Ram Devi still has vivid memories of the hardships she encountered before joining ACP. Married at 18, Ram Devi expected to rely on her husband’s family for support. Instead, her father-in-law gambled away the family farm. She remembers the helplessness she felt when she could not give basic meals to her children and the frustration she felt when she could not visit her sick mother because she did not have money for the bus fare.

Against the initial wishes of her family, Ram Devi joined ACP in 1992. Now, at 35, Ram Devi works as a trained wheel ceramicist -- a skill normally considered to be man’s work. With the income she earns making dragon pots and other ceramic items, Ram Devi supports her whole family. Two years ago she bought her own wheel and started working on orders at home for additional income.

Ram Devi can’t even contemplate how life would be, had she not found work. She is determined to pay off the family debt, which has increased eight-fold. Thanks to ACP, Ram Devi is hopeful that someday in the near future she will have her house back.

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