Welcome to Another Brick in Nepal
An update on recent events in Nepal
Hello friends of ABIN,
Like many of you, we have watched newsfeeds from Nepal over the last 2 weeks with a combination of shock, horror, sadness and intense grief. It occurs to me that virtually every board member, volunteer or friend who I’ve taken to Nepal on one of my 10 trips since the 2015 earthquakes comes to the same conclusion in the midst of their first Nepal experience. This conclusion is that they have plans to return to the country even before their first trip draws to a close. The reason for this in my estimation is quite simple. It’s the Nepali people. It’s their smiles and their hospitality. It’s their strength and resilience. It’s their spirit, their spirituality and the connection to nature that their spirit and their spirituality create.
Since the terrible glacial tsunami and ensuing floods of August 26, I have once again witnessed the strength of these people. These are people who live in one of the poorest countries on earth with an average annual income of just $2,000.00 CAD. Over the years we at ABIN, and myself personally, have forged too many friendships to count. We have met the absolute poorest of rural farmers and their children. We have hired highly skilled engineers in Kathmandu to design our schools. Designs that we refer to as “post disaster,” which means that should a very significant earthquake, monsoon or flood occur, these buildings are meant to remain standing as a place of refuge.
I would love to be able to tell you that our five schools and two Women’s Safe Houses, all constructed since we mobilized following the 2015 earthquakes, would withstand the torrents of 2 weeks ago. The truth is that no man-made structural mass that I know of could have stood fast in the direct path of the Tibetan/Nepali event. An event of such magnitude that it is unprecedented in modern recorded history.
Back to the people of Nepal. Given the time zone difference of 11 hours I was not aware of the event until some 8-9 hours after it occurred. It was then that my phone began to vibrate with news from friends in Nepal. With check-ins from friends around the world who were enquiring about myself, our ABIN team, and our projects. As I saw the emerging footage and grasped the initial estimates of casualties I knew that they were going to rise exponentially. My heart ached for thousands of people whom I have never met. How does this hit a person so hard?
When I first traveled to Nepal in October of 2015, six months had already passed since the devastating April 26 earthquakes of that year. I visited many villages and met many people who were still living under temporary shelters: rubble walls with boards, planks, corrugated tin and tarpaulin roofs. Many cooked over an open fire with no chimney. When I returned in June of 2016, and again in October of 2016, most of these same people’s living arrangements had not changed.
I will never forget visiting a small fishing village with our long time ABIN representative, Parshu, and meeting the entire community under the culturally significant canopy of a Bar Peepal tree. These people had no idea who or what Another Brick In Nepal was or stood for. At that time the ABIN bank account had about $1,000.00 in seed money that I had put there. As the village leaders shared their story, some 30 homes all levelled in the earthquake, I began to dread what I would say. As I looked into the eyes of the elderly, the children, the nursing mothers, I could see that they all hoped that I would be the person to say that real help was on its way. Then and now I am moved to tears recalling that day. A day that I will never forget.
I learned many years ago when I volunteered on a project in Central America never to make promises that cannot be kept. Never promise that you will be back, or that you will “find a way,” if you are not absolutely sure. It is the lives of people that you are playing with. In the case of Nepal it’s the lives of a people whose lives had been torn asunder 12 months earlier and had yet to receive any meaningful assurance. When I spoke to the gathering under the Bar Peepal tree I told them that I respected them. I told them that I hoped that I might find a way to help them. I also told them that I could not make any promises, that I would return to Canada and “see what I could do.” I then walked a good distance away from the gathering on the guise of needing a washroom break and sobbed uncontrollably for a quick moment. I do not embellish when I share that tears flow now as I share this story.
I have a Nepali friend named Jenjen Lama whom I met some 8-9 years ago in Khandbari, Nepal. Our first Women’s Safe House and our Mahendra Deaf Children’s School and Dorm are in Khandbari. Our three other school projects are all within a 3 hour drive of Khandbari. Jenjen has summited Mt Everest 6 times, Ama Dablam 12 times, and is a certified mountain guide. Jenjen and a team of high altitude rescue climbers immediately volunteered their services for rescue and recovery. Since day 2, Jenjen and I have shared messages and he has shared dozens of videos and photos with me. I have chosen just a few to share with you.
