Dear all

First, a huge thanks to all who gave sponsorship money in advance and for your kind faith in me. I must admit that I was feeling good before the race – I thought I was better trained this year (comfortably completing training runs of 3 ½ hours) and was quietly confident that I could beat my last record. Did it happen on the day itself?

I started well, maintaining a steady pace. People were rushing past me from all around. I was determined not to fall into the trap of starting too quickly again, and just ignored what was happening around me. The heat of the day was gradually picking up, and I could feel the beads of sweat slowly trickling down. At 3 miles, I picked up the first bottle of water, took a quick sip and continued on my way. I was gaining more confidence and was feeling good: 6 miles no problem; 7 miles no problem. The live music from the side of the road and the cheers of hundreds and thousands of well wishers offering all sorts of treats – water, lucozade, sweets, bananas and even sandwiches - continued to inspire me and fill me with confidence. What a fantastic atmosphere. What a joy to be a part of it.

I had run for almost 3 ½ hours when I saw I had just crossed the 17 mile marker. I did a rough calculation mentally: if I could continue at the pace I should be able to finish in around 5 hours. Just then I felt a slight twinge of cramp in my left leg. I thought I could afford a short break and walk a just a few paces to ease the cramp. I think that was a major mistake! I tried to run, but from that point on I simply could not lift my legs to run again! Once again, I regret to say I have failed to run all 26.2 miles. I guess that just means even more reason to try again next year!

But, at least I made it to the end – an achievement of which I should really be proud given the record temperatures. I was just ecstatic to see the finishing line and, of course, Mai, who had been patiently waiting for me for over an hour. Her sweet send-off early in the morning and her welcome at the finish was a huge comfort to support me in my severely bruised (both physically and mentally) state! I could not have returned back home without her.

Once again, many thanks for your kind support and for all of you who have sponsored me. I should be grateful if any who have not yet forwarded the money pledged to KTS (and, of course, anyone else who now feels they would like to donate!) could do so as soon as possible. Also, we have a kind volunteer to join me next year: anyone else interested in running with us would be very welcome. Please do let me know as soon as possible and I will do my best to organise entry.

-oOo-

It makes me feel rather old to note that KTS (www.kumbeshwar.com) will be 25 years old in June 2008. To mark this milestone, I would like to dedicate my participation in next year’s London Marathon to 5 special people, along with my family, without whose support and sacrifice it would have never been possible to establish KTS. I would like to express my personal gratitude to Jan Hopkins, Phoebe Ravenhall, Sally Jose, Chikako Shibata and Rudra Khadgi and my dear family for all their support, dedication, sacrifice and hard work they have put in establishing KTS.

With your support we have been able to do so much there at KTS. I still remember the fateful day when I went to my brother to borrow Rs 500 (about £7) to buy film to take photos of the children and the families from the Pody community to apply for funding. Today, more than 5,000 families benefit directly from KTS. Let me write a bit about somebody in whose life your support has made so much difference.

A single mother, Soma Tamang was struggling to up bring her 3 children Archana, Ram and laxman. Katherine (an American expat working in Nepal) took pity on her and introduced her to the KTS in 1989. On her arrival, she was given a room at the founder Mr Khadgi’s old house and the children Archana and Ram were admitted at the KTS hostel for destitute children. Soma was familiar with Nepali alphabets and basic counting, but she had never been to a school.

In 1990 Soma was admitted to the KTS 2 years’ training programme in carpet weaving. The programme is based on 60% vocational study and 40% theory. The practical side involved training in spinning, dying, weaving and finishing; the theory involved basic education in Nepali, English, Maths, and Social Studies based on the 5th and 6th grade curriculum set by the Government of Nepal Education Department.

Soma successfully completed her studies and training in all areas in 1992. During her training period, she was provided with a nominal living allowance (as are all trainees at KTS) of Rs 300 (about £4 then) per month. From her allowance she had to pay about Rs 150 for food and rent. After completing training programme she joined carpet weaving production unit. Since then she has been working in the KTS carpet weaving production unit, where she can weave about 5 square metres of rug a month (video clip of Soma weaving). She continues to live at the founder’s old house and pays a nominal rent of about Rs 100 a month.

The job at the KTS carpet weaving production unit has helped Soma to become financially independent. Perhaps more significantly, Soma’s involvement with KTS has helped ensure that her children have had the start in life that she didn’t, breaking the vicious circle that would most likely have seen them working or begging rather than receiving an education. Instead, her children were fully cared for at the KTS hostel. They were provided with beds, food and admitted to the KTS primary school. After completing primary school, they were sponsored by KTS to continue further education.

The eldest, Archana, completed high school two years ago. She is continuing with the equivalent of “A” levels at a local school. Since completing High school (“O” level equivalent) she has been able to earn pocket money by assisting with wool distribution at the KTS knitting department and has recently joined as an assistant in the KTS hostel on a part time basis. Crucially, this enables her to live in the hostel free of charge, while her education is paid for by KTS. She hopes to become a designer.

Ram just sat for his high school SLC (“O” level equivalent) exams. He helps on a part time basis at the KTS carpentry department. Like his sister, he is hoping to continue further education and become an accountant.

-oOo-

Once again, your support in whatever form you are able to offer, is much appreciated. KTS has seen many success stories like Soma and her family, but the poverty in Nepal is such that many other families are not so fortunate. We would like to be able to help them all.

Many of you have purchased various goods from us through our website (www.comolongmo.com) and at the Greenwich and Spitalfield markets. Once again, we thank you for shopping with us; we hope you will agree that our products make lovely presents for any occasion. As ever, word of mouth is extremely valuable and we would be very grateful if you could recommend your friends and family to shop with us, or even just to introduce them to us as people who might be interested in signing up for these newsletters.

Finally, let me leave you with another reminder that I do presentations with slides of KTS and the Kumbeshwar region of Nepal, which have been very warmly received. If you know of any local clubs, charities, churches, voluntary organisations, schools or other bodies looking for a speaker on an interesting subject, I would be extremely grateful for their contact details or your recommendation.

Thank you for kind sponsorship and continued support.

Regards

Kabindra and Comolongmo family
www.comolongmo.com
Email: info@comolongmo.com

View other newsletters:

Newsletter 12, Monday, 12 July 2010
Newsletter 11, Monday, 15 May 2010
Newsletter 10, Tuesday, 18 December 2009
Newsletter 9, Friday, 16 October 2009
Newsletter 8, Thursday, 5 March 2009
Newsletter 7, Sunday, 21 December 2008
Newsletter 6, Wednesday, 8 October 2008
Newsletter 5, Thursday, 4 September 2008
Newsletter 4, Saturday, 1 September 2007
Newsletter 3, Friday, 4 May 2007
Newsletter 2, Wednesday, 18 April 2007
Newsletter 1, Tuesday, 7 November 2006