Meet Tara

      Tara joined VKG on June 16, 2009 with our first batch of artisans. She is a 25 year-old widowed mother who walks over an hour each way to attend VKG training sessions. She lives in the nearby village of Tehera with her 5 year-old daughter Saraswati, her 3 year-old son Damodar, and her late husband's parents. Tara has lived in this area since her marriage at the age of 16. She had previously lived in the Rajasthani village of Kama.

      Tara's husband died of cancer about a year ago at the age of 30. The family is still under the crushing burden of the debt accumulated while he was being treated in Jaipur. The family also has outstanding medical bills for Damodar, who has had a very bad cough for several months. Tara is the only working member of the household and has to provide for both her children and her in-laws.

     Luckily, the family owns its own home and has a small plot of land. There is no running water and electricity is obtained via an unofficial connection dropped down from the main electrical wires. Water is obtained from a nearby hand pump.

      Before joining VKG, Tara delivered milk for her in-laws but since they received the money for her work, she does not know how much she earned. She is currently both doing construction work in her village and working for VKG as her first independent work experiences. Tara will use the money she earns through VKG to help support her family and put her children through school.

      If you have a question or comment for Tara or any of our other VKG artisans, please mention it when signing our guestbook. The artisans are eager to communicate their experiences! Also, if you can email a photo of yourself with your purchased VKG creation to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it , the artisans would love to see it.

Meet Babita

     Babita joined VKG on June 16 with our very first batch of artisans. She is a 34 year-old single mother living near the Pagal Baba temple on the road to Mathura. This is about a 15-20 minute walk fro the VKG offices and learning center at the Food for Life Vrindavan Sandipani Muni School. Babita has lived in Vrindavan her entire life.

      Babita's husband began leaving home for extended periods when their first child was only one month old. After about a year of coming and going, he disappeared completely. 10 years have gone by since Babita last had contact with her husband. Babita and her now 11 year-old son, Lav, live on their own in a 300 square-foot doorless concrete room. They do not have a toilet or running water. Water is obtained from a pump at the nearby temple and electricity comes from a drop-down wire from the main power lines.

      Before joining VKG, Babita did random stitching work for a small and infrequent income. She would also knit clothing for small deity statues for between 100 and 300 rupees per month (2.08 - 6.24 USD). Her monthly rent alone is 300 Rs. Babita will use the money she earns through VKG to help support herself and her son. Her greatest wish is to put her son through school and then be able to engage in devotional service in Vrindavan. She loves Vrindavan and wants to stay here for the rest of her life.

      If you have a question or comment for Babita or any of our other VKG artisans, please mention it when signing our guestbook. The artisans are eager to communicate their experiences! Also, if you can email a photo of yourself with your purchased VKG creation to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it , the artisans would love to see it.