Sponsorship

This project currently assists over 100 needy individuals and families in the Tibetan exile community, usually using financial support, aid in acquiring proper work skills, and assistance in locating employment. If you would like to support this project please see the sponsorship section of our support TWA page.

If you would like to apply for sponsorship support, we require a recommendation letter from the Regional TWA branch and the settlement’s welfare office. As well as a photo and personal application detailing your livelihood and need for support. Please contact us by post, telephone, or email – information on our contact page.

Sponsor a Tibetan in Need

  • Female Heads of Household and Single Mothers

Increasingly, women are becoming heads of household due to higher divorce rates, families living in different locations, and other factors that cause family strain. Generally, women have a more difficult time finding employment than men do and have the primary responsibility as caregivers. This puts enormous pressure on the lives of many Tibetan women living in exile. Funds for a female head of household would support a woman with children, thereby creating a better life for both the women and their children. Female heads of households have some of the hardest jobs because it requires them to support themselves and their children on a small monthly salary that hardly meets all of their needs.

We recognize the importance of a child being cared for and fed by its mother at an early age and sponsorship helps her to do so until the age of three. The principal target group is pregnant women and mothers with babies under three months without fathers taking care of them. We also offer support to mothers with children under three years of age at home from birth.

  • Kids

Education is the key to alleviating poverty, empowering our youth, and creating a healthy society. The Tibetan community and government have worked very hard in providing financial support for all Tibetan children, however, this is not always possible. Children born in exile typically attend a school funded by the government and this creates a financial burden among families to provide funding for school fees, uniforms, and supplies. You would improve their lives forever by providing funding for young Tibetan children.

  • Elderly

Many elderly Tibetans have lived very difficult lives because they have typically made the trek across the Himalayas into exile and have perhaps survived Chinese brutality at the start of the invasion. While escaping into exile, many elderly Tibetan people took construction jobs at the Indian border and endured years of hard labour. Many elderly people were given a piece of land to work on by the Indian government, however, years of working on the farm have led to many physical difficulties. Elderly people may have also lost a spouse or have a disabled spouse, causing further stress in their lives. Elderly people may also have the added difficulty of being responsible for younger family members that are unable of being self-reliant. Many of our Tibetan elderly suffer from many physical disabilities that prevent them from continuing any work at all.

  • Disabled

Disabilities are extremely difficult for every family but especially difficult for families living in poverty. Many Tibetan families do not have the option to seek out special treatment for family members born with disabilities, creating a very difficult situation for many families that are financially struggling. Many Tibetans do not have access to any international organizations or donors that provide funding and/or programs for people with disabilities. Family members find it very difficult to provide adequate services and opportunities for family members with disabilities because providing even daily necessities can prove to be difficult.

Also, see our related projects: the Studies Fellowship financially supporting women in higher education and Stitches of Tibet helping disadvantaged women gain vocational skills.