A huge legacy...

We recently have lost a very dear family member who would be 100 years old in just a couple of weeks. She was such a neat lady with a mind as sharp as a tack. Visiting with family members and friends, I realized how precious life is and how one person can make a huge difference in many lives. I looked around the room at the many lives of all ages she has touched from babies to this now Matriarch of our family. She was truly a gift to everyone she touched...The Caring Coins will be a tangible reminder of this dear lady.

How wonderful to leave such a legacy...

Back to Caring Coin stories and more...

It's been a while since I have posted a Caring Coins story other than a Bangladesh story. I'll be posting whatever comes up as it comes up...Some may be stories of that day, some past stories and of course, there will be more Bangladesh stories...

I just received a call from a lady who wanted to know more about the You Are Never Alone Foundation and the Caring Coins. She had recently lost a family member. She told me how she belongs to a prayer group where she had shared about her loss. After sharing, she got up from her chair to get a cup of coffee. When she returned, someone had put a Caring Coin on her chair. She was so touched by the coin, the message and the thoughtfullness of the person who gave her the coin.

I shared the story of the Caring Coins and my dream. I also shared with her about the Remembering Card and how many people find solace in having something tangible as a reminder of their lost one. We must have talked for at least a half hour. She asked where she could read more about the Caring Coins and how she could share them with her family. I told her that the You Are Never Alone Foundation website at www.YouAreNeverAloneFoundation.org would have all that information.

As we finished our conversation, I told her she and her family would be in my thoughts and prayers and asked her to keep in touch with me. I hope she does.

Sometimes a little act can make a huge difference...

Our mission and the Caring Coins...

The You Are Never Alone Foundation is a voluntary, non-profit organization that fosters caring and hope… letting people know everywhere they are not alone, someone cares. Our Caring Coins are reminders of a caring connection.

When we returned from Bangladesh we couldn't help but want to do something more for the children and people of Bangladesh whose needs are so great...the homeless children in the park, the children in the orphanages...

We asked Rubel if he thought we should expand our mission beyond that of caring and hope...he had seen the response to our message and the Caring Coins. (Mahmudul Karim Rubel is the founder of Design Bangladesh, a non-profit organization working for a better Bangladesh. He invited us to Bangladesh, coordinated our itinerary and hosted us during our visit)

Rubel replied “You ask about sending funds to buy foods etc..You are on a mission with the message of caring and hope for humanity that You are never alone. You have to be steady in your mission with the Caring Coins and spread your dream to the world. We are lucky that your dream tour is starting from Bangladesh”

You can join us as we continue our mission...
Make a Donation...Purchase Caring Coins to share...

Salley, Betsy and Chris

We did it!

Yes, we did! And we did it together…

We have opened the door to a caring connection between students here in Vermont and Alaska and students in Bangladesh… It is an accomplishment that will remain in our hearts forever with the Caring Coins as tangible reminders of this caring connection……

We includes school administrators, faculty members, students in Vermont and Alaska, our You Are Never Alone Foundation Board and our volunteers and in Bangladesh, Rubel and the Design Bangladesh staff, school administrators, faculty members, students and the Caring Coins…

Here is a brief re-cap of our You Are Never Alone Bangladesh journey for those who are reading this blog for the first time...

Last May, You Are Never ALone Foundation received an email from Mahmudul Karim Rubel of Design Bangladesh, a non-profit organization working for a better Bangladesh, asking us to bring Caring Coins to the students in Bangladesh to remind them that they have not been forgotten by the world. Our YANAF Board approved the trip to Bangladesh with the hope of fostering a caring connection between the students here and the students in Bangladesh that could lead to good will and understanding. So You Are Never Alone Bangladesh was born.

With Rubel’s help, we designed a card with the words Tumi Kokhono Eka Nao which means You are never alone in Bengali which students here would sign and attach to the Caring Coins for the students in Bangladesh.


We shared our dream with school administrators, faculty and students in Vermont and Alaska who have participated in our Share That You Care Program. The response was overwhelming. Students eagerly signed the cards and wrote questions for the students in Bangladesh.


GNAT-TV a Public Access Station in Manchester, Vermont graciously made a video with our Vermont students saying “Hello Bangladesh”.



Students and our You Are Never Alone Foundation senior volunteers attached the cards to 1300 Caring Coins for us to bring to Bangladesh



On Saturday, March 13th, we three, Salley and Betsy, YANAF Board Members and Chris, a college student, left for Dahka, Bangladesh with our Caring Coins.

