The gap year that she took after high school hoping to become fully committed to college, built a different kind of commitment in her to a different purpose: giving a childhood to the neediest children of Nepal.[break]
Today, Maggie runs the Kopila Valley Children’s Home in Surkhet that she built on a piece of land bought with $5,000 that she saved babysitting during high school.
The home today shelters 28 children and supports education of 60 additional children, apart from assisting in the placement of over 700 orphans in different households and shelters. The Blinknow Foundation that Maggie established also facilitates life-changing surgeries for children and improves schools in remote areas of Nepal.
Maggie spends eight to ten months a year taking care of the children in Surkhet. She is aided by seven staff she has chosen with utmost care to make sure that they are loving people.
A CHANCE VISIT
Born in Moorestown, New Jersey as the second among three daughters of her parents, Maggie was a typical New Jersey high school girl.
“I never wanted to do anything like this,” Maggie said. “I had always planned to further my studies.”
But a chance meeting with a 16-year-old Nepali girl in Rishikesh, India, and a visit to Nepal with her, made Maggie radically alter her plans. The 16-year-old had fled Nepal to escape the ravages of armed conflict and was returning home after eight years. During the Nepal visit that included a two-day trek to the girl´s village, Maggie saw with horrified eyes how the war had taken away everything, including hope, from the neediest members of the society: children.
“Meeting the children and people of Nepal led me on a detour,” Maggie said. “I was astounded by the poverty, and by the number of children who had lost parents. I got this idea that I could build a home for them and put in school the children who didn’t have a chance to study.”
During her next trip to New Jersey, Maggie went around showing people pictures of needy Nepali children. She told people about the conditions in which those children were living in Nepal and that for very little money people could bring about huge changes in the children´s living conditions.
“My community back in New Jersey really supported the idea and everyone pitched in to help, especially schools and community groups,” she said.
Though her parents supported her, she was aware that they weren´t totally comfortable with her idea. “I don´t think they liked the thought of me being so far away and I think they were worried about my safety. But now they realize that I´m fine and are proud of the work I do,” she added.
$ 100,000 AWARD
On June 4, 2009, Maggie won $100,000 at the DoSomething.org awards for being an outstanding world-changer under the age of 25. With the fund, Maggie has expanded Kopila to a three-storied home.
The home does not take children who have parents or loving caretakers. “There are too many other children who don´t have anyone to look after them,” said Maggie who only takes children from very poor and desperate background with no relatives to care for them.
Kopila gets about five to 10 requests every day from parents wishing to enroll their children. “It´s sad to have to say ´no´ all the time. I try to help families who are poor by putting their children in good schools and helping them with their school fees, supplies and uniforms,” she added.
REWARDS AND RESPONSIBILITIES
“Hearing the children sing and watch them dance, the smiles on their faces, the bonds they have with each other! It´s really special,” said Maggie, when asked about what keeps her going. “We created our own family and we are all really happy to be here. I really stress that this is a children´s HOME!!! Not an orphanage, not a facility, not a hostel!”
Despite suffering through days when she would rather just look away, Maggie plans to remain in Surkhet and continue to enroll children into schools.
Maggie believes that her generation has a reputation of “ignorance and selfishness” to fight against.
She thinks that if everyone in her generation knew what the problems are, what the issues are, all of them would choose to live a little differently.
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