Staying on mission in Nepal

It is easy to get distracted—and depressed—by the news of the world. Our prayers go out to all the human beings who are suffering, wherever they may be.

Here at MicroAid, we are staying on mission: to rebuild houses for families who have lost their homes due to natural disasters. Thanks to your support, we are able to continue to help people in need.

In Nepal, where millions of people were devastated by the Ghorka earthquake in 2015, we have started another new home construction for a widow and her children. With nowhere else to go, they have been living in the dangerously-damaged wreck of their old home for the last seven years.

MicroAid took down the entire old house and started from scratch.

With the site cleared, we dug the first foundation holes. There was a “puja” ceremony where the ground, the tools, the bricks, and the workers were blessed with offerings and prayer for a successful and safe project.

After the puja ceremony, we created a solid foundation—with lots of steel reinforcement, which is required by the new, post-earthquake, Nepali building code. MicroAid always builds to the highest international standards, anyway.

It's nice to finally work on a site where we don’t have to negotiate narrow alleys and where there are no neighbor walls encroaching.

Here is the traditional method for bringing gravel and sand to the worksite so that we can make concrete: a wicker basket strapped to the forehead. Labor accounts for about a third of the cost of a project. And we are happy to provide work for so many in the community. Of course, the family members are required to help where they can.

So thanks to your generosity, MicroAid is able to continue helping people whose lives have been shattered. No longer in the news, they are people who still need our help.