Andhra
Pradesh is the state that has been hit the hardest by
the AIDS epidemic that is barelling through the entire
Indian subcontinent. One of every 10 HIV cases in India
lives in Andhra; in 2002, it was estimated that as many
as 400,000 people had been infected in the state, which
has a total population of about 76 million.
Care+Share
is building a new facility to
meet the needs of the increasing number of AIDS orphans
in Andhra Pradesh. In 2005, we purchased 27 acres of
beautiful mango groves about 40 kms northwest of Vijayawada
- in the small village of Veerapanenigudem. Construction
is well underway. The first five homes for children - Colorado
Home, Nonni Magrini Home, Zia Maria Home, Rita Home, and Casa dei Putei - were inaugurated between Nov. 2006 and February 2008. They presently house 165 boys. We have received funding to build other homes
for children and a permanent cafeteria, which will eventually
replace the temporary kitchen and the temporary dining
hall we have built in a Kerala-style hut.
Care+Share
envisions Butterfly Hill as a home for hundreds of orphans
and street children. And while
we have made tremendous progress over the past two years,
much remains to be done. Here are some of the most urgent
priorities:
Fencing......................................................................
$40×yard
The 27 acres of land where Butterfly Hill lies are in
close proximity to a forest rife with snakes, monkeys,
boars, and other wild animals. Putting up a fence around
the entire village is therefore an absolute priority.
Home furnishings........................................................$12,000
The homes
that are nearing completion need to be equipped
with closets, shelves, bookshelves, some beds, a television,
a refrigerator, mirrors, brooms, curtains, and chairs.
Dispensary
..................................................................$75,000
Butterfly Hill’s primary purpose is to house HIV
positive children and AIDS orphans. It is therefore
essential that we finish the medical center (construction is ongoing) where
we will offer the children proper care.
School
........................................................$180,000×building
Furnishings..........................................................$1200×room
The school in Butterfly Hill will be modeled after the
one already functioning in Daddy’s Home, which
is made up of 3 buildings. Each building has two floors
housing 12 classrooms and 2 faculty rooms.
Generator.....................................................................$18,000
Transformer ..................................................................$8000
Generator shed ..............................................................$8000
Electric power lines........................................................$6000
The village urgently needs to be supplied with electricity
and the related infrastructure serving all homes and
buildings.
Solar-power streetlights..................................................$700
The internal roads as well as the areas along the fence
will be illuminated by streetlights fitted with solar
panels. Using solar power allows us to save on the cost
of electricity.
Buffalo/cow
shed .......................................................
$18,000
Sheep pen........................................................................$6000
Pigpen..............................................................................$6000
Fruit trees...............................................................................$6
Guinea fowl ............................................................................$4
Butterfly Hill will gradually be outfitted with a small
animal farm that will help satisfy the kids’ nutritional
need for meat and milk. We will build a stable, a pigpen,
and a fence that will house sheep and goats. We will
also buy guinea fowls, which apparently are effective
in keeping snakes away. And we will plant some coconut
and banana trees as well as bouganville and other plants.
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