A quick conversation with Bishal Shrestha.

Tell us a little bit about your family and work background ?
My wife Jyoti and I have a son Jayan who is four and half years old and goes to a pre – school.  They are living in Dhangadi at the moment and I work in Doti. I am about seven hours drive away from them and will be traveling occasionally to spend some time together.

I started my career in the development sector in 2004 from World Vision Nepal where I worked for six years.

Your new role in UMN, how do you see it ?
I see my role as a Team Leader very challenging. I have seen a lot of poverty and challenges in the communities here in Doti.  This is totally a new place for me and not everything is easy, but I accept this as God’s calling in my life.  I think of Moses, and how he led thousands of Israelites from Egypt to the Promised Land which he had never seen.  I get strength from this and I believe God has chosen me to serve the poor and the marginalised people of Doti.  I am excited to be a part of UMN whose values are based on the Bible.  Serving the poor and bringing about some changes in the needy communities gives me satisfaction.
 
How has it been in UMN so far ?
I started my work in UMN from the 14th of May. The last two weeks or so of work has been very interesting.  Lots of orientation and meetings with different teams in UMN.  My team members in Doti are wonderful, they are very hardworking and energetic. The next couple of weeks will involve a lot visiting and learning from the local partners here.