children. One of the first was a wealthy Hindu woman who sponsored 10
children for 10 years.
In time, other donors would do the same. This practice helped the chil-
dren to receive the education or technical skills they needed to become
self-supporting. It was common, for instance, for an Indian donor to pay
tuition for an infant from birth to the end of the child’s school years. Over
the years, the circle of donors widened considerably, as donors throughout
the world sponsored children at the Shishu Bhavans. The support monies
donated for the children were placed in a bank account until the child
reached school age; the funds were then used to pay for the child’s edu-
cation. This system proved so successful that in 1975 Mother Teresa
organized the World Child Welfare Fund, which shared the financial as-
sistance among all of the children under the care of the Missionaries of
Charity.
THE PROMISE OF A NEW LIFE
For residents of Shishu Bhavan who were of marrying age, Mother
Teresa, in accordance with Hindu custom, helped arrange marriages. Act-
ing as a marriage broker, Mother Teresa worked with other Hindu families
seeking a bride for a male relative. While the social status of the girls who
lived at Shishu Bhavan was, in general, low, Mother Teresa made sure that
each young woman had a dowry, or gifts, to present to the prospective
bridegroom’s family. These dowries always included a new sari, a few trin-
kets, and a wedding ring. Local benefactors also helped in many instances
adding to the dowry some gold ornaments, household utensils, furniture,
and in many cases, money in a small bank account opened in the future
bride’s name. On any given day, the couples could be found gathering out-
side the Motherhouse to greet Mother Teresa and her Missionaries of
Charity. In time, a joke started to make the rounds that a prospective
bridegroom had better watch his step as he was inheriting not one
mother-in-law, but several.
Perhaps the most important program that Mother Teresa created for
the children’s homes were adoptions. When the program began, the ma-
jority of children were placed with Christian families. Slowly, many
Hindu middle-class families opened their homes to unwanted and aban-
doned children. Initially, boys were still preferred over girls, but, over
time, many Hindu families were happy to welcome a new child, regardless
of sex, into their homes. Soon, Mother Teresa began to find homes for In-
dian children with overseas adoptive parents from Europe and North
America. However, the majority of families wishing to adopt wanted only
82 MOTHER TERESA