A Little Helping Hand For Two Young Nepali UWC Students
This post is about a recent fundraising drive I conducted to help two young Nepali students, David Khanal and Manish Kushwaha, attend United World Colleges (UWC). David, who was accepted to UWC Maastricht in Holland, initially reached out for support. My efforts, however, expanded to also include Manish, accepted to UWC Changshu in China.
Why I Decided to Help
During my decade in Nepal (2013-2024), I received numerous requests for financial or fundraising support from Nepali individuals. While I was able to help some, for various reasons, I couldn’t assist others.
However, I’ve always had a soft spot for United World College (UWC) students. I credit my own UWC experience for most of what I’ve accomplished, where I am in life, and who I am as a person today. Those two years in Italy, surrounded by people from literally all over the world and engaging in countless opportunities, shaped me in ways, looking back now, I can say, I never imagined.
But the reason I was able to attend UWC of the Adriatic was that I had a full scholarship. All my expenses, down to my flights and pocket money, were covered. Had that not been the case, I seriously doubt I would have been able to avail myself of those two incredibly transformative years in Italy.
David Khanal
So, when David Khanal, the recipient of the 2025-27 full scholarship to UWC Maastricht, contacted me asking if I could help him raise some funds, I told him I’d see what I could do. I asked him to get back to me with the details of his needs.
David lives with his single, unemployed mother—his father abandoned them three years ago—along with two siblings and an infirm grandmother. The family is saddled with debt and struggles to cover their daily expenses, let alone any extra expenses like David’s.
While his UWC scholarship covers his tuition and living expenses, and other sources (such as the Nepal National Committee) are covering some of his other personal costs, David still needed funds for his and his mother’s trip to Delhi, India, for his Dutch visa application. There’s no Dutch embassy in Nepal. I know this process well, as the UWC Maastricht student I fundraised for back in 2014 also had to travel to Delhi.
The Fundraising Campaign
Earlier this month, after getting the details from David, I created a fundraiser on PayPal with a June 20th deadline and a goal of raising GBP700. I made the fundraiser live on the evening of Friday, June 6. On Sunday morning, thanks to my friends and acquaintances around the world, I woke up to discover that it had already exceeded its goal. By the time I adjusted the closing date to an earlier one, a couple more friends had donated, hitting a total of GBP1008 (see image at the top), far exceeding the original goal.
After charges, the total raised came out to GBP954.49 (GBP 812.13 available, with GBP 142.36 pending until the end of June).
The total raised in Nepali Rupees comes out to NPR 176,485.20 (using the exchange rate of GBP 1.00 = NPR 184.90 as per the Nepal Rastra Bank exchange rate on June 8). Since David needed NPR 100,000, I decided to allocate a portion of the funds to Manish.
Manish Kushwaha
I learned about Manish Kushwaha and his situation after the fundraiser ended. Manish comes from the Southern Plains of Nepal, near the Indian border. He also comes from a financially challenging background. In fact, the only reason he was able to complete his schooling at the residential school in Pokhara, a city in the northern Hills, was that he had a full scholarship. His family is so financially strapped, burdened by significant debt, that during school breaks, he and his two younger siblings do menial work to supplement the family’s income.
No different from David, he has a full scholarship to UWC Changshu but was trying to find funds to cover some of his pre-departure expenses. The Nepal UWC National Committee had generously agreed to fund some expenses not covered by the scholarship—such as flights. However, he still needed funds to cover his time in Kathmandu, the capital city, while applying for the Chinese visa. He also needs funds to acquire some personal belongings, such as clothes and shoes.
I can relate to this very well; I traveled to UWC Italy in 1988 with very little, as my family couldn’t afford much. I traveled to Italy with a small suitcase of personal belongings, weighing no more than 20 kg. In fact, when I went on hiking, climbing, or skiing trips, I borrowed clothes from the college and friends. My trusted, sky-blue, breathable hiking boots came from my Austrian classmate—she even let me keep them after I borrowed them the first few times!
Regarding Manish, after a few email and WhatsApp exchanges, we had a video call where I advised him on the information he needed to compile and send to me. I advised him to talk to current and past Changshu UWC students. Below is what he sent me regarding his pre-departure expenditures and personal items he hoped to acquire with the funds from this fundraiser.
The total comes out to NPR 97,000.
Disbursement of the Funds: David
Recognizing that David would likely appreciate receiving the funds sooner rather than later, I transferred NPR 50,000 to his mother’s account on June 8 (see below for details).
Following that, on June 12, I transferred another NPR 60,000 to the same account, bringing David’s total to NPR 110,000.
Disbursement of the Funds: Manish
I made the first transfer yesterday (see below).
Incidentally, Binod Mahato is his father, despite having a different surname from Manish. I confirmed that from his UWC application. After receiving confirmation from Manish of that transfer earlier today, I transferred the remaining NPR 27,000.
So now, David has NPR110K to cover his mother’s trip to Delhi, accompanying him for his visa interview (which is slated to take place the morning of June 30). As for Manish, he has NPR77K to cover his pre-departure expenses and to buy some personal belongings he need for his years at the UWC.
Final Words
I will be updating this page with David and Manish’s progress as they prepare for their respective UWCs, so please check back.
Once again, thank you all for your donations and your contribution to making David’s and Manish’s dreams come true. I have no doubt they will have two incredible years at their respective UWCs—years that will shape, mold, and transform them in ways they have no idea about and won’t begin to truly grasp until long after the experience is over, just as it has been for me.
PS. For your information, I got some help from AI composing this post.
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Wednesday, June 25 Update
Having concluded the fundraiser and disbursement of the funds, I sent David and Manish a personal email this morning. Here’s what I told them.
Dear [Name],
I hope the [amount provided] thousand Rupees I was able to provide you from the fundraiser will help make your preparation for UWC a lot less stressful. While I created the fundraiser, the funds came from others–friends, acquaintances and others around the world. So, they deserve the gratitude more than I do.
Having said that, I’m pretty certain I’m echoing them when I say this: While I’m sure you feel immense gratitude to me and the donors for the financial assistance, please do not feel beholden to us in any way. We have no expectations from you, except that you make every effort to, firstly, gain as much as you can from the incredible opportunities you’ll be granted at the UWC and those that follow beyond these two years. Secondly, we hope you’ll contribute to your UWC community as much as—and in every way—you are able. If you do that, and I have no doubt you will, that will be reward enough for me and every donor.
To reiterate something I have said before, you have an incredible two years ahead of you and, to be honest, I’m a little jealous because I know only too well how and why.
Regards,
Dorje Gurung, ScD (h.c.)
Monday, June 30 Update
David is in Delhi with his mother. He had his interview at the Dutch Embassy this morning. He says it went very well. They are flying back tomorrow. The next step is the return of his passport with the visa in a week to the Dutch consulate in Kathmandu. School starts in late August.
Saturday, July 26 Update
A little late in coming but both David and Manish have gotten their visas to Holland and China respectively! (Late because I was travelling abroad.) They are now in their final stages of preparation for their flights to Holland and China. I am sure they are as excited as I am for them!
September 28, 2025 Update
I recently heard from David. He is taking full advantage of what UWC has to offer him. Not surprisingly, he’s very busy. Here’s a shot of him at the UWC.
