A tale of grit and courage -Collected and Written by Asha Devi

Deepali Laxman Dhwale, Corp India- Community OutReach Program

“Don’t lose confidence or hope if the situation in your life is bad. You can achieve anything through hard work, will power, persistence and hope for a better tomorrow. Trust yourself and things will definitely change for you”. This strong message comes from a courageous and strong girl, Deepali Laxman Dhwale from Mumbai.

Life does not always give roses. Deepali lost her mother when she was 7 years old and father when she was 8 years old. Her grandmother was too old and unwell to look after her. So, Deepali was given under the care of CORP-India when she was just 9 years old. Losing a family in a short period of time and at the same time not being able to live with the loved ones, is not easy. However, this did not make this young mind to lose hope. With her perseverance, hard work and the support that she received from CORP India, Deepali stood up again, and she got a family away from family. Through her lessons in education, arts, dance, singing and competitions at CORP India, Deepali believes that she also learned to trust herself. She improved in her academics and instilled confidence in herself.

Expressing her gratitude towards everyone involved in the CORP India Shelter Home, she shared her vivid memories of CORP India. One of her best memories during her time at CORP India is performing dance during Mahila Diwas Celebration (Women’s Day). She said, “On this day, all of us got together to dance and participate like a huge family. Every year I waited eagerly for this festival.” She also added that every month on one day, they would celebrate the birthday of all the students enrolled at CORP India whose birth date fell in that month. She said that these memories always motivate her to be a better person every day.

She also shared about her first earnings. Sharing this experience of earning livelihood, she said, “CORP India took care of the studies until I was 21. They let me teach at remedial classes and take tuition classes for the community kids through which I was able to earn a stipend and save the money.”

Deepali is now 22 years old and has now completed her graduation in Bachelor of Management Studies  from N.G Baedeker College of Commerce, Maharashtra. She is working as an HR (Human resource) with Anoop Consultancy. Also she is back to her old family and now she herself supports and takes care of her grandmother who is more than 90 years old. Her younger sister also stays with her and CORP India is taking care of her as well during  the day time.

When asked about her future goals, she responded, “Now I am working so I am able to take care of my grandmother. My younger sister who is also studying at CORP, comes back to the family in the evening. It feels happy to see the family come together. I will pursue a PGDM (Postgraduate Diploma in Management) through correspondence, and excel in my field, which is Human Resource.”

This journey has not been easy for Deepali, yet with her own hard work and support from CORP India, she has been able to change her life and at the same time she is inspiring younger generations to work harder for a better future.

We, at Vibha, work towards supporting and empowering such young minds to enable them to spread light. Vibha has been supporting CORP India’s Vidya Sagar Vikas Kendra (Shelter home for girls)  since 2006. It supports slum children; encourages, helps them to acquire education to gain knowledge and skills for improving their lives and communities. After completing their 12th grade, children from the shelter home attend university or quality non-degree training programs, and lead self-dependent lives with the support of CORP India.