Welcome to MAKNA {A Meaning to Life}

“She didn't have the money to pay the bus fare so she and Shaktivel would walk three kilometers under the scorching sun to go to Hospital.”

Shaktivel
6 years old

We visited three year old Shaktivel from Ipoh early this year during our microcredit visit to Perak. Shaktivel, who was diagnosed with acute lymphatic leukemia, is one of MAKNA patients who have received monthly financial assistance enabling him to get treatment at the hospital. We were visiting him as part of an evaluation program to determine candidates for MAKNA's latest program called microcredit.This is a simple yet effective financial assistance program that gives cancer patients a chance to rebuild their lives with self employment projects.

As we drove along the quiet lane sandwiched with middle class houses near Gunung Cheroh, we did not expect to see a wooden shack hidden at the end of the lane. It was Shaktivel's house nestled near the limestone caves and old railway lines nearby.

We were greeted by Shaktivel's mom and grandmother and eventually made our way into the house.

It was barren. They relied on the kindness of Shaktivel's uncle who would come almost everyday to bring food from his house in Chemor. This is how they survived. Later we were informed that they would have to move out soon from the shack to make way for housing development projects in the area.

Yet,one thing that amazed me about Shaktivel's mother was, her tenacity in ensuring that her son got better. She didn't have the money to pay the bus fare so she and Shaktivel would walk three kilometers under the scorching sun to go to Hospital Ipoh.

Shaktivel's case is an example of how a family crumbles down when cancer strikes. Shaktivel's father left them in despair.

And there are many more similar stories out there.

This experience made me realize the importance of giving cancer patients a chance to rebuild their lives through the microcredit program.

written by Ranjini Balakrishnan, 2006