Impact & Stories | Touching Lives Welfare Trust

Jyoti as a young student, speaking at a Touching Lives event — Jyoti, as a student

Jyoti today, teaching her own students — Jyoti today, with her students

Featured Story

Jyoti, who aimed for the moon and landed among the stars

Jyoti came to Touching Lives in 2017, a deeply sensitive fighter carrying a big dream: to become a doctor. But the path was steep, a switch from a Marathi-medium school into an English-centric world, and a family stretched thin by circumstance.

She learned a new language almost from scratch, and studied largely alone. With the kindness of donors she prepared for NEET at a reputed institute, and when the result did not go her way, the dream shattered. At Touching Lives, counselling held her through the pain of rejection, until she found the strength to begin again.

She enrolled in BSc Chemistry with the support of the Willis Towers Watson Education Scholarship, and kept earning all the while, as a community leader, as domestic help, as a laboratory assistant, whatever it took. The sponsorship and healing at Touching Lives carried her through the storms, until she held her BSc degree in her own hands.

Today Jyoti is a Science and Social Studies teacher, standing proudly in front of a classroom of her own. She aimed for the moon, and she landed among the stars.

▶ Watch Jyoti's Story Watch More →

More Journeys

Stories of transformation

Every child's journey of change, whether big or small, represents impact. Where they began, the support they received, and where they stand today.

Scholarship · Education

Vishwajeet

Then: A municipal school student living with his single mother and younger sister in an extremely tiny home.

The support: At Touching Lives, Vishwajeet and his sister learned chess, strengthened their academics and developed their personalities. When the chance came to attempt the Aga Khan Academy's nationwide scholarship test, Touching Lives walked with the family through every round, travelling to test centers, visiting the school, and arranging a mentor in Hyderabad.

Today: He cleared every level and won a 100% scholarship to an IB international school in Hyderabad, fees, boarding, food and resources covered. He has since completed his BSc IT and works in an IT company.

Acceptance · Purpose

Arhan*

Then: Struggling with gender identity and finding no acceptance from family or society, Arhan dropped out of college, wrestling with the thought that nothing was left in life.

The support: He began attending activity-based education classes at Touching Lives. Through consistent mentoring he improved his English and life skills, and, most importantly, experienced love, dignity and acceptance. Touching Lives guided him back into formal education and financially supported his degree in Bharatanatyam, the art he loved.

Today: A graduate, and a Bharatanatyam dancer and teacher, building a meaningful life on his own terms. (*name changed)

Second Chances

Deepali

Then: Deepali had left school nearly ten years earlier. Raising a three-year-old daughter, she assumed formal education was firmly behind her.

The support: When she made the decision to return to education, Touching Lives supported her preparation for the Grade 10 examination, study support, materials and steady encouragement.

Today: She appeared for her Grade 10 exam and cleared it in her very first attempt. Her next chapter: college.

Academic Excellence

Shreya

Then: Shreya grew up attending Touching Lives programs, studying from a home smaller than most classrooms.

The support: Years of afterschool learning, mentoring and the steady belief of her mentors, support that continued into her alumni years.

Today: She cleared her CA Intermediate examination in her very first attempt, on the path to becoming a Chartered Accountant.

Resilience

Kamini

Then: Academic struggles and the disruptions of the pandemic interrupted Kamini's education.

The support: Mentors and volunteers helped her return to learning, one-to-one study support, improved academic foundations, and training in computer skills.

Today: She has completed her first year of college and continues building the skills for her career.

Talent · Music

Bidhushi

Then: A shy student joining English and life-skills sessions, with a quiet love for music and a dream of becoming a playback singer.

The support: As her confidence grew through the sessions, Touching Lives noticed her love for music stood out, and supported her in receiving a full scholarship for singing classes.

Today: She is training in music and expressing herself with a confidence that once felt out of reach.

Partnership · New Horizons

Asky & Evany

Then: Two Touching Lives students with potential far bigger than their circumstances.

The support: Through our partnership with Ra Foundation, they were selected for full scholarships covering education and boarding at Viraj International School.

Today: They study at a school with excellent infrastructure for sports, arts and academics, a new world of possibilities, new experiences and new dreams.

Youth Program · Leadership

Aryan

Then: A law student in Lucknow who feared speaking in English, and let that fear hold him back.

The support: Through our online youth learning sessions, Aryan built his communication skills and confidence step by step, from his home hundreds of kilometres from Mumbai.

Today: He communicates with confidence, has stepped into leadership roles, and serves as the Organising Secretary of his university's Moot Court Committee.

How We See Impact

A metaphor

A tree's impact cannot be measured only by the fruits it produces.

Its fruits may be the most visible outcome, but the tree is doing much more. Its leaves release oxygen, its branches offer shade and shelter, and its flowers support birds, bees and other life. Beneath the ground, its unseen roots hold the soil together, store water and nourish the wider ecosystem. Even when the tree dies, it continues to give, returning nutrients to the earth and creating space for new life to grow.

Human transformation is much the same.

A new job, a completed education, increased income or a move into a better home may be the visible fruits of change. Yet much of the impact remains unseen: growing confidence, emotional healing, healthier relationships, greater self-awareness, renewed hope, the courage to make different choices, and the ability to support others.

These changes may not always be immediately visible or easily measured, but they strengthen families, influence communities and create possibilities for future generations. For us, impact is not only the fruit we can count, it is the entire ecosystem of transformation that grows around a human life.

Impact beyond numbers