Sponsor: A Boarder • A Day Student • A Young Monk • Before and After Stories • FAQ-About Sponsorship • Sponsor one of the 3 Monks who Live at the School - Donate: How to Sponsor or Donate • Main School Wish List • Getting Money to the School • Astrologer helps School
• Kathleen Burckhardt Raises Money for SMD • How Karen and Emily Billing are helping SMD • A Gift From Rebecca •
Making a Dramatic Difference • NEW • Govinda needs help • Branch School Wish List • Andrew - Bringing Tibetan Music to SMD

Frequently Asked Questions About Sponsorship

I want to sponsor a child's education. How much does it cost each year?

Based on the Nepali rupee.
For the school year running from April 1, 2010 to April 2011

What does this cover?

• Day Students Fees cover everything for day students (education, school clothes, school supplies and a hot lunch)

• Young Monks Fees cover education, room and board. Monks who are studying in ‘shedra’ (= monastic university of higher Buddhist philosophy) need extra. Their texts and study supplies alone cost them $500 US/year.

• Boarders Fees cover education, room and board on a 12-month basis.

How do I get matched up with a child?
Write to us at the school. himalayanchildren@yahoo.co.uk
Sponsors! We need your addresses (snail and e-mail) so kids can keep in touch.

Can I get a receipt for tax purposes if I sponsor or donate?
Yes, if you are in Canada, the UK, the US, the Eurozone or Hong Kong. Canadians and Americans can sponsor & donate online. Contact one of Thrangu Rinpoche's non-profits for details.

CANADA
Vajra Vidya Foundation

You can make a secure on-line donation through the CanadaHelps website. This link http://www.canadahelps.org/CharityProfilePage.aspx?CharityID=s61038 will take you to the Vajra Vidya Foundation page on the CanadaHelps website where you can donate online. CanadaHelps only works with registered Canadian charities. Donations over $1000 can be made by cheque made payable to “Vajra Vidya Foundation, for SMD School”. Please mail your cheque to VVF at the address given above.

Public Fdn Reg. # 888437621 RR 0001
C/O Treasuer
PO Box 46898, Stn. D,
Vancouver, BC, Canada V6J 5M4
gkbs@shaw.ca


UK
Thrangu Rinpoche Trust
42 Magdalen Road
Oxford OX4 1RB, UK
Phone: 44-1865-24l555
Fax: 44-l865-241555 (0l865 inside U.K.)
www.thanguhouse.org.uk
email treasurer@thranguhouse.org.uk

USA
Himalayan Children's Fund

Make a secure online donation to the Himalayan Children's Fund through the Network for Good website by clicking on the Donate Now graphic to the left.

C/O Debra Ann Robinson-Menzies
P.O. Box 15644
Beverly Hills CA 90209
USA
debraannr@mac.com

EUROZONE
Karma Kagyu Charity
Vajra Vidya Centre,
c/o Wolfgang Schmid
Wackerstr. 47d,
88131 Lindau, Germany
Tel: 49-8382-6807
email VajraVidya@gmx.de


Hong Kong
Thrangu Vajrayana Buddhist Centre Ltd
c/o Lama Karma Dawa and Secretary Ling
Flat A, 5/F Lomond Mansion
149 Argyle St
Kowloon, Hong Kong
Tel: 852-2760-8381
email Thrangucenter@yahoo.com.uk

Does sponsorship cover everything for the child I sponsor?
Not for boarders. It doesn't cover necessities such as:
- Clothing (uniforms, playclothes, shoes, coats, underwear, etc.)
- School supplies (notebooks, pencils, erasers, and textbooks)
- Bedding and linen & a metal box for possessions
- Toiletries
- Vaccines and other medicines

How much extra does each boader need?
Each Boarder needs about $200 US extra every year.

A full sponsorship is too much for me. Can I still help?
You can sponsor together with some friends or colleagues. Many of our children have group sponsors.

Why aren't there any nuns to sponsor on this website?
The nuns’ school fees are handled differently. Several still need sponsors. Please contact Gloria Jones gloriaj@mail.com.np

Why does it cost less to educate a monk or nun than a boarding student?
The monastics live in the monastery.

I'm worried that I won't be able to sponsor throughout a child's entire school career. Can I still help?
We go one year at a time. If you start but can't continue, let Shirley know himalayanchildren@yahoo.co.uk We'll find another sponsor.

Can I safely send things through the mail?
No. Corruption makes it dicey to send anything of value. You can courier things...we've found FedEx to be 100% reliable.

Can I carry things in?
You can carry things in. There are no difficulties for tourists bringing vitamins, etc. into Nepal. We are always looking for yaks!

What can I bring for the schools?
· • Multivitamins, vitamin C, iron and calcium tablets.
· • Wart medicine
· • Small stuffed toys, board games, Lego, Meccano, matchbox toys etc.
· • Art supplies
· • Warm socks and thermal vests
· • Books for our libraries (SMD & SMD Branch School) Donate through Amazon!
· • Sports equipment:we need skipping ropes & balls
· • Learning games
· • Learning software
· • Board games
· • Hair clips and scrunchies

Someone I know is planning to visit Nepal. Is it ok to visit the school?
We would love to show you our schools. Students are the tour guides. Call Shirley's assistants, Lhakcho Dolma, Lhakpa Sonam or Tenzin Jamphel at school 447-2007 to arrange a time. We can also arrange for you to visit SMD Branch School for monks, two hours away from the Kathmandu valley.

Can I order things to be delivered by international couriers?
Yes, you can . Everything sent through FedEx has reached us. There are no street names or addresses in Nepal, but FedEx knows us and knows where we are and FedEx does not tolerate corrupt practices.

YOU CAN SEND BOOKS

AMAZON.COM
We are building libraries at both schools. To see our wish list, go to Amazon, click on “Wish Lists” and type in: himalayanchildren@yahoo.co.uk 

Why do you use numbers for the children?
Thrangu Rinpoche has hundreds of children in his care and (yikes) Tibetan speakers don't use surnames...we have 52 "Tserings" at the main school. The numbers help us locate and identify the children. (B=boarder, D=day student, M=monk, N=nun). Please use complete Admission numbers in all correspondence.

Many of the kids have shaved heads, even the girls. Why is that?
Since we are Buddhist, we do not kill, but the children often arrive with heads full of lice. This is the way we get rid of them without killing.

A NOTE ABOUT AGE : Tibetan-speakers reckon age this way: at birth, a baby is one year old, at the next Losar (Tibetan new year), everyone gets another year older. This leads to discrepancies in Western-Tibetan ages. The younger children always reckon their age in the Tibetan system. There are no records kept in the high Himalayas. We estimate children’s ages by evaluating their dental and skeletal development. It’s quite an accurate method.

Can I correspond with my child?
We encourage sponsors and children to correspond. Every year, we send a photo and report to all sponsors, along with at least two letters and a card from the child. You can send letters to: