Business owner unable to leave India for 142 days uses her savings to help strangers

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    Lancaster, PA (WPMT) — A Lancaster shop owner is finally home after spending more than four months unable to leave India because of COVID-19.

While some people would have panicked, Timbrel Chyatee turned her initial fear into hope for strangers.

Chyatee, owner of Lush Bazaar in Lancaster, can finally embrace friends and family after she spent 142 days unable to leave India.

“I don’t think I could’ve ever understood it until I got stuck there,” laughed Chyatee.

What should’ve been just a 28 day trip for work was prolonged for weeks – because of COVID-19.

“Four days before I was supposed to come back to America, India went into complete lock down,” explained Chyatee. “I had no idea when I would be able to leave, and things got worse and worse in India, and I felt so helpless.”

She would soon feel the sorrows of the pandemic as well.

“To see the poverty that got worse and to see people really struggling, to see people looking for food anywhere, it was a lot to process,” explained the business owner. “It even got to the point where people were committing suicide, because they couldn’t handle the stress. It hit me hard to hear about that. I know personally someone was trying to sell their children to get money to stay alive.”

Chyatee is a self-proclaimed doer and wanted to help.

“When I saw the need, me and my mom talked. We decided we should start distributing food and groceries to people in need,” explained Chyatee.

Every morning from 6 to 9, Chyatee, her mom, and a team of volunteers would feed hundreds of people waiting in line for food.

“It definitely was the shining light in the darkest of nights,” said Chyatee. “[I spent] almost all of it, all my savings. I wanted to buy a home this year. That was my plan, but it’s pretty much all depleted now.”

While her savings may be nearly gone, Chyatee’s appreciation for life is now much greater. Chyatee says other people need to be grateful for the good in their lives too.

“Be grateful for what you do have. Big or small. Whatever moment you’re in. Because it’s probably a lot more than other people have,” she said. “During this pandemic, I think we are all struggling in some way. It’s really important for us to be kind, and if we can help a friend or neighbor or colleague or stranger, it’s really important to do so now more than ever.”

There is some good news for Chyatee; she said she can finally expand Lush Bazaar into a bigger shop with additional items, including more homeware. She is still looking for the best location.

According to the business’ website, each item at Lush Bazaar is “handcrafted with great precision and style and is made to empower and inspire the ones who create our products and the ones who buy our products.”

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