Bethania Visit No. 3: CSI Rehabilitation Center

Kodaikanal is home to many Bethania projects, the most inspiring of which I've found to be the CSI Rehabilitation Center. Celebrating more than ten years of aid to children with a variety of disabilities -- from mental retardation to polio to speech/hearing/sight impairments to Cerebral Palsy (a.k.a. 'CP', this condition has been the focus of Bethania's support of the center, which garners contributions from other charities as well.) -- the clinic/school currently assists about forty area kids.

We entered the center to find it buzzing with activity; three classrooms boasted kids hard at work on their lessons. A female team of devoted, skillfully trained 'special educators' hovered about, their care crafted to supplement a plethora of physical and mental limitations. Most kids we found seated at desks, angelically ordering a set of numbered cards, threading beads down a length of yarn, or practicing the motions to a song.

Must say, if there was a frowning face to be found in those rooms I CERTAINLY did not see it. Perumal, a boy whose reading was rudely interrupted by my camera, politely informed me in confident English that he was studying Tamil. A girl with severe thyroid disorder named Divia (pictured above... she's actually 13 years old!) seemed a tad melancholy till my shameless ham up of Old MacDonald finally had her in stitches.

Elsewhere in the center, a group of older children were busy with vocational training. Some sewed together large Bagunia leaves used to make containers for takeaway train food (right). Others grinded away at pasting together newspaper bags (below) for a local bakery... they've got an order of 10,000 to fill! The CSI Center prepares its students to advance in education as far as each is able, including college. Those for whom the upper limit is met sooner, however, seem delighted at this chance for 'Real World' training. It's also a chance to help fund raise for their beloved center!

Mr. and Mrs. Jayachundran, CSI Rehabilitation Center's visionary founders, graciously told us the triumphant story of the place. Throughout tales of obstacles overcome, surgeries braved, and painful first steps accomplished, a poignant refrain humbly differed to the true source of such bounteous success: "By God's Grace only has it been made so."