I would like to express a few thoughts at the beginning of this New Year.  It is now nearly three years since Sainam started working, three years which flew by in what seems like weeks.  In fact, it seems like we started only yesterday.

It certainly has been a wonderful time, although occasionally a very stressful time as well.  Just for the sake of transparence, twice this year we found ourselves with less than € 500 in our bank account.  And, just to be clear, we do not have any reserve fund or additional savings account to dip into.  I assure you, the moments when this happens are really terrible moments indeed.  We have people knocking at our doors who, unfortunately, we know we are not in a position to help.

Twice our “Guardian Angels” saved us, people who support us wholeheartedly.  While two of them do not like to be named, there is another one who I would like to publicly thank.  And that is Mrs. Helene Ehret, the founder, and the soul of Missione Calcutta (www.missionecalcutta.it ).  She has been supporting us since the very beginning, and has continued that support for all this time.  She agreed with us in regards to SAINAM ITALY, and she keeps helping us.  She is reflecting the true spirit of our activity, working for the poor people without thinking or worrying about “any competition” between NGOs.  We are really extremely thankful to her, without Helene, very little of what we did in these years would have been possible.

When I walk around our village’s street, I like to stop for a minute and look around.  I can see the changes which took place in the last few years.  I am not only referring to the new buildings such as Rice Storehouse, the Ban Naudom School, the Rongk See Kaaw, or the Moo Baan.  I am talking about how several people’s lives have genuinely improved.  I see the houses of Ta Supit, Joy, Aon, Lungk Seng, and many others who are involved in some way in Sainam’s work.  I can see how everything in their life has improved.  Their houses look nicer, and everything around them too.  It is in these moments that I really think that all of the work, and those other less than pleasant moments, were surely all worth it…because I see that for few people life has become better and easier.

I then can not help but recall when I fist went to India and I started to work in a Bengal’s village with some Missionaries.  We built a big school, a huge community hall, and several buildings, thus making the center a very good one.  However, I never saw any changes outside, in the people’s lives.  Here we have no center in this sense as we have no need “to mark the territory.”  At the same time, the work we are doing could be seen in the villages, in people’s lives, and in the young people’s willingness to study and to make a life for their own.  And, I must say, I like it much more this way.

Now, we are entering a consolidation period.  Please, do not expect that we will be keeping the pace we have set in years past, because we cannot.  It would be simply impossible.  However, I can assure you we will continue to take care of the increasing number of children, students, and those others who are counting on us.

Allow me also to take a moment to say one last word of thanks to my family (those who know me know it is a pretty extended one).  I understand the choices I made in my life certainly have not made their lives easier. My continuous traveling, departing to and from either sides of the world, is not easy for me…but it is surely is worse for them.  They all deserve a big thank you for having put up with me, I know is not easy for them and it will never be.  So, I would like to humble thank them, and remind them once again how much I love them all.

I would also like to thank all of you for your support, and I hope that we will be able to continue to count on you.  When I write about Sainam, what I am really referring to is a group of people who share the same ideals; I am referring to “Kropkrua Sainam” (the Sainam Family) because I believe we are all just small rings part of the same long chain called life!

Sincerely Yours,

Claudio Romano

Sainam Foundation President & Founder.