Duhun is a little 4 year old boy we met whilst on a trip to Sri Lanka. He was living in nothing more than a shack which was made of bits and pieces of wood and tin which his mother had gathered from around, and what neighbours had given to her.

There was still gaping holes in the roof so everything she possessed (which wasn't much) got very wet during monsoon. The mattress they shared was filthy and on the ground as there was no bed. There was no electricity and food was whatever they could scrounge from friends and neighbours. Duhun often sat for hours on his own as his mum went to work to make coir. She was earning 10 rupees for every 5 reems of coir and often worked 12 hours a day. The railway line was just 2 metres away from their shack and each time a train went past so another piece of wood or tin would fall down.

When we arrived at the shack Duhun was sat on a ledge outside. We asked where his mum was, he shrugged his shoulders and pointed to a key above and said she was working. We were shown what his mum had inside and waited for her to come home. she was pleased to see us and particularly with the food we had brought for her. During our conversation with Duhun we asked him what his dream was and he said he wanted to go to kindergarten like the other children. We asked Deepika if she could arrange this and she said yes. Within 2 weeks Duhun had been kitted out with a couple of uniforms and books. He was so excited.

When we got back to our hotel there was a couple of people there from Wales, Wayne and Amy. They asked us what work we were doing and we invited them along to see for themselves. Wayne came out with us the next day and he was introduced to Duhun and his mum. He could not believe the poverty they were living in. He shook Duhun's hand and immediately there was a bond between them. Wayne came alone as he said Amy would not be able to cope seeing such poverty and would get upset. But as we left he was also choking back the tears. Wayne offered to sponsor Duhun and his mum and gave money to buy a bed, new mattress, clothes and toys for Duhun. He sponsors them monthly and this buys food and books for Duhun's education.

Before Wayne left he visited Duhun again and this time left him with his lucky Budha which he had bought in Thailand. As he put it around Duhun's neck and shook his hand he turned and broke down. Even the strongest of men find this very hard to cope with. Wayne said he would continue to help them for as long as they needed.

Another stroke of luck was to come for Duhun and his mother. A woman named Jennifer got in touch with A.R.C and asked if we knew of any building projects, particularly houses. Of course straight away Duhun and his mum came to mind. They hadn't been directly affected by the tsunami but the shack did get flooded. Jennifer visited the site and decided the community of Blagdon in England would finance the building of a new house. Deepika found a piece of land and it wasn't long before the house was completed. Duhun was so happy.

The future before seemed so bleak.Only a few months earlier his mum (a diabetic) had stood on a nail and infection set in. she went to hospital twice and had a large part of her foot removed. Thankfully she made a good recovery and they saved the foot. On our last visit we erected a fence around the house to keep them safe and secure. Duhun has now started big school with all the other boys and has made loads of new friends. His mum continues to keep the house clean and still works making coir but thankfully the future looks a lot brighter for them.