Catheryn and Paul Goodyer established the
not-for-profit Karmi Farm Clinic in the foothills
of the Himalayas. The secret of their success ful
endeavour has been at least one part experi-
ence and know-how, one part contacts, and
a very strong dose of commitment. Here,
Catheryn shares a little bit about the begin-
nings of the project and the highs and the lows.What first compelled you to start a
charity?
We were recommended Karmi Farm as a
place to stay by a friend of the guesthouse
owner. Andrew, who runs the guesthouse,
had only just set it up when we first visited in- The house was originally owned by
his grandmother who fled the area during
the uprisings. His grandmother used to run a
small clinic to treat the local subsistence farm-
ers. When Andrew reopened the guesthouse
some years later, the local farmers started
turning up again with their health problems,
which Andrew found himself having to deal
with as best he could. He was the only one
in the area with any kind of transport as well.
I should point out that the nearest hospital is
a three- to four-hour walk away and is not
a pleasant place to be. On top of this, even
though the hospital is meant to be free, most
people are charged and quite often given
placebos instead of medicines. As the local
farmers don’t earn money – apart from what
they can raise from surplus crops – they
simply cannot afford to go to the hospital.
As [we are] the owners of a pharmacy
which produces high-grade medical travel
kits, Andrew asked if we could leave our
medical kit to help him out. We are also owners
of travel vaccination clinics, so have a lot of con-
tact with medical staff. We suggested to Andrew
that if he could allocate a room to use as a clinic,
we could find volunteer medical staff to come
and work at the clinic. Andrew was very sup-
portive of this idea and the clinic was launched in
August 2001.How long did it take to establish the
organisation?
No time at all. We held a fundraising evening
in August 2001 which made £1500 and found
the first nurse, who funded her own airfare,
very quickly. She arrived in September 2001
and stayed for six months to set the clinic up.
As the clinic is just a front line to deal with small
first-aid problems and simple conditions such
as diarrhoea, scabies etc, we had no need to
invest in expensive high-tech equipment. The
original funding raised was sufficient to run the
clinic and cover the nurse’s board and lodging
for nearly the whole of the first year. Now,
as more and more guests visit Karmi Farm
from the UK, we have established many loyal
supporters to its cause. In fact, we now have
enough money to pay for the local farmers to
be treated at the much better private hospital in
Darjeeling, which give us special rates.Are you able to make a living through
running your charity?
Our aim has never been to make a living from
it. We intend to keep it as small and tight as
possible. In this way, we are able to avoid
running costs yet at the same time maintain a
good service.What has been the most rewarding
experience?
Seeing the improvement in health standards of
the local farmers. For example, we are currently
having a big anti-scabies drive and have in-
vested money in burning bedding and clothing
and replacing it with new items. In addition, we
have set up washing facilities for the farmers
who have difficulty in getting water. This has
reduced the scabies rate dramatically.
Also, one of the local boys who spoke
some English started to help the nurses with
translation. He is now employed full-time by the
clinic and has just spent four months in the UK
receiving training.What was the biggest hurdle or
difficulty?
Giving it the time it needed when we were both
working full time with a family.What advice would you give to
someone thinking of starting up a
charity?
Don’t be overly ambitious. Running a charity
is like anything; when you first have an idea
and start making it happen, you are full of
enthusiasm and energy and this is infectious.
To sustain your efforts over time, however, you’ll
have to accept that you’ll soon be focusing on
day-to-day realities with the occasional high
point. You need real commitment to sustain
these efforts and you have to be realistic from
the start about the time commitment you can
make over the life of the project.
Catheryn & Paul GoodyerA Healthy
Dose
Looking across to Karmi Farm Clinic in the Himalayan foothills Photo: Andrew Pulger-Frame^25510: Start Your Own Charitable Project :A Healthy Dose