Micro-credit Self-help Groups

Micro-Credit Self-Help Groups One of Kalangarai’s first programs is based on the Grameen Bank system of microcredit and microfinance concepts. According to this system, loans are given to entrepreneurs who are too poor to qualify for traditional bank loans. These loans enable them to start a business (e.g. purchase cows, goats, or other farm animals, … Read more

Meet the Board—old

Meet the Board Karen Kayser, Founder and Board Chair While on faculty at Boston College, Karen led groups of social work students on service-learning trips to the region of India that was most devastated by the Indian Ocean Tsunami. Kalangarai, an ngo established by a group of Jesuits, hosted the students and provided an educational … Read more

History of Kalangarai

History of Kalangarai Kalangarai (which means “lighthouse” in English) is a non-governmental organization (ngo) established after the Indian Ocean Tsunami of 2004. Within days of the Tsunami, a group of Jesuits arrived to Nagapattinam on the southeast coast of India which was the area of India most devastated by the Tsunami. They conducted a needs … Read more

Friends of Kalangarai

Friends of Kalangarai Friends of Kalangarai, Inc is a U.S. 501(c)3 non-profit that was established in 2016. Its mission was (and continues to be) to support community-based programs working to enhance dignity, self-reliance, and the well-being of widow-headed families in South India. These community-based programs are implemented by Kalangarai which is a non-governmental organization (NGO) … Read more