Thank You : Soumya's family, three others get Rs 12 lac help

Daijiworld Media Network - Mangalore (NM)

Mangalore, Apr 24: Four beneficiaries have received a sum of over Rs 12 lac following separate appeals for help published in Daijiworld recently. In their letters to Daijiworld, the four families conveyed exceptional thanks to the readers and contributors for their prayers and financial support during their time of need.

The family of Soumya said that they received a sum of around Rs 7 lac, while Valerian D’Souza (48), husband of Saritha D’Souza, resident of Belman, Karkala taluk, and Salmiya D’Souza, daughter of Silvester D’Souza and Rita D’Souza, resident of Gurpur, said they received a sum of Rs 2 lac each and Shivraj (24), son of Prema Naik, Inoli, Konaje, received about Rs 1.5 lac.

Soumya, an aspiring teacher, belonging to a very poor family was allegedly raped and murdered near her house. Considering their dire situation and poor family background, Daijiworld had carried an exclusive report seeking financial for the family.

Nalinakshi, mother of Soumya, along with her other three children came to Daijiworld expressing their gratefulness for the unbelievable financial support received through the appeal. With tears in her eyes, she said, “This is something I had never expected in my life. People who do not know us have shown their care and support which I am thankful for.”

She added, “The loss of my daughter is unimaginable and I am still going through all the emotions. Being in the village, I had no clue that such organizations like websites even exist, so when it comes to the financial support, I am still trying to accept it.”

Soumya has four siblings Divya (19), who studied until SSLC, is now engaged in tailoring work; Maithri (17), who was pursuing her PU and discontinued it, Lohith (14), who is in class 9, and Asha (11), in class 6.

Valerian D’Souza, the bread winner of the family, had met with an accident while coming back home after duty hours on March 26, 2013. Thereafter, he was admitted in the intensive care unit (ICU) of a private hospital with head injuries.

Saritha, wife of Valerian, expressed gratitude to all the donors for their timely help. “The money received from the various sources helped me to bear the medical expenses. We have spent about Rs 2 lac for the surgery and medications and it would not have been possible without the financial support received from the readers,” she said.

“Doctors have said that Valerian is slowly recovering. Since there is some damage to the brain, it needs time to recover completely,” she said.

Another appeal was for Salmiya D’Souza who needed financial support in order to undergo orthopaedic surgery to walk again. The 17-year-old has undergone a lot of suffering since her childhood as she accidentally fell from the hands of a relative while she was just three months old. Thereafter, the growth of her legs kept deteriorating and she kept getting weak. The family which had spent a lot on her regular medications had no money to bear the expense of her recent surgery. Daijiworld had carried an appeal and her family thanked the donors for the financial support received in a short time.

“We had no money to pay the expenses of surgery. Due to the generosity of the readers of Daijiworld, we could get her discharged. We spent about Rs 2 lac for the entire surgery,” said Rita D’Souza, Salmiya’s mother.  “As soon as the appeal was published, we kept receiving calls and messages from distant lands enquiring about Salmiya's health. We received timely help. We are extremely thankful to all the well-wishers,” she added.

In another case, Shivraj (24), a cancer victim, needed support as he was the sole bread winner of the family. Prema Naik did house chores to feed the family along with Shivraj, while two other siblings were still studying. His father Krishnappa had abandoned the family when the children were very small. Prema expressed gratitude to the readers for the financial help received. “We will pray for the families for supporting us and that’s the only option left to us. Doctors have said that Shivraj has been responding well to the antibiotics and chemotherapy. Shivraj does not have pain in the leg. He feels his legs are okay and he drives a rickshaw,” she added.

Indeed, Daijiworld readers have once again proved that together, we can make the world a beautiful place. Hats off to each and every person who has helped, supported and prayed for the four families.