How Do Bicycles Help Poor Families in Asia Achieve a Better Quality of Life?

How worried would you be if your children had to walk two hours to and from school every morning and afternoon? Maybe you’d be concerned for their safety and well-being. That’s the case for many mothers and fathers in Asia.

Shamita had no other choice but to send her 16-year-old daughter, Sudipti, on foot to a school located more than four miles away from their rural village. Though Shamita herself worked as an uneducated daily wage laborer, she wanted her daughter to go to school.

Ever since Shamita’s husband died five years ago, life had been very difficult for her, and she struggled hard to care for her two children. Her only hope was that Sudipti’s education would make life better for them in the future.

But Sudipti had to get up early in the morning to make it to school on time. There were times when she ended up being late for class because her legs hurt so badly from all the walking. Sudipti wished so much to have a bicycle to ride to school, but she knew her mother, being a widow, could never afford to buy her one.

Yet God did not forget this poor widow’s family. When Gospel for Asia (GFA)-supported pastor Bhajan and his church from a neighboring community held a special gift distribution to needy families, Sudipti was chosen to receive a new bicycle. The young girl was so excited and grateful for this valuable gift.

“Now I won’t be late to school,” she said. “I am excited to ride my bike to school.”

Sudipti stands beside her new gift: a bicycle!

Moreover, because the bicycle saves her many hours of walking, she now has far more time to help her mother at home and take care of her younger sister.

When Pastor Bhajan and some believers visited this dear family, Shamita welcomed them gladly. She was so touched by what they shared with her about the love of Christ and by the kindness and help the church extended to her family.

“I knew that my daughter needed a bicycle,” Shamita said, “but I could not afford to buy a bicycle for her, as I hardly manage my daily needs. … You saw the need of my daughter and provided a bicycle for her; I am very happy.”


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