Nepal Community Rebuild
REACH for Nepal
Lou Nulley is co-founder and Director of the REACH for Nepal Foundation, a not for profit organisation established to assist the rebuild of Nepal following the devastating earthquakes of 2015. ‘REACH’ is an acronym for Rebuild, Educate, Assist, Children/Communities (giving) Hope for Nepal, and the acronym defines the objectives of the foundation.
One very effective way to achieve these objectives is through volunteers in Australia (and other countries) to provide direct support to the people in Nepal by participating in an annual trip to a school/village impacted by the earthquakes or who are in need of assistance. Each year (typically in October), Lou organizes a group of up to 12 people to offer practical support in remote parts of Nepal. This includes the rebuild of local infrastructure (i.e. school class rooms, water tanks, libraries etc) as part of a 15 day trip to a country which is slowly recovering from the disaster that killed over 8,000 people in 2015.
The trip includes trekking the mountain ridges of the Annapurna Panorama trek on the outskirts of Pokhara with spectacular views of the Himalayas. The pace is relaxed to ensure the trek is comfortably attainable by trekkers of average fitness, walking less than 5 hours per day. Typically, the group walks for 5 days to the location where the community/school project is undertaken.
A yoga session is available whenever practical, and no previous yoga experience is required to participate in yoga on the trip.
Historically, these trips are fully booked as participants enjoy the blend of trekking the Himalayas at a relaxed pace, making a real difference to the lives of many people through the community project, and maintaining a sense of equanimity throughout the whole experience.
Feedback from participants completing the annual trip is always overwhelmingly positive, with some people commenting on the experience as the most satisfying in their lives. One participant recently commented a view that was shared by many, ‘we have given so little, and the Nepalese people have given us so much’.
The cost of the 15 day trek/rebuild trip is around $4500 and this covers international flights, all accommodation and transport and about 80% of the meals.
If you would like more information about the foundation, please visit the web site REACH for Nepal, or click on the tab below to send Lou an email.
Testimonials
We began with a little nervous anticipation - were we fit enough? Did we pack the right socks? Will we cope? Will the group “click”?
All our worries quickly dissolved as we became absorbed in the sounds and sights and smells of Nepal. Lou and his wonderful team cared for us so well - such patience and planning. All we needed to do was to turn up and “go with the flow.”
We were well rewarded with amazing mountain views, delicious freshly prepared food and good simple accommodation (I have never slept so well). Our little group quickly became friends and provided unswerving encouragement and support for one another.
Our time at the Shaheed Shree Hari Prasad school allowed us to connect with the amazing local children and community; to work alongside these people was a warm and humbling experience.
In all, I have returned home feeling nourished on every level - physically, emotionally, and yes, spiritually. It was a great privilege to be a part of such a project, and I will be forever grateful for
this opportunity. Thank you Lou, Raju, Gabi and team - you are an inspiration!.
No 1 travel hack for this trip: Don’t worry! Go with the flow and let the days unfold as they will. You will be guided with great skill and care, and you will return home a little wiser, deeper and stronger. AW
My first overseas holiday, and to Nepal which was on my bucket list since my mid 30’s. I have been with a group that instantly connected, and that connection has just grown stronger throughout this whole journey. I say ‘journey’ as it has not only been a physical journey but an emotional and soul searching one. The combination of the trek and the community project allowed our group to bond in the most amazing way. Lots of laughter and a great sense of achievement.
For me to be in Nepal and experience the ‘real view’ of the people and its country enriched me more. I felt very privileged to witness the local communities like very few others.
There has been a wonderful calm throughout this whole journey. A journey where a nation has very little in a material sense, but very much where it really matters – the human soul and spirit.
To be part of the rebuild project has allowed me to fulfil one of the wishes in my life – that what I receive on a daily basis can be shared amongst others. This was not just a knock on the door or a phone call requesting a donation, which is the usual western world way. It was a way to really give a part of me, sharing more than my daily earnings – sharing my time and my energy and in return, receiving true gratitude and bonding that only physically being there could achieve.
I am in total awe of the Nepalese people where I have witnessed daily how a family and its community remains so strong while the world around them is so weak, in terms of infrastructure, governance, welfare and support.
Everything that life stands for …… for me personally, I have had the joy of experiencing this first hand over the last 14 days.
I thank all involved that this has now been added to my journey of life – I hope to share it with those closest to me. ZL
