Mr. P. Issac Dhamodaran, born in an agricultural family had a vision behind founding the Rivers of EDEN Trust in Jangalapalli Village, Gudiyatham Taluk in Vellore District. He spent his early life in Jangalapalli. As a young man, he was visiting his parents who were farmers near Jangalapalli village. As a young man during those visits he was challenged by the needy, poor people who were in bondage. He saw them helpless, suffering from poverty, sickness and were highly lacking basic privileges and rights to be better human beings. They clearly needed attention and this impacted the mind of Mr. Issac Dhamodaran who wanted to do something for them that would have a lasting effect in their lives.
An excerpt from his visionary experiences: ”In 1965, I was born in an underprivileged family in a small village called Jangalapalli in Gudiyatham Taluk of Vellore District. I grew in situations like disease, poverty, hunger, starvation, humiliation and servitude. My parents earned just a meager wage of 0.25 paisa a day by doing agricultural and household works. With this minimal earning they raised me alongside my brother and three sisters. With much difficulty they gave us little education and couldn’t afford more. Meanwhile during 1983 my father died of tuberculosis. We underwent much sorrow, difficulty and humiliation those times. Having seen the same social status in 12 other nearby villages and conditions like those who lost their fundamental privileges, poor people suffering out of poverty, hunger, without proper clothing, children who couldn’t study, I decided firmly to help them out.
Lord Jesus Christ who delivered me from all the above mentioned problems, gave me a burden to deliver poor people from slavery, to give good education to their children, to rescue child laborers from beedi and matchbox industries, to rescue street dwelling children and give new life, to enhance each family financially by teaching them home based cottage works thereby making them earn, to give dress to the needy, to give free medical facilities for the sick, to transplant organs for the handicapped, to supply equipments like tricycles, to teach widows home based works, to enhance the lives of orphans and the old aged, to release accused men and women and the like”
The vision was passed on to Mrs. Victoria Issac Dhamodaran. As a result, during the year 2002 Rivers of EDEN Trust was started by Mrs. Victoria Issac Dhamodaran to serve the people. Since then no turning back and by God’s grace it has been progressing in the right direction, doing its best for the betterment of people who are more than 2 lakh in population in and around the village. Whatever help we could do we extended to the needy. Then to enhance the lives of the underprivileged people we started offering more and more help to them thereby revealing the love of Jesus to them, we as 5 people started “Rivers of EDEN Trust” in the year 2002. We registered this as a Charitable Trust at the sub registrar office at Katpadi vide Reg. No. 437/BK4/02 dated 13-11-2002
During the period of 2003-2007 many people from nearby villages were rescued from untouchability, ignorance, superstition and slavery. We instilled hope in the lives of 43 persons by conducting awareness programmes, helped them start cottage works and made them live hygienically. Importantly, we released around 70 child laborers from beedi and match box manufacturing industries and helped them get basic education. We conducted awareness programmes to protect their environment, to keep their streets and houses tidy and educated them to plant saplings thereby conserving natural resources too.
Computer education was given to around 30 poor and tribal students. Small cottage works and tailoring training were given to 21 widows. Help was rendered by forming self help groups and getting them loans from banks to enhance their financial status. Street children and orphans were admitted into care homes. Also elderly and forsaken parents were taken into care homes.
Cancer, leprosy, AIDS patients were given treatments and awareness camps were conducted. To boost self confidence, arts and crafts were taught to handicapped people. Many people were donated with tricycles and equipments. We have conducted camps for diabetics, anaemic and treated 1300 patients. We have also treated those who were suffering from diseases like TB, cancer, HIV and aids through such camps.
Permanent Account Number for our Trust was allotted in 2008 [ PAN – AABTR2750H ]
By 04-03-2008 we applied to the government for 80G and section 12AA status. The ITO inspected our activities and granted 80G and 12AA status on 25-07-2008. Also we were allotted our Tax Deducted Account Number (TAN) CHER10805E. On 01-06-2009 we applied for the renewal of 80G and got our permanent 80G status. We also applied for FCRA (Foreign Contribution Regulation Act) on 27-06-2008. IBDSP analyzed and inspected our activities and based on their reports we were accredited with FCRA.
Since 2008 we have been rescuing child laborers, helping them get good education by admitting them to schools, giving uniforms, notebooks, stationeries and helping their parents and caretakers by teaching them doing home based works thereby uplifting their financial status.
We have procured artificial organs for the handicapped, obtained tricycles and grants from government for them. We have been helping them to start small scale industries like candle making, tailoring, making crafts out of palmyra leaves, etc.
To maintain clean environment we have conducted awareness camps and planted saplings in many houses.
To help mentally retarded people we have trained those people at CMC hope center thereby making them self reliant. Besides, few of them were admitted in care homes.
To give free education to poor children, we have appointed 3 female teachers to teach them freely daily from evening 5 to 7:30 pm. We have been also feeding 120 children and they are being benefited for the past 3 years.
Thrice in a year regular eye camps are conducted. Those who are affected are given free treatments. So far 55 people have been benefited through surgeries and 160 people were given free spectacles.