Nepal Govt. Regd. No. 1224/064, SWC Affiliation No. 22612
Sambhav Nepal is proud to partner with many warm-hearted enthusiasts from different corners of the world. We are highly inspired by their involvement in the team and believe that our friendship would help in achieving our objectives, benefiting as many people as possible of rural Nepal. All the board members of Sambhav are native of the Gorkha district. Following are the people who have given their best contribution to make Sambhav successful in national and international levels.
From left to right: Uttam Adhikari, Sunita Dhakal, Prem Khatry, Divya Poudel, Binod Rokaha, Kumar Bhandari and Sujan Khatry
Prem has completed his Master in Business Studies from the Tribhuvan University of Nepal. As the President/Founder of Sambhav Nepal, Prem has always had a yearning and an immense heartfelt desire to develop and improve the Nepalese standard of education as well as attain economic growth in remote villages of the Gorkha district. He serves as the Board Member of the Rotary Club of Mt. Everest, Lalitpur. Currently he is also operating and managing a successful travel and trekking company called Ace the Himalaya and Ace Holidays. He possesses wide knowledge and has experience of leading various social organizations in the past, like Chairman of Arupokhari Society and Board Member of Trekking Agencies’ Association of Nepal (TAAN). Working in the tourism sector has helped him come in contact with many foreign nationals who’ve shown tremendous interest in Sambhav Nepal’s works and even joined hands for the projects. He has been awarded as MPHF + 3 (Multiple Paul Harris Fellow) by the Rotary International.
Prem has been extensively traveling to the different parts of the world (USA, Europe, and Canada, South America, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, Russia, Eastern Europe and many others) for attending major seminars and travel expos. The major objectives of this visit were to learn about the local companies, immerse himself in a new culture, and meet business leaders from around the globe.
Prem is a firm believer of giving something back to the local community and Sambhav Nepal is the channel to fulfilling that dream.
Since childhood , Melanie always felt intrigued by Nepal and the Himalayas. Nonetheless, born and raised in Switzerland, she never had the chance to go to Nepal. In 2007 she finally got that opportunity and spent one month traveling, climbing and trekking in Nepal with a close friend. Her love for the country, the mountains and the people compelled her to return back to Nepal many more times. On each visit she spent a few months in the Himalayas, during which she got to know Prem (the founder of Sambhav Nepal) personally although they were in regular contact on a professional capacity. In early 2008, she joined Sambhav and has since visited Arupokhari/Ratmate (Prem’s village) on a number of occasions with an aim to provide education- and health-based support.
In 2015, after the earthquake (and its aftershocks) that devastated Nepal, Melanie registered and founded Sambhav Nepal – Schweiz in Switzerland to help the earthquake victims of Gorkha and rebuild the boarding house/hostel for Bhawani Higher Secondary School.
Since then Melanie and her organization have become the most important partner and supporter of Sambhav Nepal. She is the initiator and leader of many projects which we have completed and are currently running. To name a few: relief supplies to the earthquake victims, Bhawani Higher Secondary School Boarding House (Himali Chhatrabas), reconstructing Bhairabi Primary School, Tracksuit & Bag Distribution, economic upliftment via coffee plantation, PCL Medical Courses scholarships, Himalayan Ambulance, Rebuild Home Gorkha, Covid-19 food and medical goods distributions program, and so on and so forth.
Under her guidance and leadership, we are planning many projects for the people of Gorkha. It will take several years to start and execute these projects, and once completed, these projects will enormously change countless lives in Gorkha. It is because of her support and constant efforts that Sambhav Nepal has been able to bring positive changes and will do so for a long time.
Allan Waldon, an Australian businessman, is the major donor and one of the active fund raiser for Sambhav Nepal. In 2006 Allan trekked to the Everest Base Camp with his son Scott along with their Nepalese guide, Prem. Allan was really touched by the people he met in Nepal and sympathized with their hardships and struggle. The contrast between the lives of the Nepalese children and those of his home country, left him stunned. It was clear to him the difference a dollar could make in improving the welfare of the children.
Education in particular was what Allan considered the most important factor for a child’s secure future. Without proper education, a child would be vulnerable with low employment opportunities. After consulting with Prem for a few months, Allan decided to fund projects aimed at improving the lives of the underprivileged children of Gorkha. Allan focuses on overseeing the construction of the project by communicating with the team in Nepal. He is also the prime network to maintain a sound relationship with current sponsors and the contact point for other interested parties in Australia.
