Om Shanthi Home – Mangalam

OM SHANTHI HOME was established in 2011 by a German, Anna Etter. The Home takes in elderly widows who have been abandoned on the streets, or who were living in miserable conditions in their former homes.

These elderly widows are lovingly cared for 24 hours a day by a team of eight warmhearted women, who are under the supervision of our social worker. Most of the women who work at the Home are themselves widows, and show genuine empathy for the residents and their needs. Thanks to the generous support of donors,- three adjoining houses have been built within the OM SHANTHI compound.

These houses are surrounded by verandas and gardens where the women can grow vegetables. The newest building contains a palliative care section. In past times, many elderly women who had been abandoned often had to spend days or weeks in the hospital before they were strong enough to live in the OM SHANTHI HOME.

With this new palliative area they can be cared for immediately in this calm and quiet space. Women nearing the end of their lives can also receive care without
being separated from their beloved OM SHANTHI community.

Rukumani, 101 years old

I am 101 years old. I had four children, but none married. Today it is just me and one of my daughters. Originally we were from Madurai and had a good life there, but a few years ago my son brought us to Tiruvannamalai saying he would come back, but he never did! Some time after, we moved into a small house and severe flooding occurred. This left me and Kalaiselvi, my 76-year-old daughter, in a partially destroyed house with no one to help us. A neighbor, who realized the critical situation contacted MANGALAM WELFARE.

As there was not the possibility to repair the house,- (and as I was already 99 years old at that time and my daughter 74), MANGALAM WELFARE offered to take us into their retirement home called OM SHANTHI. Since then, both of us have been living there, surrounded by other elderly widows and lovely caregivers, who look after us. OM SHANTHI will probably be the last home for both of us and I am so happy that my daughter and I are finally able to live quietly in such a nice and peaceful environment.