Contributed by Kathryn North and Pooja Das from ILSC-New Delhi
ILSC-New Delhi’s Learn to Earn program provides English and job skills training to help underprivileged young Indian women expand their opportunities for future success. This is the story of Pooja Das, who is the oldest child of three and dreams of becoming an IAS (Indian Administrative Services) Officer, one of the most prestigious jobs in India.
Pooja is a hardworking student but has not had access to good quality education. She wants to become fluent in English so that she can be successful. Pooja’s LTE scholarship is sponsored by ILSC-San Francisco.
Here is a snapshot of her ILSC story so far:
Diwali
“Diwali is a festival of lights. I enjoy this festival every year. This year I celebrated Diwali in ILSC. I enjoyed very much because first time I celebrate Diwali with international friends and teachers. That day we made rangoli and decorated our classrooms with lights. All the LTE girls enjoyed this Diwali with everyone. We ate many different foods from different countries. We clicked many pictures. We also made a video for why we celebrate Diwali.”
Shivatri
“On Shivratri, I went to temple in the morning. There were lots of people who came to worship the lord Shiva. I went there with my sister and aunt. It was a very great day for me because that day I was fasting. When I went to temple there was a little problem. There was a queue so I was waiting in a queue for some time after that I worshiped the God Shiva then went back home and I was fasting the whole day.”
Shine NGO
“This picture is from Shine NGO. I went there last year in October. This NGO is based on craft work. This NGO help those people who are economically weak and underprivileged. Shine NGO help them to improve financially. When I went there I was very happy because there were lots of handmade things, which were very difficult to make. I saw each and every thing and I also spoke with them how they made those things and they told me about that. It was a very nice experience and the best thing is I am doing my internship with them. It’s very good for me. I love to work with them.”
Halloween
“Last year I celebrate the Halloween day at ILSC. Before celebrating this day I didn’t know about this festival. Now I know about this day and also know why we celebrate this day. I was surprise and happy because I had to become a Ghost on Halloween day. I was excited to celebrate this day. Some students and teachers shared their story with ghost.”
