JOHN INGHAM
Smiles of hope are reward for ex-stewar
ENVIRONMENT EDITOR
IN the fetid slums of Bangladesh’s capital, the poorest of the poor once had no real hope. But yesterday an ex-British Airways stewardess from Cornwall marked 30 years of working tirelessly to care for Dhaka’s abandoned mums and orphans.
Pat Kerr gave up a life of luxury hotels for her mission and in 1989 created a purpose-built orphanage in paddy fields north of Dhaka.
In all my years travelling the world on behalf of the Daily Express she is among the most inspiring people I have met.
When Pat moved here in 1989, Sreepur provided a haven for 120 children – orphans and youngsters whose mothers could not afford to feed them.
Today it is home to 140 mothers and 360 children and lives up to its motto, “Keeping Families Together”. Its children have gone on to university but most importantly, they have been given a start that seemed impossible when they were born.
A fine example of how they make something of their chance is a boy called Prodip. He arrived aged six after being thrown out by his stepfather.
He studied and graduated and now runs a refugee camp for Rohingya people from Myanmar.
Soon after the orphanage opened Daily Express readers played their part by raising £14,000 towards the cost of a road, “the Expressway”, that linked it to the outside world
The orphanage was initially backed by BA and has developed over the years, including a new £75,000 centre on the site built in the 2000s.
I have visited Sreepur twice and am always amazed by the optimism of the children.
But they have good reason to keep smiling. For the first time in their short, hard lives they have gained that most precious of treasures – hope.
Pat, now 68, is known to the children as “Mummy Pat” or, thanks to the treats she sometimes gives them, “Ice Cream Mummy”. On a visit to London she smiled: “I am the mother of the mothers. I am very lucky.
“Most of the women here have been abused, physically, sexually or mentally in the past.
Horrors
“In the early days we were just trying to make sure that everyone was fed, clothed and getting basic schooling.
“When they come here they know they are safe. Most have never been safe in their lives. They wake in the morning knowing t wate them seen have
Du was her h
Ye accid stopo I had party thing
“I orph teeri mon do an
No