In 2015 when I traveled to Nepal I had a desire to help, to perhaps put my bricklaying skills to good use and maybe rebuild a school or two. I had no idea what I was doing, or that it would take three trips before finding a suitable project for a fledgling NGO charity start up. I also had no idea that my life would forever be changed. Now here we are in 2026. Another Brick In Nepal has a proven track record. We are a Canadian charity that has constructed five schools and two Women’s Safe Houses. We have made grants to two other schools. We have met thousands of Nepalis and befriended hundreds. For me I’ve always said that it only takes the smile of one child to fire up my enthusiasm to help. I’ve been blessed to be supercharged by hundreds and hundreds of Nepali children’s smiles, along with the smiles of great teachers, their parents and their grandparents.
Another Brick In Nepal has a proven track record of post disaster building in Nepal. Our partner organizations along with ourselves ensure that all funds are meticulously tracked and that our projects come in at or under budget. We have raised over $650,000.00 CAD since my first trip to Nepal, and together with the people of Nepal we have made a difference.
Never could I have imagined that we would be appealing to our supporters to respond to another massive natural disaster. ABIN offers to you our proven track record, an established Nepali network of professionals, of tradespeople, of volunteers. We know what it takes to make a difference in the lives of those impacted by natural disasters. Our volunteers, including myself, always cover their own travel and in-country expenses. Your donations go directly to the people that they are intended to help.
We need your help. I simply can’t stress enough how far your donation can go in our trusted hands. While it is too soon to know if we will mobilize to reconstruct schools, or perhaps a number of family homes or even a small village, what you can know is that we will maximize the clout of every dollar that we receive. These are people who have lost their homes, their livestock, their ability to grow their own food, their rice. Please know that your donation will make a huge difference in the lives of these people. Nepali people are right now coming to terms with tremendous loss, with a catastrophic upheaval in their lives. Please help us to help them. Donations can be made at here or sent via e-transfer to info@anotherbrickinnepal.com
With respect always,
Rob
The Bar-Peepal tree pairing represents a sacred cultural and ecological tradition in Nepal where the Banyan (Bar, FIcus benghalensis) and the Sacred Fig (Peepal, Ficus religiosa) are planted together.
Chautari (Rest Stops) – People traditionally plant Bar-Peepal trees together along walking trails to create a shaded stone platform called a chautari for weary travellers.
Click here to Donate to ABIN
Background and mission
In 2015 two major earthquakes struck Nepal, killing 9,000 people and destroying over 900,000 homes. Along with homes, 5000 schools were destroyed and many more damaged in this terrible catastrophe. In rural areas, government help is limited and many small villages have no capacity to rebuild.
Another Brick in Nepal (ABIN) was established to address this issue in a practical way. Our goal is to re-build schools in rural areas as we identify those most in need, not just those damaged in the quakes but any school facility which is unsafe and unsuitable for the students housed there. In 2017 we funded the re-building of our first school in the village of Aapchaur. This elementary school was built by locals, using locally supplied brick, meaning the money we had raised went back into the local economy. The school opened in January 2018.
We have also funded the replacement of two classrooms full of furniture for Yagyamati Secondary School in Kathmandu, after there were no funds remaining to furnish classrooms rebuilt by the government. We completed building our second school, Sharada Secondary School, in the Sankhuwasava district of Nepal. This school has over 450 students and their two-storey building had been deemed “unusable” post-earthquakes. ABIN raised $50,000 to help complete the re-build of this school. Sharada was completed in August 2020.
Him School was our third re-building project. Him is in a very rural area and cannot always be accessed by road, due to the destructive monsoon season. We worked very closely with the local community who had managed to raise some funds themselves to repair their small school. ABIN was able to commence building in October 2019 and, despite the turmoil in 2020, we completed Him school in December 2020.
Our 4th school was completed in 2023. The Mahendra School for Deaf Children in Kandbhari, was a special project. The school offers tuition and board to all the deaf children of the region, some living many hours from the village. We rebuilt a school building, dormitory, kitchen and bathroom facilities for the students. Students previously had to share beds, and live in poor conditions in a building badly damaged in the quakes.
We have now finished constructing our 5th school – Kharang Sharada, where we completed a school building by adding a second floor of additional classrooms.
Every penny we raise goes to Nepal to help the children receive the education they deserve in safe, suitable conditions. If you would like to support us in this mission please donate here (tax receipts available for all Canadian donations).