Snehasadan Family spreads Joy of Christmas among Sneha Kids and Well-Wishers

Snehasadan Family spreads Joy of Christmas among Sneha Kids and Well-Wishers

Christmas came Early where Snehasadan Family spreads Joy of Christmas among Sneha Kids and Well-Wishers. The mission of ‘Snehasadan” is to be a positive force in addressing the comprehensive needs of the sick, ensuring their dignity and overall quality of life, by motivating, caring, supporting and rehabilitating, with a priority for the care of special children. Their vision is to bring total health to all and to promote a culture of life ensuring human dignity in the given reality. Their core values are- Care, Compassion, Commitment and Competence.

Mangaluru: “This is my vocation, this is my resolution and my entire purpose, to serve the poor sick, as serving my kings and princess, because in serving them I serve Christ our Redeemer”- had said St Camillus de Lellis, the Founder and patron of the Camillian Order who are called to serve their brothers and sisters-this means helping them to stand up and walk on their own, exercising their fear of the unknown and expanding their minds through education. It entails feeding them when they are too weak to feed themselves, opening their eyes to the realities of life, challenging them to let go of hurts and prejudices and liberating them to even-greater horizons of transcendence and beauty.

This is how the Camillians continue the healing ministry of Jesus so that ‘the blind see again, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed and deaf hear, dead are raised to life-the good news is proclaimed to the poor (Luke 7:22). “Snehasadan” – a St Camillus Care Home located at Kaikamba, in the outskirts of Mangaluru is run by the Camillian Fathers, who take care of the adults and children affected with Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV). Currently there are 40 residential children and 8 adults, who are being cared for by the Camillian priests and staff. ‘Snehasadan’ functions as one of the care and support initiatives of Sneha Charitable Trust owned and operated by Ministers of the Infirm (Camillians)-India. “Snehasadan” take pride core in values” Care, Compassion, Commitment and Competence. It’s vision is to ensure human dignity in the given reality.

At present ‘Snehasadan’ has 65 beds facility for the inmates. The 2 acres land where the Snehasadan was built was donated by Entrepreneur/MD of Eden Club., Mangaluru-Eugene Rent and family. ‘Snehasadan’ which was established in the year 2001, since then the community of this organization along with the staff, volunteers, donors and well-wishers have rendered selfless service to the less fortunate in the society by becoming eyes to the blind, feet to the lame (Job 29:15) and by becoming the true witnesses of the merciful love to these poor sick children and adults. For their selfless service, dedication, commitment, sacrifice, and love to these less fortunate folks, the government presented “Snehasadan” with Karnataka State Award for its service to the welfare of Children on Children’s Day (14 November 2105) in Bengaluru. Apart from ‘Snehasadan’ -Mangaluru, there are six other similar centres in India. (For more information on Snehasadan please click on the article link below (http://www.mangalorean.com/mangaluru-preach-gospel-heal-sick-snehasadan-caring-people-living-hiv/)

Seems like Christmas came a bit early for the Snehasadan family! The Angel said, “I bring you the news of great joy. The saviour of the world has been born to you..”. Yes Christmas is a time of great joy, and its also a moment of love and care. So in order to to greet and spread the joy of Christmas among the Sneha kids and also their well-wishers/donors, Snehasadan family hosted their 17th Annual Day and Christmas Celebrations on Saturday, 16th December at 7pm at their premises. Fr Teji Thomas MI-the Director and Fr Shiju Joseph Mi- the administrator had invited MLA J R Lobo to be the chief guest, and Msgr Denis Moras Prabhu-Vicar General-Mangaluru Diocese, along with guests of honor namely- Rev Fr Baby Ellickal MI- Provincial-Camillians; Fr Antony Lobo- Parish priest, Our Lady of Pompei Church; Fr Praveen martis Sj-Principal, St Aloysius College-Mangaluru; Sr Cecilia Mendonca BS-Provincial -Bethany Sisters; Dr Daisy Joseph-ART Centre-Wenlock Hospital-Mangaluru; Sr Jancy DSC-Director-Jeevadan-Kaikamba; and Stephan Maroli-MCC Corporator.

