The founders of Smyrna mission in Sri Lanka, Mrs. Margit Stefansson and her family moved to India in 1983 owing to the ethnic war that broke out on the island. Called to serve the poor in wider horizons they arrived in Tamil Nadu situated in South India and made their home in a small hill town, Ootacamund. 

Here they found several needy people who were in need and found so many children wandering around the streets without going to schools. These were some of the very first people that the founder helped. Along with this work she thought of helping these poor children in their education to change their lives and with that notion Smyrna Home was born and became evident run by Smyrna Fellowship Trust, India. 

She also helped the destitute widows in training them in knitting centers, confectionary and bakery items. She also started a drop-out school for the children who had left school due to their financial and other natural and un natural reasons, She wrote to some of her friends about her prevailing situation of the needy people.

One of her friends Lars Jormeous helped her to buy St. Patrick’s building along with 6.5 acre of land, So the activities shifted to this campus which coined the title ”Smyrna Home”. The work she had done for the leapers had begun as the “NEW WORLD CENTRE” for the mentally and physically challenged.

Smyrna Fellowship Trust is a registered public Trust on premises of six and half acre’s campus at 11 RK Puram, Bishop’s Down, at Ootacamund. Now we as an organization focus on uplifting of the lives of poor and needy children in the Nilgiris district. Our prime concern is to give these children a solid foundation and a good start to their lives. Therefore, we undertake to sponsor their educational expenses, thereby helping their families too. All donations to Smyrna are exempted from income tax under clause of 80G on Indian Government