Christmas in Saki Naka

Christmas is Christmas whether you're in the concrete jungle of Mumbai battling plus 30 temperatures and eating a samosa, or watching the first snow fall of the year in Canada. The beauty of India is their irrelevant cause for celebration regardless of the religious undertones of the holiday. When there’s cake, you eat cake, and ask questions later.

We have been fortunate to spend many Christmases in the Saki Naka Community, worlds away from the hustle and bustle of the commercial chaos in Canada, but part of us misses that too. The innocent bumping of a 12 year old out of the way to get your hands on the last scarf in the store, or cutting off slow moving grandparents in the parking lot to secure a stall before the mall closes, all to give presents to people who have more than they already need and will likely return those presents in lieu of something better.

But alas we still love Christmas. It is magical and beautiful, even in a slum in India.

Amidst the shopping frenzy people take take time to help others. Donations at local food banks are on the rise and people around the world make both small and grand gestures to their communities, giving us hope that the new year will have more health and prosperity than violence and hate. We have been very lucky at DWP over the years and our small non-profit has helped more people every year since 2009 with the support of donors who give throughout the year .

In a world is big as ours, helping can seem like a daunting task, the problem too big to tackle. But, if our work over the past 6 years has taught us anything, it's that you can’t help everyone but you can help someone.

We have donors who donate $10 a year as well as supporters who donate over $1000. We couldn’t do it without you. All donations, big or small, catch someone who is falling.

Want to donate as a present to family or friends? Email us directly at dirtywallproject@gmail.com. We can send your recipient an email and photos of how their present assisted a child, a family or the whole community.

On behalf of the Ryans and all the families in Saka Naka, we wish you a Merry Christmas!