Catholic World Mission
in India
Community Centers: Construction in Progress
Bringing social and spiritual uplift to Tribal villages
5 Complete, 2 in-progress, 7 to go
With funding from CWM and support from the Archdiocese of Goa and Daman, men and women in this 80-family community helped build the foundation for the building that will help bring stability to their village.
The first completed community center is in the village of Vasona. Missionaries from the order of St. Francis De Sales will be leading programs for social and spiritual uplift in this faith-filled community, where 20 families are preparing for the sacrament of confirmation.
Complete: Karad
Complete: Vasona
Not long ago the Chikalda Community Centers walls went up! This month we were able to rejoice when the Chikalda Community Center was completed! This community center will serve 200 families in an extremely poor area of India. The Archbishop Filipe Neri Ferrão visited and blessed the center as part of the initiative of the Mission of Daman. The occasion was joyful! Refreshments were offered to the people, and they held a parade.
Complete: Chikalda
The community centers will provide a venue for: missionaries to provide spiritual formation; celebration of Mass and the sacraments; a place for the children to study; families to pool resources, and much more for these villagers. The community center will be the only facility in the village with generators for light and heat, where missionaries will lead families in programs to better their communities and living conditions.
To the right are some of the children in the village of Vasona and the plaque stating the blessing of the community center in Vasona by Archbishop Ferrão.
In Progress: Bildori
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With the monsoon season coming to an end, community center construction can begin moving forward.
February 2015
The Karad Community Center complete! They weren't able to get the paint on due to unseasonable rains, but that didn't stop the Archbishop Ferrão from blessing the center, nor did it stop the celebration! People from all over Karad came to welcome the Archbishop. Now they have a place to hold community events, school shows, and hold adult education courses in addition to faith based events.
Urgently need funding for Community Centers 8 & 9, which will be located in the villages of Jamalpada, and Murdolpada - can you help?
Men carry a statue of Jesus for the Community Center
Women carry jars of water on their heads for the celebration
Archbishop Filipe ceremoniously cuts the ribbon to open the Chikalda Community Center
Photos of the Construction
Fr. Tony crosses the river to inspect the progress at Bildori
Fr. Tony inspects the progress
Bildori is making progress! Recently, Fr. Tony went to oversee the progress of the build. It brings hope to the people of Bildori to see the Community Center is nearing completetion.
Discover Photos from the Build
Missionary Priests:
Thanks to our generous donors funds have been sent to provide proper electricity to the seminary. With the new electicity the seminarians are able to study in the evenings and at night.
The Tractor
Life in the seminary is not all glory. You might never know about their poverty, and their plight. At Catholic World Mission we want to share with you an impactful story about the seminarians of the Missionaries of St. Francis de Sales (MSFS).
The seminarians at MSFS are very poor, but blessed by God. They work hard and long hours to subsidize the cost of the seminary. The seminarians run a small farm where they grow rice, all their food, and raise pigs and chickens. Every year they produce enough for them and more to sell locally.
For years the seminarians have done all the work by hand. Recently, they asked for our help in buying a tractor. The tractor would help the seminarians work faster, harvest more land, and provide for more seminarians. With joy we are thankful to have fulfilled their request with the help of our donors!
July 2015
Your generosity in India bought a tractor for the Missionaries of St. Francis de Sales Seminary. They were able to till the field and get ready for summer crops in the nick of time.
Continuing Studies
We are thankful for all the help we recieve from our donors! Because of you we are able to support the St. Francis de Sales seminary. You have made it possible for these future priests to continue their studies after dark with the new installation: reliable electricity. The seminary offered Mass for Catholic World Mission on Christmas day and continue to pray for our family. Keep checking back for updates!
Bicycles for Seminarians!
22 new bicycles have been purchased to support the missionary priests of St. Francis De Sales.
These bicycles will prevent the seminarians from having to the walk many miles
through the mountains to continue their education and faith formation.
After these seminarians become priests they will be sent all over the world to serve within the Church, including the many villages of the Mission of Goa and Daman.
Old rusted bicycles in worn down stand
New bicycles and bicycle stand
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Complete: Dudhani
Providing for the Children
Kitchen Construction Complete!
The children in Dudhani are no strangers to hunger. For Christmas we were able to provide chicken and apples for the celebration of Our Lord, and since then we have built a kitchen for the school and our next goal is to build another dormitory.
Bathrooms: Complete
272 children are schooled and housed in a sparse hostel. Away from their parents,
they study 7 days a week with limited furniture, and without a cafeteria, they now finally have a place to bathe.
With the support of CWM donors we have been able to construct the bathroom facilities for the children.
6 & 7
Complete: Chauda & Champeapada
Inspiried by Catholic World Mission
Locals fund completetion of two Community Centers
Small villages in India often have no running water, places to gather as a community, working bath houses, or even proper kitchens. When locals heard from the missionaries that other villages were building community centers they were inspired to build as well! They raised funds locally to build, and have a place to celebrate Mass, gather as a community, and study catechesis! We had to share with you how far your donations, love, and prayers are going. See the pictures below of their celebration as they blessed the new centers.
Chauda
Children playing in the streets of Chauda
Champeapada
Dancers welcoming the Bishop to the center in Champeapada
Locals at Mass in Champeapada
Celebrating opening of community center in Champeapada
Locals at Mass in Champeapada
Drummer at Champeapada
Theological and Pastoral Formation Institute
Thanks to generous CWM donors we've been able to support the formation of the current 93 laity participating in the two year formation program. The laity will be trained by priests at the Pastoral Institute, and will spread the faith to the people in their home parishes in Goa, India.
For $50 you can sponsor one person to take the course.
In the US this may seem insignificant but to them it is an obstacle to afford it. With more funding more laity can be evangelized and the message of Christ can spread in India.
The course was designed as one two-year formation program, the length of the program makes it a serious endeavor. The demand for the class is high and this year they will be running two courses simultaneously.
During the past seven months, the group has grown in the knowledge of faith, fellowship and in their prayer lives.
Eight of the laity share their testimonies under discretion for fear of risking their lives and those of their families from people and entities who do not believe in freedom of religion. For this reason we have hidden their names from their letters.
Dadra and Nagar Haveli is a union territory just north of Mumbia on the west coast of India. Occupied by the Portugese until 1954, this once dense forest area has been inhabited by tribals for centuries. Today the tribals make up about 60% of the population. The people here live in mud huts, with no utlities or sanitary water. Most tribal people live on subsistence farming, with the vast majority living "hand to mouth."
The archbishop of Goa and Daman is leading an effort to provide infrastructure to help lead these 72 tribal communities to a life of greater dignity. Twelve communities have been targeted to start. Community Centers will provide stability and resources for people who are in need of a place for children to study with light, cultural programs, social development and spiritual uplift.