Asha Deep is in the Bijnor Diocese at Dodrajpur in northern India
St Patrick’s is moving into an exciting time as we our relationship with the Asha Deep School for orphaned, disabled, and disadvantaged children in Northern India grows. Having completed our third incredibly successful year of providing funds for the school, we are on the verge of launching the first of what we hope, and expect, will be many volunteer delegations to serve personally at the school.
All who contributed through the barbecue, giving tree, and other channels have the heartfelt thanks of both the parish and the school, and are asked to join us in prayer as we send our volunteers on their mission!
Fund Raising is a Huge Success
For the third year in a row the truly inspirational generosity of our parishioners has allowed us to collect more than $10,000 in donations for the school. In 2009, our donations enabled the school to purchase milk cows, Braille readers, clothing, and hearing aids to meet the basic needs of the children. Last year we collected more than $14,000. That money was used not only to fund a solar water heater now used to heat water for washing bedridden children during the cold winter months at the foot of the Himalayas, but to provide local flood relief at the urgent appeal of Bishop Vadakel, whose diocese operates the school, as well.
With the $14,000.00 so generously donated this year, we can take our first steps for helping the children to deal with life beyond school, in the harsh economic environment of rural India. In the poorer parts of rural Asia, children who cannot be cared for or fed are often left on the street, to fend for themselves or die. For disadvantaged children, this is typically a sentence to a loveless death.
Like all other money collected for Asha Deep, the money given through this year’s summer barbecue and Advent giving tree will be sent directly to the school, without loss to fees for banks, the government, or the local diocese. On arrival, it will be applied by the school toward purchase of tools and equipment to be used in teaching the children vocational skills, so that, though disabled and disadvantaged, they will have a hope of surviving, and maintaining a dignified life, when they are too old to remain at the school.
On several occasions Bishop Vadakel, with the priests and nuns who run the school and care for its children, have expressed their profound thanks for the interest St Patrick’s has taken in their school.
Five Volunteers for Our First Mission
As a first step toward our goal of sending annual delegations to Asha Deep, five of our parishoners – educators, nurses Pauline, Terry, Luz, Emelyn, and Barbara — have volunteered to travel to the school at the end of January and into February. Their mission is to serve as pathfinders, to establish personal relationships and develop a sense of the needs of the school, and to identify tasks for the missionaries who will follow them.
Still Accepting Volunteers for May Mission
Our goal is to send annual missions to the school. The missionary delegations will be built around several of our younger members, including current and former members of our youth and young adult groups, and will include a number of adults to oversee the mission and ensure the safety of everyone. Several interested individuals have already been identified, but there is still space. If you are interested, please speak join the Justice and Service Group (formerly called the Social Justice Committee) at its meetings on the third Sunday of the month, following the 12:10 Mass. Or just let Father Santo or any of the Justice and Service Group members know, or leave your name and number (and e-mail address) with Loretta at the parish office!
Fund-Raiser to Support our May Travellers
Our volunteer travellers are self-funded. They themselves will bear the substantial costs of their own travel and upkeep. In particular, none of the funds collected through the barbeque or giving tree is being used to fund their mission: all such funds are forward directly to the school, for use as intended. Donations on behalf of the travellers are warmly welcome. To support our May travellers, we plan to hold a fund-raising spaghetti dinner near the end of April. Please plan to join us!
