The 40Friends HCC children's home
The Humantarian Concern Center or HCC is an independent family-run children’s home for 20 orphans and disadvantaged children between the ages of 6 and 17, most of whom have spent their entire childhood there. Basic accommodation consists of a group of temporary buildings on a small plot of rented land on the outskirts of Kathmandu. The One Golden Angel charity, established by Fred Wilkinson in memory of his wife Maureen, began helping the HCC in 2016 and became its main sponsor: paying the rent and utility bills; buying household equipment, bedding and clothing; and paying medical bills, school fees and other expenses as they arose.
By 2021 One Golden Angel was finding it increasingly difficult to continue funding the HCC. Lincs2Nepal began helping to fund some costs, including the salaries of two staff who ran the home. Garry Goddard and Fred Wilkinson also began to explore how that partnership could develop to ensure the future of the home and it’s long term development. It was eventually agreed the Lincs2Nepal would take full responsibility for the HCC from 1 April 2022, with Fred Wilkinson continuing his personal involvement as Honorary President.
Lincs2Nepal established a collective of 40 “friends” – businesses, groups, families and individuals who each have committed to make monthly donations to fund and develop the children’s home, which is now known as the 40Friends HCC. We are immensely thankful to the Friends who are helping us improve the lives of these great children. As of 2023, we are still in need of 7 more friends – will you join us? Get in touch if you can help.
The Friends who have made the children’s home possible are are:
Ambitions Personnel
Andy Coles
Avatar Dining (Market Harborough)
Brown’s Pie Shop
Cafe Shanti
Dave Charlton
Dave Frecklington @DFT
Deb Priestley and family
Deb@wombcancerinfo
Farley Bohemian
Glyn Yates and family
GTM International
Gusto Homes
Halka Events
Julia@ Welton Counselling
Karen Norman and family
Lakeland Leisure
Martin and Susie Smith
Midas Collective
Nadal Electrical
Penny Hevey
Peter Bigger
Sarah Mochan @body and sole
Shelley Franklin
Steve Pritchard and Helen
Stuart Devaney
Stuart Wallace Electricals
Tattooed Arms
Tina Morley
Tom Greenway
Union Wharf Narrowboats
Yoga Meditation Ltd (Market Harborough)
Lincs2Nepal has already had quite an impact. The children and staff had been living off rice and potatoes, but we have put arrangements in place to ensure a regular supply of fresh vegetables, lentils and other produce. We have purchased new clothing for all the children and invested in new equipment, such as a washing machine, gas-powered hob and a large-screen television.
We have enrolled one of the older boys on a one-year cooking course, to give him the opportunity to make his dream of becoming a chef a reality, and presented two of the boys with iPads and Procreate to give them the chance to become digital artists.
There is much structural work required to the existing buildings, which are only just habitable. We have an experienced engineer/architect who has agreed to help on a voluntary basis and together we have put together a plan for improvements over the next 12 to 18 months. The first job is to build a boundary wall, as the home is on a hillside and the property floods badly in the monsoon season. After the wall is built and drainage put in, we will be taking down the bedrooms, rebuilding them bigger and better. We then need to create a new kichen and plan to turn the outside area into a sports court for volleyball, badminton and basketball, plus a small games room. Could you sponsor any of our upgrades? Please get in touch if you can help.
