Passion is contagious

Dear friends of the SANNI Foundation

What drives us? I think it’s the belief that we can make a difference. That we have a vision and a plan and that we can keep moving forward along this guardrail. Out of conviction and with passion. I’m deliberately talking about guard rails. Because anyone who supports people in need in India or Myanmar must also be able to be flexible and overcome obstacles. Things don’t always go according to plan, so you need people who stick with it.

For over twenty years, I have made it my goal to support people living in extreme poverty in India and later in Myanmar. My vision is to enable as many children as possible to escape the poverty trap. This energy drives and inspires me. It gives me great pleasure when other people are infected by it. In the September newsletter, Corinne Fischer explained why she lives the SANNI energy. I am delighted that in this issue, gallery owner Frédérique Hutter tells you why she is a passionate SANNI ambassador.

Yours sincerely,

Susanne Schroff

Frédérique, how did you get involved with the SANNI Foundation?

That was in 2013, when I was managing director of a gallery and organising a charity auction. I heard the name SANNI Foundation through an acquaintance and was immediately impressed by the foundation’s goals. Five years later, three days before travelling to Kerala, I met Susanne Schroff by chance. When she heard about my plans, she handed me a piece of paper with the address of St. John’s Medical Centre in Trivandrum and said: “Why don’t you go there and see what you have supported? And I did indeed go there and have spent two months a year at the St. Johns centre ever since.

What do you do during these two months?

When I was in Trivandrum for the first time in 2018, I had the vague idea that I could teach English. But somehow that didn’t suit me. I preferred to work creatively with the children and simply went to the village, bought pens and paper and started working with the children towards an exhibition. We organised a real vernissage together and I still think back to those days with great joy and gratitude. In 2019 and 2020, it was not possible to travel to India due to COVID. But in 2022 and 2023 I spent two months at the St. Johns centre again and together with the children and women we created a jewellery and clothing collection.

What do you do during these two months?

The certainty that I can inspire the children with my ideas. It is so rewarding to see how much joie de vivre is created and the dedication and concentration that goes into the work. We sell the drawings, jewellery and clothes on behalf of the SANNI Foundation in Switzerland and the proceeds go to other projects in India or Myanmar. I am grateful that I have found this access to the SANNI Foundation and that the work with the people at St. Johns Medical Centre has become part of my life.

Do you have plans for further projects with the people of Kerala?

I will be back in India in December and dream of designing a small collection of bags. There is a sewing workshop in St. Johns and Father Jose has been able to organise more sewing machines at the centre. Initial ideas are buzzing around in my head. I am looking forward to exploring the possibilities together with the local women and the children at the centre. The people are incredibly open, motivated and have such a zest for life. Who knows, maybe we will be able to present the first bags at a vernissage in Zurich next spring.

Become a part of the SANNI Foundation and give children a better future

Would you also like to contribute to giving one or more children a better future? For less than 1 CHF or 1 EUR per day (360 CHF or 300 EUR per year) you can sponsor a child in Myanmar and join our mission. A sponsorship provides a child living in poverty with support in the areas of nutrition, education, household and hygiene, as well as special lessons and vocational training when they are older. You can find more information at: https://www.sanni-foundation.ch/projekte/patenschaften/
 
Don’t want to make a long-term commitment, but want to provide important help in the current emergency? Donations of any amount to our children’s fund, whose resources are used exclusively for the benefit of children in Myanmar, are always welcome. Find out more at: https://sanni-foundation.com/project-posts/kinderfonds-myanmar/