Celebrating 23 years of Change
May 29, 2024 | Contributed by Preeti Kumar
23 years ago, our Founder Trustees Prema and Jyoti Sagar, established Genesis Foundation with a simple vision: to see an India where no child suffering from a congenital heart defect loses a life due to a lack of awareness and resources.
What started as a vision of 2 individuals, has over the years transformed into a foundation working for children, dedicated to giving them an equal chance at life, dedicated to ensuring that every single child born with a heart defect is diagnosed on time and receives timely treatment irrespective of the child’s socio-economic status. For us, every child’s life matters no matter where the child comes from. The last 23 years the Foundation has grown in terms of both the scale and spectrum of work to fulfil its mission to Save Little Hearts.
23 years of change
We started 23 years ago, supporting the treatment of a few lesser privileged children who were battling for a chance to live – battling for a chance to live a life free from any illness.
Over the years, we have been able to reach many truly deserving children who would have lost their battle to a CHD without help. We have been able to support many critical surgeries where without the right medical help the child would not been able to survive. We supported the treatment of the lightest premature child who only weighed 800 gms at the time of the surgery. It gives us immense joy and pride today to see pictures of him grown up and going to school. We supported the intervention of a girl who underwent an extremely critical procedure. Today she has healed and is herself a mother to a young baby. Another one of the girls we supported was struggling to go to school due to repeated chest infections. Healed, and grown up she is today preparing for her entrance examinations into Aligarh University. These stories reinforce the single principle that we believe in – that life precedes everything. That a heart which has been healed will grow up to live a life of his/her dreams.
Not only have we supported critical cases we have also been able to support children living in areas where access to pediatric cardiac care is limited or non-existent. Today we actively support children living in tribal areas and aspirational districts identified by Niti Ayog. Thus, slowly we are expanding our footprints to reach different corners of the country to ensure that we reach the truly deserving children who would have otherwise not had access to any diagnostic or treatment support.
As a Foundation working for children our focus always naturally goes to the children we support when we look at the change we have made. However, an integral part of the change that we are making also is the life of parents.
Most parents of the children we support go through long periods of emotional and mental stress. Dealing with the diagnosis and treatment involved puts them on a roller coaster that is difficult for them. Many of our parents also have to go through the emotional distress of arranging for the finances to support their child’s surgery and that is something that no parent should ever have to go through. The teary-eyed folded hands expressing gratitude is difficult for us to put into words. On interacting with parents and listening to their heartfelt thanks we feel that we have been able to truly make a difference. Over 23 years we have slowly been able to put the smile on many parents faces, been able to give them the satisfaction that they were able to provide the best treatment to their child and enabled them to get back to work.
23 years we also been able to build awareness about congenital heart defects on the ground. Our Founder Trustees have always emphasised the need to build awareness to ensure a timely diagnosis and treatment of the kids. Over the years we have been able to build a community that believes in our mission to Save Little Hearts. Our annual music festival Kasauli Rhythm & Blues Music Festival (KRBF) held in Kasauli, Himachal at Baikunth Resort has been instrumental in building our community of donors and well-wishers. We have been spreading information about congenital heart defects leveraging digital platforms for the same.
A seed that was sown 23 years ago has become a force that has brought about a change in the lives of thousands of children and their families. We have spent 23 years of giving life chance as every child matters. Thank you for your continued support in our mission to Save Little Hearts.
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