Irishman finds long lost Mum in a rural Nepal village

An Irish man who found his long lost Mum in Nepal has launched a fundraising drive to help him build her a new home. John Hodge last saw his mother Maile three decades ago when she returned to her native Nepal alone after her relationship with his father broke down. With the help of a local guide and an interpreter, John (35) was reunited with Maile, who lives in poverty in a remote village, at the end of last month. Having spent precious time catching up on each other's lives (Maile was even shown photographs of her two grandchildren) John left for Ireland just three days before the earthquake, which killed 7,500 people. After an anxious seven day wait for news, word reached him that Maile was safe. "It was incredible to spend time with her, although unfortunately her living conditions are very poor." he said. "Her home has no walls, no water, no sanitation. The house sustains heavy damage in monsoon season. There is little protection from the elements and it is unsafe." A fundraising page John set up to raise the money he needs to ensure his Mum is safe in the long term has already collected more than €4,000 in donations. You can follow his progress on Facebook.   "The purpose of this page is to raise funds to build my mum a small and safe house with water, sanitation and solar panels to address the lack of reliable power." Any extra funds raised will go to the Nepal Earthquake appeal.