One Way in India

Widows are supported and helped in One Way village through the Ray of Hope village community as well as in neighboring villages. In One Way’s village community, widows are provided with full sustenance for the rest of their lives. As a result of the increased support we have received for this ministry, we have been able to provide already a home for over 40 forsaken, poor and aged widows.

It has been a source of great joy and thanksgiving for the widows that God has prepared a safe home for them for the last years of their lives. Those widows who are still strong and in good shape help around in the chores, are “grandmas” to the children in our orphanage and work at creating handmade products for sale.

Some widows are so sick that they don’t have strength for anything; all they can do is just rest. Nevertheless, they are greatly blessed by the care and love they receive. At the village, a sick room has been refurbished for the purpose of providing a place for the widows to receive hospital-like treatment when necessary e.g. due to paralysis.

We reach many widows during the distribution of daily meals and aid in the surrounding villages. Many poor and forsaken widows in these villages long for a place to stay in One Way village.

Would you consider sponsoring a lonely Indian widow?

The fee for sponsoring a widow: 40€/month
Coordinator for Widows’ Ministry: Marjo-Helena Nieminen, +358 40 740 3484

On average twenty disabled people at a time receive personalized rehabilitation and physiotherapy at the Bowbridge Wellness Centre. Most of them are youths suffering from polio or congenital cerebral palsy.

In addition to physiotherapy we provide vocational education for those staying at Bowbridge so that they can later support themselves. They are taught textile printing, embroidery, clothing design, sewing and how to make paper plates. Bowbridge has its own sewing center where some of the disabled work.

The team caring for the disabled consists of a physiotherapist, and a few nurses. In addition to the work done at the Wellness Center, the team visits them twice a week in their homes where they are given physiotherapy and family members are instructed how to rehabilitate them with the means available. A few times a year campaigns are organized in cooperation with social and health officials in nearby villages for meeting disabled people and their families. They are given information about disabilities and possible treatments. They are also directed to take part in rehabilitation programs if it is deemed necessary.

Based on the needs of the disabled, we also offer aid and/or a chance to go for surgery so that they would be able to move about independently and support themselves. Going for surgery is often an impossibility for poor families without our support. There is a great need for surgeries because most of the disabled have not been rehabilitated. This has been the cause of difficult deformities which cannot be treated with mere rehabilitation anymore.

In 2011 we started a school in One Way village for those with speech and hearing impairments. The school is part of the Best Public school where sign language is used to teach the same subjects taught in a regular primary school. The aim is to develop the school so that by the end of 2013 it can offer high-quality teaching for poor and wealthy children with disabilities.

Being disabled is often a source of shame and they are treated as inferior human beings. For this reason, we strive to change the villagers’ mindset so that they would have a more positive attitude toward disabled people. We also try to improve the status of the disabled in society and better their employment opportunities i.a. through basic and vocational education.

If you want to give a better life to one of India’s disabled people by sponsoring their surgery or supporting our work among them, please contact the coordinator in charge of this work.

The fee for sponsoring a disabled person: 35€ / month
Coordinator for the ministry among the disabled: Ritva Korpiniemi, +358 40 586 2944, korpri@luukku.com

The ministry among street children is a constantly growing form of outreach. We help the so-called “runaway” children as well as those children who have lived on the streets for a long time. We provide meals, assistance, and advice. We give instruction in spiritual matters and nurture them. Healthcare camps are also organized where a doctor examines the children and treats their illnesses, gives the appropriate medication and prescription. Our help reaches 100-200 children each month.

The activity center for street children

The activity center for street children opened its doors in the city of Vijayawada in 2010. The center serves as a refuge for those children who are on the run but haven’t become involved in street gangs so far. The center attempts to contact the relatives of the children and the primary objective is to return the children to their home villages. If returning them isn’t possible the children are placed for instance in a children’s home.

The center takes in only boys; girls are placed in children’s homes directly. This is because the Indian government does not allow boys and girls to stay permanently in the same accommodation. On average, the boys stay in the center anywhere from a few days to a couple of weeks. Daily meals are provided, they get a place to sleep, they are taught responsibility through various chores and they get to spend time with other children away from the streets. The particulars of each child are documented and reported daily to the Indian government.

The rehabilitation center

In the beginning of 2014, there were 40 children, boys and girls, living in the street children’s rehabilitation center. They go to school on a daily basis and learn the routines of ordinary life.

The rehabilitation center is a kind of a halfway house where these children can get rid of their addictions (i.a. drugs and smoking) as well as progress in such a way that we can transfer them to the Rainbow children’s home or Wendel Nivas’s orphanage.

Before the children are taken into the rehabilitation center they are monitored and evaluated whether they are mentally ready for a totally different kind of life. If the children are taken in too early they might not be able to recover from the hard lifestyle of the streets. Many children do want to get off the streets but some have been prevented from seizing the opportunity due to their fear of the change. One of the main objectives of the work is to get as many children as possible off the streets.

Children that have lived long on the streets

There are sadly some children who despite all the help provided run away back to the streets and do not adapt to a so-called normal life. For them, One Way’s street children’s ministry has a small safeguard in Vijayawada. The children are provided a meal twice a week, their health is monitored and they are given guidance. The workers roam the streets and areas near the railway station on a daily basis asking the children how they are doing and giving them guidance.

If you are interested in the street children’s ministry and would like to support it, please contact our coordinator for the street children’s ministry.

The fee for sponsoring a street child: 40€ / child / month
Coordinator for the Street children’s Ministry: Henna Karjalainen, +358 40 591 9587, e-mail: hennakar@hotmail.com

At the moment, One Way Mission supports 35 pastors who work in the villages for the advancement of God’s Kingdom. These village pastors and evangelists minister in remote villages within the region of three states. Through their work, God is continually increasing the numbers of their church members. Many have believed and been baptized.

Despite persecution against Christians, there is a stronger revival in India than before. A religious research published by the government reveals that the percentage of Christians is growing more rapidly than that of any other religious group. One-on-one evangelization and the planting of new churches are the genuine needs of this day. Our evangelists are doing just that and they are reaping a good harvest.

Once a month all of our pastors gather for a united all-night prayer where they pray for current needs and for God to send revival to India.

Even with a fairly small sum of 50 euros per month pastors can devote themselves to full-time evangelization and assistance. On the other hand, it encourages their families to earn a part of their living elsewhere.

If you want to sponsor a pastor, his work, and his family, please contact the coordinator responsible for this area of ministry.

The fee for sponsoring a pastor: 50€ / month
Coordinator for Indian missions: Tero Hokkanen, +358 50 381 4864, intia@onewaymission.fi

You are welcome to visit India’s One Way village and get to know its various modes of operation. You will live comfortably in the mission house or a hotel in Vijayawada, play with the children at the Rainbow children’s home, take part in the lives of the widows and the rehabilitation of the disabled. You will also get a chance to visit neighboring villages and see the work done there.

At the festival trip organized every other year you will get to take part in a great festival conference along with local Christians. The conference program consists of music, dance, teaching and of course getting acquainted with Indian believers.

Indians are friendly and hospitable hosts who eagerly and joyfully wait for the yearly arrival of Finnish guests. At times, you will pop into the metropolis of Vijayawada in contrast to the peaceful atmosphere of One Way village. Sometimes we travel by train which gives you a unique opportunity of seeing this picturesque country and getting acquainted with its people.

Please contact the coordinator for Indian missions: Tero Hokkanen, +358 50 381 4864, intia@onewaymission.fi.