Maher - A Mother's House

Maher, which means Mother's House in Marathi (the local language in Pune) is one of the many Non-Governmental Organisations (NGO) that Sangam World Centre works with.

I have visited Maher a few times before, but probably not in the last 10 years as its a little way out of Pune and takes about an hour to get there which is quite some journey in a rickshaw! Luckily this time Sangam had laid on a bus for us.

I was really pleased when we arrived to discover Sister Lucy, the founder of Maher was there. Sister Lucy is an amazing woman who has worked hard to support women and children who have become destitute.

When Sr Lucy was living in a convent, a young woman came to her, 7 months pregnant and asked for help, for shelter in the convent as she believed her husband was going to kill her so he could take another wife.  Sr Lucy did not have the authority to take the woman in and didn't know what to do to help. She asked the woman to come back the next day, giving Sister Lucy the opportunity to ask others for advice on what help she could offer.

That night, Sister Lucy heard screams and rushed out into the streets to find out what was happening. A crowd of people had done the same, and they found a young woman who had been set on fire. It was the same woman who had asked Sr Lucy for help earlier that day. Sr Lucy went with the young woman to hospital but she was too badly burnt, she couldn't be saved. They performed a C-section but the baby had suffered from the heat of the flames and had died.

While Sister Lucy was telling her story, I was trying to keep Little Owl quiet (mainly with biscuits). Little Owl spotted another little girl playing out of the door and I whispered to the member of staff sat next to me "how old is she?"

"She is 4. She was raped by a man"

FUCK

Sorry, but how do you respond to that? This poor little mite, who was dancing and playing and finally built up the courage to come in to see the white people and receive hugs from the staff, had apparently spent some time in hospital literally being put back together after this brutal attack.

Every woman and child at Maher has a story to tell.

Sister Lucy originally started Maher as a place for women to come to but she soon realised that with women came children, and so Maher developed to support women and their children. Then Sister Lucy realised that many women were capable of supporting themselves if their children were looked after and so Maher grew again to take in children independent of their mothers.

On this visit, we went to their main centre where most of the children stay, but also where they hold their workshops and shop. Understandably, when women arrive at Maher, they are not in the best of mental health, they are not asked questions but, like everyone at Maher, they are treated with love.  To help build their strength and keep them mentally active, they are given some craft work to do, being taught the skills if they don't already have them. Gradually overtime, they relax and are able to tell their story.

In a previous visit, I was able to visit a home set up by Maher in one of the local villages. Some of the women who come to Maher are widows, who have been kicked out of their husbands homes following his death, particularly if they have no children, and rejected by their own parents as they would be seen as unlucky. These young women, or girls as many of them could still be in their teens, are unable to remarry and find it difficult to have a place in society. Maher has set up a several homes in the area where these women live as house mothers, looking after small groups of children, and therefore regaining a place in society.

To listen to Sister Lucy speak, is wonderful. When she explains what she is doing, and more importantly why she is doing it, you can hear that she is guided by love.  The compassion she has for every woman and child in her care, and therefore the ability to help them in the way they need help most is overwhelming.  There are now separate homes for those with mental health issues and those who have learning difficulties. The children of these women are also looked after in that home so that they can spend time together after school.

Part of the reason that Sister Lucy was unable to take in that first woman that came to her for help at the convent, was because she wasn't catholic. Maher takes in everyone regardless of faith, it is a home for everyone, and a place for everyone to pray.

I have written this post to share some of my experiences of my trip to India with Little Owl, however, if you wish to find out more about Maher or how you can help, you can visit their website here.

Maher is a very special place