Mennonite Central Committee Nepal

1.Shobha B.K. Sunchiuri, Vegetable farmer and mothers group member

Shobha shows off some of the mustard greens she is growing in a greenhouse to extend the growing season in the cool, high-elevation climate of her village in Rawadolu, Okhaldhunga. MCC partner SAHAS Nepal provided nutrition training and agricultural inputs and expertise to the mothers group that Sobha is a member of as part of a food security project. This mothers group is now part of an earthquake recovery project to repair water systems for both drinking and crop irrigation and to provide support for livelihood recovery (MCC photo/Luke Reesor-Keller).

2. Tarapati, Mental illness survivor and cattle farmer

“KOSHISH has changed my life. People today treat me with respect”.

Tarapati (name changed for privacy) suffered from mental illness resulting from trauma he experienced during Nepal’s armed conflict in the early 2000’s. After he experienced further trauma from the earthquakes in 2015, his symptoms worsened. He was treated by traditional healers but showed no signs of improvement. His family didn’t know how to treat his condition, so they locked him in a room as a response to his erratic and aggressive behaviour.  MCC partner KOSHISH heard about Tarapati’s condition, and brought him to their mental illness residential treatment centre. After five months of therapy and medication, Tarapati recovered and was able to return home to his family and resume his normal life again as a cattle farmer and shop owner. (Photo courtesy of KOSHISH)

3. Rohit Shrestha, Engineering overseer

“I think it will look better with a tap”.

Rohit Shrestha, engineering overseer for MCC partner Shanti Nepal, poses near the earthquake-damaged water pipeline of Thulogaon village in northern Dhading. MCC is funding repairs to this water system, building a concrete tap to protect it and ensure clean drinking water for the community. (MCC photo/Avash Karki).

4. Dil Maya Gurung, Community healthcare worker and midwife

Dil Maya Gurung sits with the baby scale in the tent that serves as the temporary community health clinic in Tazimrang village of Ree VDC, Dhading. She serves as an Auxiliary Nurse Midwife (ANM) in the village, providing primary health care services to pregnant women, mothers and children. The building that housed the clinic where she works was destroyed in the earthquake. MCC with partner Shanti Nepal is supporting the reconstruction of the clinic building (MCC photo/Avash Karki).

5. Buddhilaxmi Magar, Homeowner

“I’m hoping to settle in our new home soon.”

Buddhilaxmi Magar (left) with her great granddaughters, Susmita (middle) and Bipana (right) sit in front of their earthquake damaged home in Dalchoki, Lalitpur, Nepal. Buddhilaxmi is a single mother who is now responsible for her two great-granddaughers, with limited financial support from one of her sons. Buddhilaxmi is eligible for the government home reconstruction grant of about $3,000 to use for rebuilding her home. MCC partner RICOD is providing her with additional construction materials and access to skilled labor to help her rebuild it to earthquake-resistant safety standards (MCC photo/Avash Karki).

6. Pujan Karki, Engineer and trainer in earthquake-resistant construction methods

Pujan Karki (in orange jacket) facilitates a training for masons on earthquake-resistant building techniques so that masons in the hard-hit rural communities of southern Lalitpur district will have the skills to rebuild homes in a safer way than previously. MCC partner RICOD is organizing mason trainings and providing support to marginalized and vulnerable rural residents so that they can access the materials and skilled labour needed to rebuild their earthquake-damaged homes (MCC photo/Avash Karki).

7. Ratna Bahadur Gongba, Mason and training participant

“The more I involve myself and practice masonry activities, the more I learn”.

Ratna Bahadur Gongba has been working as mason for several years but he didn’t know about how to build homes in an earthquake-resistant way. At a practical, hands-on mason training organized by MCC partner RICOD in southern Lalitpur, he has learned new skills like how to mix cement for maximum strength (MCC photo/Avash Karki).

8. Kushal Bhatta, Project coordinator and engineer

Kushal Bhatta points at the hill where a drinking water system that served 50 households in Khijifalate, Okhaldhunga was destroyed in the earthquakes. With funding from MCC, Kushal and his colleagues at MCC partner SAHAS are rebuilding the system so that the village residents have access to clean water again (MCC photo/Luke Reesor-Keller).