OL One Life At A TimeEducation & healthcare in rural India

A U.S. 501(c)(3) nonprofit

Educating girls and bringing healthcare to rural India.

Charity begins at home, and justice begins next door. Since 2008 we’ve run medical camps and supported girls’ education in rural India — changing the future one life at a time.

Donate now Our story
10,000+
People given medical aid
515+
Children supported in school
2008
First medical camp held
India
Where we work, village by village
Children learning in an open-air classroom in a rural Indian village Villagers being seen by a doctor at a One Life At A Time medical camp A young student writing in his notebook during class

Who we are

Two areas where we can make the greatest difference

India is one of the fastest-growing countries in the world, yet hundreds of millions of people still live on next to nothing. We believe the path to a stronger tomorrow runs through two things: literacy and gender equality in education and healthcare.

Working hand in hand with local communities and governments, we help children — especially girls — build the literacy and life skills they need to succeed in school and beyond, while bringing essential medical care to the villages where they live.

💙 100% of every donation reaches our programs in India — a corporate partner covers all our admin costs, so we take nothing for overhead.

More about us
Students smiling and flashing peace signs at a One Life At A Time school

The need

Why this work matters

More than 60% of Indians live in villages, where access to good schools and basic healthcare remains out of reach for millions of girls and families.

Education

  • Nearly 1 in 3 girls drops out before finishing elementary school.
  • Female literacy is 69.4% versus 84.7% for men — a 15-point gender gap.
  • Rural literacy (77.5%) still trails urban areas (88.9%).
  • Girls’ dropout rates climb sharply at the secondary level, driven by safety, sanitation and early-marriage pressures.

Healthcare

  • India has roughly 1 doctor for every 1,456 people — below the WHO standard of 1:1,000.
  • Urban areas have 4× the doctor density of rural regions.
  • 60%+ of people live in villages, yet only 37% of hospital beds are rural.
  • Rural health centers face an 83% shortage of specialists, and many families live far from any diagnostic facility.

Sources: UDISE+ / national education data and the State of Healthcare in Rural India, 2024–2025.

What we do

Three connected programs

Education, healthcare and empowerment reinforce one another — together they lift up an entire village.

Education

We sponsor children with the supplies, books and encouragement they need, and motivate families to keep girls in school.

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Healthcare

Annual medical camps bring full check-ups, treatment and prevention education to rural villages that have little access to care.

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Empowerment

By building community support around girls and women, we give them the confidence to pursue education and a better future.

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Our vision

A world where every child can reach their full potential

We envision a world in which all children can pursue a quality education, reach their full potential, and contribute to their community and the world. You can help make it real.

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