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What we do

Education, healthcare and empowerment work together — each one makes the others possible.

10,000+
People given medical aid
515+
Children supported in school
Yearly
Medical camps in our villages
Since 2008
Serving rural communities

Program 01

Education

We believe education is the stepping stone to a stronger future — both in the classroom and in health. Education gives children the stimulus they need to begin solving the other challenges around them: poverty, unemployment, poor healthcare and difficult living conditions.

We go the extra mile to motivate children to attend school, and to help families and communities understand how education can transform a child’s life. While schooling is free until age 14 through government funding, those funds are often not enough — so we sponsor children directly with the school supplies, books and resources they need.

To date, One Life At A Time has reached nearly 515 children.

Children studying together on a mat at an open-air One Life At A Time class

The need in rural India

  • Nearly 1 in 3 girls drops out before completing elementary school.
  • Female literacy stands at 69.4% versus 84.7% for men.
  • Rural literacy (77.5%) lags behind urban areas (88.9%).
  • Girls’ dropout rates rise at the secondary level due to safety, sanitation and early-marriage pressures.

Program 02

Healthcare

We provide quality healthcare to rural areas in India — and just as importantly, the knowledge to prevent illness before it starts. There is a deep connection between mind and body; one is nothing without the other, so we focus on health alongside education.

Each year we hold a medical camp in the villages where our schools are located. Using a triage process, villagers move from tent to tent for a full check-up, then receive guidance on the diseases most common in their area and how to prevent them. Basic hygiene and sanitation skills are taught to children and adults alike — and over time, the rate of certain illnesses in these areas has fallen.

A doctor checking a patient's blood pressure at a rural medical camp

The need in rural India

  • Roughly 1 doctor per 1,456 people — below the WHO standard of 1:1,000.
  • Urban areas have 4× the doctor density of rural regions.
  • Over 60% of people live in villages, but only 37% of hospital beds are rural.
  • Rural health centers face an 83% shortage of specialists.

Program 03

Empowerment

Empowerment is an essential step in creating a better future. By providing the tools, motivation and knowledge for better education and healthcare — for young girls and women as well as everyone else in the village — a sense of community and collaboration takes root among residents, council officials and government.

That collective support gives girls and women the confidence to attend school during the day. In areas where higher education is uncommon, community backing makes it possible for young women to continue their studies, whether in their own village or a nearby city. At the same time, the healthcare side of our work spreads knowledge and prevention for diseases that don’t need to spread.

Both education and healthcare empower the same future — and it takes the whole community working together to get there.

Women talking together during a One Life At A Time outreach session

Help us reach the next village

Every gift funds school supplies for a child or care for a family at our next medical camp.

Donate now