Nun travels US to offer thanks for contributions to orphanage

Indebted to several churches in US cities who made contributions to substantiate an orphanage, the founder Sister Sophy Joseph is traveling a long distance to express her appreciation.

The 39-year-old nun is the principal of the school at Home of Hope Orphanage in Kochi.

In year 2006, the orphanage was accidentally discovered by Paul Wilkes, an American writer, and his wife, Tracy Wilkes, who was appalled by the lives of its inhabitants, which led them raise $300,000 and construct a new building for the 65 girls living there.

Wilkes initiated the nonprofit Home of Hope, India that later led to churches around Boston, Seattle and San Francisco, offering money or volunteers to help.

The nun also was thankful to a Christian school that collected 15,000 books for the orphanage's library.

Those books helped the school get accreditation from the Kochi government, the nun added.

"We would not be able to buy so many books," Sister Sophy was quoted by starnewsonline, as saying. "Today, the girls have clean water, a cot to sleep on, computers, they have everything."

She recalled: "When Paul first came, he saw the place where the girls were sleeping on the floor, and he said they should be like any other girls," adding "He said he was willing to help, but there are many people who say they are willing to help. But when he came back on his own, I knew he wanted to help."

Last year, the orphanage dedicated a new three-story building with sleeping quarters, a language lab, a sick room, showers and a dining hall.