Friends of Udayan

Returning from India at the end of February 2011, the students (past and present) from St Joan of Arc Catholic School have created a video of their time spent on their pilgrimage through India culminating with a stay at Udayan for our readers to enjoy.

Returning from India at the end of February 2011, the students (past and present) from St Joan of Arc Catholic School have created a video of their time spent with the children at Udayan for our readers to enjoy.

It is with great excitement that seven past and present students along with Caroline Weldon, Beverley Schramm and Kathryn Spink are planning to set off on St Joan’s fourth pilgrimage to Udayan on Sunday 6th February 2011. The itinerary includes visits to centres of worship belonging to the major religions as well as to places of cultural and historical interest. The highlight and main purpose of the journey is the visit to St Joan’s whole school charity, Udayan, in order to see how it is developing and spend some time working alongside the children. During their time at Udayan the students will be helping the children with their literacy skills.

Beverley Schramm returned to Udayan this summer in order to further develop the teaching of English. She was delighted with the progress that had been made but aware there is a long way yet to go.

On the morning of 13th August 2009 I sat at Gatwick Airport feeling rather forlorn, tears pricking at my eyes, feeling guilty at leaving my husband and children for 3 weeks to travel over 5,000 miles to Udayan; it would be the first time in my life that I had ventured out of Europe.

Parents, teachers and students of St Joan of Arc Catholic School were treated to an exotic evening of Indian dance, food and music last Saturday in aid of Udayan, the home for children of leprosy sufferers in Calcutta.

Following on from the assembly given to St John’s Catholic primary school in Rickmansworth by a group of the St Joan of Arc sixth form students who visited Udayan earlier in the year, the children were inspired to raise money by doing various sponsored events during their sports week in the summer term.

Mrs Beverley Schramm, teacher of modern languages at St Joan of Arc Catholic School, is spending part of her summer holidays at Udayan. She is working closely with Bivash who is responsible for the teaching of English, and is giving lessons to children of all ages.

Details covering the forthcoming trip to India of 9 students from St Joan of Arc Catholic School along with Caroline Weldon, Trish Devlin and Kathryn Spink can be found within this article as well as access to their daily diary.

St Joan of Arc Catholic School in Rickmansworth, Hertfordshire, held a barn dance on Saturday evening for the children of leprosy sufferers, some of whom have the disease themselves. £2,600 was made for Udayan, the home in Calcutta which the school has helped to support for a little over four years.