After the earthquakes that hit Gorkha and other parts of Nepal last April and May, the first and most compelling need was to provide emergency assistance – meaning drinking water, food, medicine and shelter against the upcoming monsoon.
Shortly after this response it became evident that the destruction of so many schools threatened to create a lost generation of students whose education was cut short and might never get back on track.
The Nepal government, local volunteers, NGOs and foreign donors responded quickly by funding and building Temporary Learning Centers or TLCs (for my Nepali friends, TLC also means “Tender Loving Care”). The idea was simple: to put up temporary structures in which classes could continue – as fast and as cheaply as possible. Most kids in western Gorkha District go to school in TLCs today. New, permanent, earthquake resistant schools are being built by many NGOs, mostly using foreign donations, but the work is slow and the need for more funding is great. Some students will be going to school in TLCs for years to come.
The photographs below tell their own story.
If you would like to help, please make a donation on the Gorkha Foundation website,
Tim in Nepal 