Anne is one of the most active and supporting members for Sambhav Nepal from Australia. She is a senior lecturer in primary and secondary mathematics education.
Dr. Anne is the Vice President of the Australian Primary School Mathematics Olympiad and has served for a number of years on the committee of the North Sydney Region Mathematics Association. She is also a member of the Mathematics Education Research Group of Australia, Australian Association of Mathematics Teachers, Mathematics Association of NSW, NSW Institute for Educational Research, Australian College of Educators, and North Sydney Region Mathematics Association.
Anne has the zeal of doctoral supervision in the research field like mathematics education, teacher training and development, historical development, teacher practices, investigating technology-mediated and project based learning.
She is a strong supporter of the teachers as part of the Sambhav Project. Her three visits to Gorkha, Nepal have made a huge contribution to run the training programs. In 2011 she shared her wide experience in mathematics and new teaching methodologies which have been the integral part on any teacher training programs in Gorkha today. She was also a part of Gorkha Charity Trek in 2013. In 2014 she organised the teacher-training program in Gorkha, which was a great success. She has been doing everything possible to support the school projects of Gorkha.
Patti and Barry are both retired teachers and educational administrators, from Vernon, British Columbia, Canada where Patti is a freelance journalist and member of the Kalamalka Rotary Club. Barry is a photographer. In 2011 they spent three months in Nepal exploring the Himalayas while travelling to Upper Mustang, Annapurna and Everest Base Camp with Ace the Himalaya. Working with Sambhav Nepal they sponsor a young girl from Gorkha to attend school in Kathmandu.
In 2014 Patti returned to Nepal on a solo advenure to volunteer at Bhairabi School in Ratmate Village, Gorkha. While there she visited remote Aaprik Village and saw the desperate need for a new school building for the students of Devi Jal Kumari School. She is now founder and president of British Columbia, Canada’s registered non-profit Nepal One Day at a Time Society formed to raise funds to build the new school in Aaprik Village and support education in Gorkha.
Richard is one of the key supporters of Sambhav Nepal and helps in raising funds in Australia. He is Rotarian from Rotary Club of Wahroonga in Australia. He focuses on financial control and reporting of the projects including overseeing disbursements and the preparation of periodic financial reports based from Australia. Richard specializes in investment advice and financial planning for self-funded retirees and self-managed superannuation funds. He is an authorized representative of Newell Palmer Securities and holds the Australian Financial Services License. Richard received his Bachelor’s degree in Economics from Sydney University and has received extensive formal training in relevant financial disciplines including a diploma in Financial Planning from the Financial Planning Association.
Ace the Himalaya, a travel company operating in the Himalayas, has integrated Sambhav Nepal into its Corporate Social Responsibility campaign. They donate a portion of their revenue to our projects and organize volunteering trips, engaging volunteers in our area of focus and projects.
Furthermore, the staff of Ace the Himalaya contributes their knowledge and skills to Sambhav Nepal, volunteering in administrative tasks such as preparing project proposals, updating the website, managing accounts, auditing reports, and financial statements.
We have field coordinators at every place where we do a project. We select the coordinator from the village where we have our projects and activities. Since they are from the same village and know its social state and people, their work is highly effective as they are helping to develop their own home. And this helps us to prevent wastage of efforts, time and money.
The field coordinators ensure the projects and activities are happening. They keep records of various expenses and progress details. They update the information to us and convey our instructions and messages to those working in the field such as laborers and contractors, and to villagers as well. They often travel between the project areas and Kathmandu for various official works. We are in constant contact to fulfill each project in the best way possible.
Our field coordinators along with administrative staff are selected and employed on a project basis. They work for us until their contract term ends. After the project duration is over, either they will be assigned to another project if we are stating another project or they will work elsewhere. This actually helps us to keep the administrative overhead very low.
Would you like to join Sambhav Nepal? Are you interested in helping the underprivileged children of rural communities of the Gorkha region? Join us and become a part of our family! Your support reaches to the most remote corners of the Himalayas and helps the people most in need.
For more information on supporting Sambhav Nepal please contact us at [email protected] or visit How You Can Help page.
Swiss Version