JOIN USA teacher dedicates her life to others
For more than 15 years, Lucy Saldana has been giving away most of her earnings — even her pension — for the education of poor government school students in rural areas.
This 72-year-old retired teacher in Dharwad is nurturing the dreams of hundreds of needy students.
So far, she has donated more than Rs 20 lakh in endowments ranging from Rs 15,000 to Rs 50,000 for the cause.
The money donated by Lucy is deposited in a bank account and the interest obtained is used to provide study material such as notebooks, pens, pencils, geometry boxes, school bags to three or four students from economically weak backgrounds.
L I Lakkammanavar, teacher of Government Primary School Hebballi, Dharwad district, said, Lucy’s endowment donations have helped many students in various government schools.
Encouraged by her selfless service, many others too have come forward to donate for the welfare of government school students. “She has set a model for others,” says Lakkammannavar, who is also one of her students.
R S Hiregoudar, teacher of Government Higher Primary School, Kelgeri, Dharwad said "After Lucy madam gave Rs 50,000 endowment donation to our school, many local people voluntarily came forward to donate money to extend support for the education of poor students. Till date, an endowment of Rs 1.17 lakh has been collected and deposited in the FD account of a bank. Even a small amount helps students as it encourages them to study well".
Lucy carries on with her selfless service despite the challenges she faced herself. Hailing from Bailuru in Karkal taluk, Udupi, she was separated from her family members when she was just an eight-year-old.
She was travelling by train, accompanying her father, who was meeting their relatives.
At the Hubballi railway station, she got down to drink water while her father was asleep. She missed the train.
Later, she was rescued by the railway staff but couldn’t tell them about the whereabouts of her family or her native place. That’s when the railway staff started looking after her. One of her caretakers at the point decided to marry the girl with the intention of giving her a new life, though she was just 12 years old. But her husband passed away within a year of marrying her.
She then stayed with the family of her late husband and went on to complete BA and DEd.
In 1977, she was appointed the government school teacher in Kalaghatagi taluk. Lucy then served as a teacher in government schools in Hebballi, Mogada, Alnavar, Lokur and other places for nearly 29 years, before retiring in 2006.
Speaking to DH, Lucy Saldana said she always wanted to help poor students. Though she doesn’t have any children of her own, she finds immense satisfaction in working for the welfare of these school children.
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