don't want to leave in 18 days. I'm going to try and absorb every last second of my time here, and hope they next summer I'll be able to afford to come back again. 

Tomorrow I am assigned to the construction team. We will be building a sick bay/dental clinic on the campus for the kids. 

The other days we will be going out with the mobile medical unit to work in the leprosy colonies treating the leprosy patients or we will stay on campus and tutor the kids at the school. 

I can't wait. The whole point of this trip to India was to work with Rising Star Outreach, and all the traveling was secondary. 

If you want to learn more about Rising Star Outreach, visit their website at: risingstaroutreach.org

There are also lots of beautiful children here that are in need of sponsors. It's $30/month and is worth every single penny. EVERY LAST ONE OF THEM. 

When you sponsor a child you are allowing them to stay at RSO to learn English, math, and computer skills. You help provide their food, housing, and medical/dental needs. You are changing their lives. You are helping them to break the stigma of leprosy and hopefully someday they can leave the colonies and go to college, pursue a career, and start a family of their own. 

Be the change! 

Lecture over. 

But seriously, please consider sponsoring a child. 

And go read about Rising Star Outreach. It's amazing.

(And yes, this is the program the People Water worked with). 

Deal? Okay cool. 

Namaste! 

-Kir 

Also, so many of the kids here remember my grandpa, and it's so sweet. 

So cute. And grandpa is so happy being here. I love it.