Rubel and his Design Bangladesh staff coordinated an amazing itinerary for us starting with a press conference.



From the Press Conference, we went to the Badda School where students greeted us with smiles, words of welcome, handshakes and beautiful flowers… They eagerly as we shared with them how they and the students in America are our future…how they can make a difference in this world by reaching out to each other, learning about each other and connecting with each other. We explained how students had signed the cards attached to the Caring Coins they were receiving. The response was amazing.

This response was repeated over and over again as we shared our message of a caring connection along with the Caring Coins at visits to four other schools, including a school for disabled students where the students sang "We shall overcome" in both English and Bengali.


The students at all the schools loved the video with students from Vermont saying “Hello Bangladesh!”. They enthusiastically responded with "Hello America!” .

We also visited and shared Caring Coins with homeless children living in a park; children at a girls’ orphanage and a boys’ orphanage. The Caring Coins were a always a big hit. For some the coin is one of their only possessions.

When we returned to the two orphanages the following day, the children came running out to the vans wearing their coins. Some of the girls drew pictures for us with the words like “today I am not alone
Our 1300 Caring Coins went very quickly. We promised students at the larger schools that we would send Caring Coins to them. We are sending 1500 additional Caring Coins and cards which Rubel and his staff will distribute for us.

Yes, we did it! Our dream for a caring connection between our students here and the students in Bangladesh has started…


The Caring Coins solidify this caring connection as seen in the hope in the faces of our students signing the cards attached to the Caring Coins and in the faces of the students receiving the Caring Coins .

Our message to all the students is: "You are the future of the world...Reach out to each other, learn about each other...Each one of you can make a difference one person at a time...

This is just the beginning… Rubel and his staff are putting together a video about a day in the life of a student in Bangladesh and we will do a video about a day in the life of a student here. We shall then exchange the videos to enable the students to learn about each other. As one Vermont middle school said..."The more we know about each other, the closer we are to understanding, good will and world peace"

Stay tuned…
We look forward to future caring connections together.
Salley, Betsy and Chris

PS
We invite your thoughts and ideas...

Salley's thoughts on Bangladesh...

As with Betsy and Chris, I too find it difficult to put into words what our trip to Bangladesh has meant to me. I have tried writing my thoughts over and over again but my words can’t fully express what I’m feeling…

From our arrival, we were warmly welcomed and very well taken care of by our friends Rubel of Design Bangladesh and his wonderful staff Hadi, Mehedi, Amine, Kader, Khan, Ryal, Mehedi (Apple). Their welcome extended to their wonderful families with Rubel's mother and sister and Hadi's two sisters-in-law inviting us into their homes with warm hospitality and delicious meals. We so enjoyed being with them and really felt as though we were family too.

We found the people of Bangladesh to be warm and welcoming including the people in the hotel, the people we met at the schools, the people in the streets, the parks. For many, we were the first Americans possibly even the first foreigners they had ever met.

Sometimes, people did look at us inquisitively, but when we smiled and said hello and told them our name they reached out, smiled, looked us straight in the eyes and told us their names. They then tapped their heart as a sign that we were in their heart. We tapped our heart in return. I can easily say that we each have shaken at least 2,000 hands in Bangladesh. In a sense, we were the faces of America for these people.

Rubel and his Design Bangladesh staff coordinated an amazing itinerary for us. Our activities included a press conference, visits to five schools, including a school for disabled students, a school in the slums, a visit to a park where homeless children lived; a girls’ orphanage; a boys’ orphanage; a movie and TV studio; a garment factory; visits to a historical village, museums, and a visit to Mahasthan, an Archaeological dig that dated back to at least 3rd century B.C. There was even a “football” game between our Design Bangladesh team and the local football team. The entire town came out for the game. And our own Chris made two goals to win the game.

Along with us each day at each of these events came our Caring Coins...the Caring Coins with the message "Tumi kokhomi eka nao" You are never alone . This message is a universal message that everyone understands...a message we all need to hear. This was very evident with the people of Bangladesh as they put the Caring Coins around their necks. More about the Caring Coins in my next blog.

