We met Asha when she was ten and had been living on the street for a couple of years with her mom. Her dad left them and they were forced to live on the street, as mom could not earn enough to pay the rent.

When Asha moved to the street, she stopped going to school. Everyone who meets Asha notices her effervescent personality and maturity. She often took care of and watched out for the younger street boys on her corner.

While on the street, we tried to place Asha, at her mom's request, in a shelter but nobody would take her in. Unfortunately for many street kids, most children's shelters refuse to take them. For girls like Asha, there aren't many options.

Fortunately, it just takes one person to have a profound effect on a destitute girl's life.

After Asha's mom died, she moved in with her aunt. Although Asha finally had a roof over her head, they were barely able to buy food to eat, as her aunt's husband had abandoned her, leaving two little boys to feed. Instead of going to school, Asha worked cleaning houses so there would be enough money.

Recently, a generous sponsor and friend of Operation Shanti took Asha under her wing. We coordinated her support of Asha and her family -- a monthly stipend and basic provisions, as well as funds for school supplies and a special tutor. This enabled Asha to go to school and catch up on the years of learning that she missed.

Asha's strife continued, however. Recently, she ran away from home, fed up with being harrassed by her relatives and neighbors -- young girls are often hassled for no good reason and serve as punching bags for the daily frustrations felt by adults struggling to make ends meet. She found us at our usual place on the street the next morning, and asked to come to stay at our shelter. Since we can provide the stable and loving environment that Asha needs, and since no girl should be a wage earner and babysitter at her age, we took her in. Today, Asha is at Karunya Mane, continuing her schooling and helping out around the shelter in her free time.