Tevel started the Youth Service Program (YSP) 7 years ago after the devastating earthquake in Nepal, as a way to deeply penetrate the village and ensure the sustainability of new techniques and micro-enterprises. Rohit Moktan and Suklal Tamang from a rural village near Kathmandu both participated in Tevel’s YSP. Following their participation, Rohit was diagnosed with cancer and was hospitalized while at the same time his wife gave birth to their first child. There was no one from his family to care for Rohit during his battle with cancer. Suklal, who knew Moktan well from their village and their joint experience in the YSP, stayed with him and cared for him until he fully recovered.
Rohit believes that he has been given a “second life” and thus has the responsibility to impart the younger generation with life skills and coaching on values such as compassion, integrity and co-existence. Both Sukalal and Rohit have started their own farms in the village. They sell seedlings in neighboring villages and in Kathmandu. Both Suklal and Rohit credit Tevel with providing them with entrepreneurial and life skills and fostering a sense of compassion, respect for humanity and co-existence.