INTRODUCTION OF DAMAR VILLAGE:

Damar is a small Sherpa village in the middle hills south of Mt Everest. Because there are less than 50 villagers it is not eligible to obtain government support for the drinking water supply, electric power, supply, school equipment and road construction.

In the latest census of inhabitants, there are 30 villagers and 14 of them are children. In the village there are not many of the  young generation and we  see elderly, women and children who care for their houses and fields while the men are away working.

The  younger generation often move to Kathmandu, capital of Nepal, to seek better job qpportunities.

APPEAL – HELP THE VILLAGE OF DAMAR

We would be grateful for any assistance, financial and/or in-kind support for construction of a safe, clean, drinking water  supply in Damar in April, 2011. Our voluntarily group of New Zealanders, George Hunter and his Team, have provided the Solar lighting for our 11 families. We have more than 11 families as there are another 4 houses further away which are part of the village.  So we are requesting donations for more solar lighting, safe drinking water and education for our children. 

Our village family names are :--
01.  Ngima Sherpa    02. Doma Sherpa
03.  Kaji Sherpa        04. Nurbu Sherpa
05.  Doma Sherpa     06. Kami Sarki Sherpa
07.  Ngima Sherpa    08. Tukte Sherpa
09.  Yandi Sherpa     10.  Dolma Sherpa
11.  Lhakpa Sherpa  12. Rinji Sherpa

THANKS to everybody who made the DAMAR project possible in April, 2010 

We would like to thank  the group from South Canterbury, in New Zealand, who collected donations and personally participated in the instalation of solar systems.  They were, George Hunter,  Neil Stocker, Margaret Stocker,  Lesley Beynon,  Bruce Allan,  Colleen  Winnington,  Russell  Winnington, Mr. Graham  Shewan, Mr. Tim  Shewan, and  Dr. Anne Lynch.

Thanks also to our friend Mrs Lucia Benicka from Slovakia, who helped  PIKE staff with Damar promotional materials, donations in Slovakia and visuals - thousands of pictures from the village of Damar for further project promotion.

The project would  not have been possible without  financial donations and in-kind help either from individuals or groups:

01. Thanks to major support from Geraldine Trekking Club in South Canterbury, New Zealand, both financial and in-kind.

02. Thanks to private donnors from Europe and Australia who helped financially for the project to be acomplished as planned: Otto Sluiter – Netherlands, Family Benicky – Slovakia, Family Ulbricht – Slovakia, Angelique Pairault & friends – France, Jack & Jane Chen – Australia,  Arlish Kempf – Australia, from Italian Varese: Vincenzo Spada, Family Vimercati, Marco Broggini, Mariassunta Lenotti, Alessandra Canestri –Trestie, Monika - Reggio Emilia, Timoty & Mary – Belgium.

03. Thanks to everyone who collected finances during the social events: Andres Reggio – Reggio Gas trekking group in Reggio Emilia (Italy), Dom fotografie – Ngima Sherpa presentation in Poprad (Slovakia).

04. Thanks for in-kind support to: Nicola Campany from Italy for computers, from Slovakia to: Lucia Benicka for her images and help with project in Europe, Samo Carnoky for graphic design of promotional materials (teeshirts, postcards, banners, posters), Canon and Olympus for cameras, Tatraprint for printing postcards.

05. Thanks to Mr. Tanka Baniya, who is Ngima Sherpa's partner our liaison person in Kathmandu and comes from a village in the same district as Damar.   He has been helping us - and personally for  Ngima Sherpa - by writing correspondence between us (villagers, Ngima & our sponsors), making direct telephone conversations, arrangements for solars and managing many different requirements for the project.

MY NATIVE VILLAGE DAMAR   ---Ngima Sherpa describes the village

My native village Damar is in the central part of Nepal in the Everest region, but far away from major touristic routes – it is a remote and isolated place under Himalayas. A small settlement with only a few houses, without any technical, medical and social support. Young people work mostly in tourist business in Kathmandu or fly abroad – and the remained villagers are just old people and mothers with children.

Damar is reachable only by walk, which takes 3 – 4 days from the town of Jiri. The major problem of village is  poverty ; no sources for possible income, no market close to the place, not enough farming land for growing many supplies. I would like to help to my village with further development and through the DAMAR PROJECT to bring to villagers electricity, educational and medical help, safe water system and basic assistance for self-making profit in the future.“

Ngima Sherpa - a director of Pike Expedition&Trekking comp. - was born in Damar in 1968. He himself started to work in tourist business when he was just 14 as a porter, then he made it as a cooker, assistant guide and guide up to developing his own trekking agency and personal international contacts worldwide. The Damar Project is Ngima’ s activity to help  forgotten and isolated communities far away from any opportunities for dynamic development and to give a future to the younger generation in their own homeland.

CONTACTS TO DAMAR PROJECT’s ORGANIZERS:

Ngima Sherpa, Nepal / Italy, ngimasherpa52@hotmail.com
George Hunter, New Zealand, g.k.hunter@actrix.co.nz
Lucia Benicka, Slovakia, luciabenicka@gmail.com

The project is administrated via Pike Expedition & Trekking Ltd. in Kathmandu, contract: Tanka Baniya pikeexpd@wlink.com.np

Maps of the village Damar

01. Map of village within Nepal region: download .pdf or .jpg

02. Map of village in more detailed PIKE region: download .pdf  or .jpg