Vaccination campaign by Hopegivers to save lives of Indian orphans

New Delhi – Hopegivers International, an international humanitarian and disaster relief organization has launched a special campaign to vaccinate orphans in India against the deadly diseases, including Hepatitis A, following the devastating earthquake.

In the wake of the earthquake in October that left hundreds dead in Kashmir and with the onset of the bitter–cold winter, fear of outbreak of dreaded diseases among the survivors has crept in.

A medical team, sponsored by Hopegivers has joined public health officials and aid agencies in launching massive campaigns to immunize affected children, in hopes of preventing another wave of deaths.

Besides administering vaccines, the team will also send in 50 truckloads of woolen clothing, blankets and tents for the homeless to protect them from the cold.

Children's vaccinations are something they've already had concern for and have actively been doing for over nine years, said Hopegivers' Dr. Samuel Thomas.

"We try to bring awareness to the people that these children who need to be protected, not just for today or tomorrow, they need to have a healthier life. We need to give them vaccinations that they've never had," he said.

“In everything we do, we want to reflect the love of Christ,” he added.

Along with the vaccines, the children are taught proper hygiene techniques and are given toothbrushes, vitamins and antibiotics along with treatment and preventative measures for common maladies such as lice and scabies.

According to Dr. Thomas, it is a holistic ministry to the least–loved, as they care or think about both the “physical needs” as well as “spiritual needs” of these children.

“Vaccinations, food, clothing, education…That's where we focus first. Once we take care of that, it gives us...the privilege to share the saving knowledge of Christ to those children who have been left orphaned and abandoned on the streets of Pakistan, India and in Africa," he said.

Presently, Hopegivers care for both the physical and spiritual needs of almost 9000 orphan children across India.

“Our work is impacting the future generations of India. The secret to doing mission work anywhere in the world, is not by reaching the older people. It is by loving and caring for the ones who nobody wants, the rejected of the society, the outcasts of the society, that are the orphaned and abandoned children,” he concluded.