An American Social Worker Gretchen Green met Rabindranath in Poona.She wrote in her autobiography, The Whole Wotld & Company [1936];
" In inter of 1921 she met Dorothy Strait of Florida who asked her about her desire to do now. Gretchen replied that she wants to work in India."
After a few months , in June 1922, she got letter from Dorothy informing that her work in India is ready. She went to Newyork, met Dorothy and came to learn that she should establish a Welfare Centre in a village near Santiniketan and work for the development of consciousness of health of females in that area. ['...works in India means unofficial aid to Rabindranath Tagore at Santiniketan, his School.The poet wants someone to help with village women. To gain the confidence of women is often to revolutionize the lives of the men, so great is their difference to the mai - mother. He suggests a dispensary to start with, other duties to develop - they did, in multiple.]
Mrs Moody was also behind the working of this plan. She wrote to Rathindranath;
"The reason I put 'confidential' into my cable was that I did not want to run any risk of its being spoken of there, before you heard from me. Miss Green has a general impression that I have collected funds, out of which I offered a um for the salary and support for the coming year. The fact is thaty this money I offered and sent her was given for this purpose, whether wisely or not... your."Gretchen came to London from America and underwent a training in midwifery. She then started for India.She described her journey from Poona to Bangalore and wrote;
" Two nights and a day wetraveled, tagore, C.F.Andrews , Elmhirst, Myself and Sylvain Levis, Madam and Monsieur. We started out in ordinary cars, changing royal coach at the border of the state. All through the night as the train passed, crowds on station platforms cried "Tagore ki jai"- Hail Tagore - as if to gain a benediction from his passing... The ceremony of welcome commenced at Mysore station. Officials draped with marygolds sat in cane chairs along the platform.Minor officials bowed the poet and party off the train. A brahmin priest offered coconuts, symbol of hospitality. The poet made a short speech of thanks. trains could not move on because passengers refused to get in. Distracted admirers, struggling with one another, jammed the platform. Finally the Vizier cleared a path to the Royal cars, motoring us rapidly to the Rajah's summer Palace - an adorable small palace in a large garden, with a zoo of its own."
