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OUR STORY
Aash Children Development Center located in Kullu, Himachal Pradesh was founded by Samphia foundation on 1st April 2019. The names Aash and Samphia come from the local dialect of Kullu valley which respectively means Hope and Ability.
The center works towards treating children with orthopedic impairments, cerebral palsy, intellectual disabilities, autism spectrum disorders, speech and hearing impairments, developmental delays, sensory processing disorders.
The founding stone of the NGO was laid down by two visionary young women Shruti and Rekha. Shruti comes form Mumbai while Rekha is a native of Kullu valley. Like many youngsters, both of them had aspirations to work in big cities or to shift abroad for a better future. But all their plans came to a halt when they came across children with developmental disabilities in the valley. Due to the lack of information and facilities, these children suffered heavily. The parents and society did not know how to handle children with developmental disabilities. The desire to help these children led Shruti and Rekha to join Handimachal an NGO operating in Kullu.
The years of trust building in the local community helped them to transform the lives of hundreds of differently abled children. But, still there was a lot to be done hence Samphia Foundation came into existence with a goal of creating an inclusive environment for the people with diverse abilities. The goal of the foundation is to reach the most rural part of Himachal Pradesh and create a community where people with different abilities could also thrive as an active member of the society.
Founders
Dr. Shruti More has done her Bachelors in Occupational therapy from Seth G.S Medical College and KEM hospital, Mumbai. She holds a post graduate diploma in CBR from CBR network South Asia and is certified in Sensory integration and Autism Therapy. She is also certified in Rational Emotive Behavior Theory and Robert Carkhuff Counselling.
With a good academic record Shruti had plans of pursuing further education in The United States, but who knew that a small getaway cycling expedition in Himachal Pradesh was about to change her life forever.
During the expedition, Shruti came across a girl called Sonali. Something drew her towards the 13-year-old girl. Soon Shruti realized that the girl was a Cerebral Palsy patient. The girl was on her periods and was kept in isolation by the family who did not know how to handle their differently abled child. As a compassionate person, Shruti was unable to get over what she had witnessed. In a matter of months, Shruti moved to Kullu and joined Handimachal as an Occupational Therapist channelizing her effort to help all such children in need. During her 7 year tenure with the organization she lead the process of program innovations,planning and implementation. She rose to the position of Executive Head with her exceptional leadership skills and determination.
During her tenure, Shruti presented her work at key international summits like the American Academy of Cerebral palsy and Developmental Medicine Annual meetings and received the prestigious fellowship of Young Connectors of Future by Swedish Institute. Shruti has also received the International women's day award by the Ministry of Women and Child Development for exemplary services in the social sector in the Kullu District.
Rekha was born and brought up in the mountains. Her dream of pursuing Physiotherapy led her to a metro city since Kullu had little educational institute to offer. However, fate had something else installed for her. Soon after gaining extensive experience in her discipline Rekha returned to her roots and joined Handimachal therapy center as a clinical practitioner. Her deep connection with the mountain community and her caring temperament has impacted many lives in the region.
At Samphia, Rekha brings her deep understanding of clinical care and insights about the social fabric of the region. While Shruti’s brings her larger worldview of the disability sector and a visionary leadership. Together they make a team which is committed to fill the gaps - to offer people with disabilities and their families more support, opportunity and choice. The ultimate goal of which being inclusion.
OUR CORE VALUES
People First
People are the foundation of any community or organization. We at Samphia foundation know the value of good human bonds for which we care about more than anything.
Equity
We truly believe that each and every member of the society is entitled to an equal number of opportunities irrespective of their gender, race or physical abilities
Community
We believe in building an inclusive environment for all the differently abled people. We stand by our commitment to building an environment which has compassion and love for all.
Diversity
Every person has different thoughts, ideas and approach to solve problems. At Samphia we give importance to everyone’s personality and try to bring out the best in them.
It's not our disabilities, it's our abilities that count - Chris Burke
Guiding Principles
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Participatory Democracy
We share a very cordial relationship with the communities around us. We always encourage interested parties like parents, friends and siblings of our beloved differently abled children to give feedback on our working. From time to time we take up measures to improve our programs and functioning as per the feedback. This ensures an active contribution of the society members to help us in rehabilitating people suffering from developmental disabilities.
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Visionary Leadership
Our aim is to create a world where all the people are aware of developmental disabilities and the struggles that come with it. More awareness leads to better leadership for the future. Which creates a much informed and inclusive society who is ready to take up such challenges with ease.
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Public Interest
Protecting the interest of people who show their faith in us is our utmost priority. We have a deep respect for all the people who are connected with us whether they are our patients, their parents, friends or donors. We make sure that we adopt the best of practices and maintain a good standard in all of our activities in and around the center.
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Collaboration
Collaboration with different groups and individuals is a must if you want to bring a social change on the grass-root level. We are keen on collaborating with people, groups, and organizations which want to help and impact the lives of the underprivileged people present in society.
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Transparency and Integrity
Samphia Foundation conducts its business with integrity, accountability, and open, honest and timely communication. Samphia Foundation is committed to quality and excellence in all it does.
MEET THE TEAM
Dr Shruti More
Executive Director,
Occupational Therapist
Dr. Rekha Thakur
Program Manager, Physiotherapist
Beeju Himdal
Program Manager
Dr. Arya.M
Occupational Therapist
Dr. Anu Rana
Physiotherapist
Sita
Jyoti
Dhaneshwari Thakur
Accountant-cum- Office Assistant
Special Educator
Social Worker
Jyoti Sharma
Riju
Reena
Therapy Assistant
Nurse (DEIC)
Nurse
Dr. Rupal Thakur
Junior Physiotherapist
Tek Chand
Maan Chand
Kriti Kapta
Driver TOW-I
Driver TOW-II
Volunteer
Reecha Singh
Volunteer
Nisha Chauhan
Manju Kumari
Pushpa Devi
Nurse
Nurse
Therapy Assistant
OUR ADVISOR
VISION
An Inclusive World for people with diverse abilities
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