From New Jersey to Nepal, young Maggie Doyne is changing the world—one abandoned child at a time
In 2005, 18-year-old Maggie Doyne boarded a plane in New Jersey and set off to see the world with just her backpack; she didn’t know her life was about to change. Four countries and 20,000 miles later, as she trekked through the Himalayas, along the dirt roads of Nepal’s most poverty-stricken villages, she was stunned by a reality she’d never imagined.
Home is where the heart is
“I was devastated to find out that so much poverty and suffering exists in our world, and I was angry that I was oblivious to it,” says Maggie recalling the plight of orphans in a post-war Nepal. She called her parents in New Jersey and asked them wire over the US$5,000 she had saved from babysitting, during her high-school days. “I bought a piece of land on the outskirts of a beautiful village in Surkhet. My goal was to build a home for children who didn’t have a place to live and had lost their families.”
One day, whilst walking across a dry riverbed in Nepal, Maggie saw hundreds of children breaking stones. Here, she met seven-year-old Hima. “I realised she is me; we are all the same. If I could put her in school, her life would change,” says Maggie. She got Hima admitted in a school, paid for her tuition, uniform, books and watched the little girl’s life transform. “But this kind of work is addictive,” admits Maggie who helped a few more children, then a few more. Her dream had grown from building a school to also creating a place they could call ‘home’.
Brick by Brick
Soon, Maggie had no money left to support herself. She went back to New Jersey and spread the story in her community. As Paulo Coelho says, ‘When you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you achieve it’. Maggie raised US$20,000, and headed back to Nepal to open the Kopila Valley Childrens’ home in 2008. Kopila, which means ‘flower bud’ is now home to over 51 beautiful, happy, thriving children, and of course their guardian, Maggie. Since adoption is not legally possible, Maggie and Kopila have legal guardianship of 39 children who live in the home. There are a handful of additional children that they support who attend schools other than Kopila. There are also caregivers, cooks, ‘aunties’ and ‘uncles’, who keep the house clean, the children fed and everyone’s spirits high.
In her initial days in Nepal, Maggie just wanted to be accepted by the local community. “It was important that everyone support our vision,” says the 28-year-old philanthropist. Maggie works closely with the government of Nepal to run the registered children’s home.
Celebrating Christmas with the children at Kopila Valley School
In 2010, another of Maggie’s dreams came true with the opening of the Kopila Valley School. Today, over 350 children from Surkhet and the surrounding areas attend the school. Many are the first in their families to attend school. Besides education, the students also receive health care and a daily nutritious meal.
Why Nepal, you ask? “I have received so much love here; it feels like home. I want my children to be the next generation of leaders in Nepal and make their country’s future bright,” she responds.
A Mother Knows All
“There are days when I feel low, but all I have to do is walk out of my bedroom and see my children running around, to realise that the change is happening before my eyes,” says Maggie.
Mothering so many is no easy task. “It is important to trace each child’s background and get documentation, before deciding whether or not they are a candidate for our home,” explains Maggie.
A Day in the life of Maggie
“I wake up early, have a cup of tea and breakfast with the kids and then send them off to school. Then I have meetings with local administrators amd community leaders, and correspond with our foundation and supporters in the U.S. I also usually work either at the school or at home. The kids come home from school by early evening and we do homework, or go for walks, shop around town or play games. Before bed, we have a family satsang, which has become a really sweet ritual,” shares Maggie.
Maggie’s story reminds me that in the problems around us lie great opportunities. More power to her breed!
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