So, what are my thoughts on Bangladesh? I am thinking that I am so grateful to God for having been given the opportunity to visit this wonderful country and meet these wonderful people who will remain forever in my heart. I am so grateful to my friend Rubel and his wonderful staff Hadi, Mehedi, Amine, Kader, Khan, Ryal, Mehedi (Apple), Aziz for giving of themselves to make this visit all that it was. Each one of you has a special place in my heart as well.

I shall especially remember the children...the homeless children in the park; the children in the slums; the children in the disabled school; the girls and the boys in the orphanages and all of the wonderful students we met at the schools we visited. I'll remember the joy in their eyes, their eagerness to learn more about us...their strong love of family and their country and how they wanted to have their pictures taken with us. I'll remember how they wore the Caring Coins around their necks and so much more...

Where do we go from here? We continue to share the Caring Coins with their message...You are never alone...

Chris' thoughts on Bangladesh...

For me the trip to Bangladesh was a bit of an unknown. I had no idea what to expect nor what was in store for me. After arriving in Bangladesh and settling in, I could tell that the trip was going to be something much more than what my expectations were.

The reception that our team received from everyone who we came across and spoke to was absolutely phenomenal. In a sense I wasn't really sure how to react. At times I could feel myself smiling and thinking, "This is amazing."


Becoming so close with all of the gentlemen who took wonderful care of us there is something that I will forever cherish. To know that I have had the opportunity to go to another country and positively affect such a large number of people brings a feeling of incredible joy and has left me speechless.

I would like to thank Salley and Betsy and the You Are Never Alone Foundation for everything and also a warm thank you to the Design Bangladesh Team. I will forever remember this experience and hopefully it will give me an idea of what to do in the future.

Betsy's thoughts on Bangladesh...

It has been less than two weeks since we returned from our adventures in Bangladesh, but I cannot believe we were actually there. The experience has been so profound that it is difficult to put it into words. Pictures say more about our time in the country than I can express.

Rubel and his staff of Design Bangladesh were unbelievable. They not only took incredibly good care of us, but shared their homes and families with us as well. They showed us a part of Bangladesh that few foreigners have ever seen. They also took us to historical sites and museums. From the reception they were given and consequently, we were given, you can tell that Rubel and his staff at Design Bangladesh are well-known there for the good work they do for their country.


The strongest impression I have of Bangladesh is that of the people and how welcoming and friendly they were to us all. At first, some people stared at us – we were definitely different looking and probably for many people, we were the only Americans they had ever seen. But as soon as we smiled at them and put our hand out to shake theirs, we were given big smiles and obvious welcomes. Most of the children all said “hello” and “welcome” in English. Many people wanted their pictures taken with us or brought over their children or friends to talk to us.

The poverty and problems in Bangladesh were clearly visible during our visit, but this did not stop the people from being very proud of their country – very patriotic. It was the birthday of the Father of their Country, Sheukh Mujibur Rahman, celebrated as Children’s Day. All over the country were celebrations reminding everyone of the sacrifice of the Father of their country and also of the Freedom Fighters in 1971 as they won their independence from Pakistan. This was also a time to look toward the future and how important the children are to the country.

One image stands out in my mind – the beautiful colors and designs of the saris worn by all the women. It did not matter what station of life – the women in the slums, the women pouring out of the garment factories or the women in the parks – all were wearing bright, colorful clothes. Most of the women wore headscarves – as did Salley and I. The men were either in western garb or in traditional clothes.

And the children…they are all beautiful. Such big eyes and smiles. It was heartbreaking especially to meet the group of homeless children who live in a park in Dahka. Despite their living conditions, they were laughing and seemed happy, especially to get our coins and the food we brought with us.

We were in the slums, in special needs schools, in a girl’s and a boy’s orphanage and other big schools. Everywhere we went, we were greeted with shouts of welcome and hello and even given flowers. Salley and I want to go back to each of these places and to be able to do something more for all of them. Fortunately, Design Bangladesh is involved with all of the places we visited and we hope to keep our connections with them.

So many impressions, sights, smells and sounds. It was quite a shock to return to Vermont. I woke the next morning, went to the bathroom sink and I was able to turn on a faucet with clean, drinking water. The air was clean and fresh here and so few people. Was I really in Bangladesh? Fortunately, the pictures we have tell me we were actually there and experiencing all the things we did. I am so grateful to The You Are Never Alone Foundation and to Design Bangladesh for this opportunity. It will still take time to digest it all.


The importance of the Caring Coins is something that was clearly validated by the response to them by all the people we gave them to in Bangladesh.