An Update for Our Sponsors

January 16, 2012

Dear Film Sponsors,

First of all, we want to express our sincere gratitude for your financial investment in the Mother India documentary. Without your support, this project would not be possible.

It’s been one week since we returned from our two-week adventure, and we’re more passionate than ever about why we initiated this effort. Our bodies have almost recovered from the two days of travelled required in order to make it back to the States, but our hearts and minds are still enraptured by what we experienced. Frankly, it’s been quite difficult for both of us to integrate back into ‘normal’ life. We’ve both been to India on numerous occasions, but this trip affected us in a profound way.

Here’s What We Experienced

The film will be edited over the next several months, and it will premiere in Orange County, California, and Atlanta, Georgia, in May of 2012. Although we don’t want to spoil your experience of watching the documentary, we want to share a glimpse of what we unexpectedly experienced. Here’s a quick overview…

• After three days in Chennai (in the state of Tamil Nadu), we didn’t sense that it was the best location for connecting with a group of kids, and Cyclone Thane was pouring down buckets of rain.
• We boarded a train a week early and moved on to Tenali (in the state of Andhra Pradesh).
• The morning after we arrived we walked out of our hotel and immediately came across a group of kids sleeping on the front sidewalk of a store.
• To our amazement, we were trusted almost immediately and began to connect with a group of 10 or so kids.
• Over the course of the next seven days, we practically lived with 30+ abandoned and orphaned kids (from 3 to 25 years of age) who call the Tenali railway station their ‘home.’
• We ate with them. We played with them. We slept with them.
• We profiled 8 of the kids through extensive interviews, and we followed the group around to experience life through their eyes.
• Our hearts were captured by the kids, and we just couldn’t stand by as they shared their stories. We had to take action. Therefore, we arranged with Reddy (leader of the ‘family’ of kids) and Suresh Kumar (president of Harvest India) to transport all the kids to the Harvest India campus for haircuts, new clothes, a special meal, and a tour of the facility.
• We wondered if it might be possible for any (or even all) of the kids to get off the streets and into a Harvest India children’s home.
• Let’s just say that we were extremely excited and unbelievably disappointed.

We were privileged to capture their stories and document the complexity of helping abandoned and orphaned children transition into a healthy environment. There is so much hope and heartache intermixed within us. The bottom line is that action must be taken quickly when a child is abandoned or orphaned. Otherwise, they’ll likely to fall into a lifestyle of so-called ‘freedom’ filled with begging, sexual abuse, drug addiction, and a HIV positive diagnosis.

How You Can Help ‘Mother India’

You’ve already helped so much, but the journey to premiering the film is still in front of us…

1. 

   Meet Nagaraju and his monkey, Agea. You'll notice the gaping hole in his chest (due to a large infection) through which you can see his sternum. (click for larger image)

   CONNECT – Get connected to Mother India via social media.
   Like us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter, and circle us on Google+.

2. SPONSOR – Help us raise an additional $10,000 to finish the documentary.
   We raised $10,000 before the trip, but we’re still in need of another $10,000 to meet our budget. Spread the word about the opportunity to Become a Film Sponsor via your social media accounts of email. We’re working on a shoestring budget, and we (Shawn and David) aren’t making a dime.
   .
3. HOST – Screen Mother India for your organization.
   We’re already scheduling organizations, churches, and civic groups to host screenings of the Mother India documentary. You’ll rally people to attend, and we provide the DVD and promotional materials. In fact, we’re arranging for Suresh Kumar to be present at many of the screenings this summer. To host a screening, find out more.

If you have any questions at all, don’t hesitate to contact us.

David Trotter
Shawn Scheinoha
Executive Producers 

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