India - Mission - September 2004

Written by Gary Thorley

If you had said 12 months ago, that I would find myself in India this year, I would have said you were crazy. My Indian adventure began when I flew out of Brisbane on 22/8/2004, overnight in Singapore, arriving in Kochi, India, midnight Monday 23/8/2004. A hot humid 34 degrees was my welcome to India. My concerns and trepidations were quickly dispelled the next day, when I awoke to find exotic and colorful India before me. Sachit Rajan, our Business Head-India arrived at the hotel for our first meeting. From there our Indian operation took shape with the office being fitted out and new employees trained.

I thought my Indian adventure would center around traveling between the new office and my hotel. As it turned out I was destined to get more then I bargained for.

Now that Charter's corporate heart has extended to India, I was allowed a break from the Call Center to travel to Chennai and Jeypore, to follow in the steps of Simon Hunnisett and Steve Kiely, five months earlier.

My real Indian experience was to be obtained from these trips and especially the people that I was to have the supreme privilege to have met and indeed an opportunity to get to know them as well be amongst them for a short period.

My first trip was to the slums of Chennai, the new name for Madras. Needless to say, the experience had a profound impact upon me. The second trip was to the mission at Jeypore which Simon and Steve visited in April. To my delight, I was to be traveling with two members of Simon's family, we all had a great time

Charter continues to provide funds to the mission church thereby assisting Pastor Raju to make very real positive developments in peoples lives.

I trust you will see a vast improvement in the grounds since the last pictures.

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