The programme began by invoking God’s blessings through a prayer dance, followed by welcome address by Fr Teji Thomas, where he introduced the guests, and also extended his sincere thanks to all the past and present staff, priests, parishioners, government officials and departments, friends and well-wishers , and also Rosa Mystica School at Kaikamba, for providing education to Sneha kids. The celebrations was inaugurated by lighting the lamp by the dignitaries, followed by a group dance by Sneha kids-Dhanya and team. In his presidential address, Msgr Denis Moras Prabhu said, ” It’s that time of year again. December has come and with it all the joys of Christmas. People are gearing up for the Christmas celebration by decorating their homes, shops are doing brisk business selling Christmas decor etc etc. But what is the real meaning of Christmas? Is it the gifts under the tree, exchanging the gifts, parties/dinners with family and friends, and shouts of “Merry Christmas”. Is this really Christmas?”

“For many people, Christmas is a time of sorrow. They don’t have the extra money to buy presents for their children, family, and friends. Many are saddened at Christmastime when they think of their loved ones who will not be able to come home for various reasons. Yet, Christmas can be a season of great joy. It is a time of God showing His great love for us. It can be a time of healing and renewed strength. You see, Christmas is when we celebrate the birth of the Christ child. God sent His Son, Jesus, into the world to be born. His birth brought great joy to the world. Shepherds, wise men, and angels all shared in the excitement of knowing about this great event. They knew this was no ordinary baby. We should know that Christmas is a feast of joy. While we are living in a world filled with disharmony, hate and communal tension, let us join together during this Christmas season and spread the meaning of the feast through love, peace, goodwill, harmony and friendship” added Msgr Prabhu.

Fr Baby Ellickal MI addressing the gathering said, ” Which is the biggest gift to us during Christmas? Truly is the coming of Jesus Christ into the world. Why did Jesus Christ come? Why did God send His son to this sometimes cruel and hard world? He sent Jesus to us so that one day, He would grow up to become a very important part of history. His story (history) is one of truth, love, and hope. It brought salvation to all of us. Without Jesus, we would all die in our sins. Jesus was born so one day the price could be paid for the things we have done that are wrong.”

Fr Ellickal further said, “If we believe that Jesus died for our sins, we can ask Him to come into our hearts and forgive us. Then, we are clean and made whole. We can know that heaven is a place where we can go to when this life is over.We can truly be happy at Christmas! No matter what may be happening, we can know that we are His children. We then become sons and daughters of God. Heaven will be our home one day. Look at Christmas in a new way this year. This is the year to invite Jesus into your heart. You will then have a “Merry Christmas.” The joy and peace you will receive will last all year as you look to God for all your needs to be met. Jesus Is The Reason For The Season! Rejoice!”

MLA J R Lobo also speaking on the occasion said, “Christmas is indeed a happy feast for everyone, especially Christians. But we should know the real meaning of Christmas and celebrate wisely. Presently Christmas has been very much commercialized, where people only think of gifts and merriment. Christmas should be a festival of sharing and giving, and also we should unite ourselves to bring peace, love and harmony in the society. There is lots of disharmony and communal tensions around us. Christians are getting attacked by Hindu extremists in North India- but still we should admire the courage of these Christians who still don’t give up their missionary work for the love of Christ. Christian religion is famous for peace, caring, love and harmony- and we should all be proud of it. And so this Christmas let us unleash these qualities to make the community free of hate, disharmony and violence”

Sr Cecilia Mendonca and Fr Antony Lobo also spoke and delivered the real message of Christmas, and urged everyone to live in peace, love and harmony, thereby make this Christmas season fruitful and meaningful. Also on the occasion a Christmas cake was cut by Dr Daisy Joseph, along with the help from Santa Claus- and cake pieces were distributed among the audience to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ in advance. Msgr Denis Prabhu, Fr Baby Ellickal, MLA J R Lobo, Sr Cecilia Mendonca, and Fr Praveen Martis, among others were felicitated for their gracious presence at the celebrations. Two doctors namely-Dr Ravi Vasuwani and Dr VishalAmin- both of Yenepoya Hospital, who offer their medical services to the Sneha kids and adults were also felicitated for their generosity. Few of the supporting staff of Snehasadan were also felicitated.

A hand written magazine-“Spoorthi” was released on the occasion by Sr Juliana Monis -Superior of Rosa Mystica Convent, following which the energetic and talented Sneha kids enthralled the audience with their mesmerizing dance performances, which received thunderous applaud from the crowd. A remix of Bollywooddance by Yakshitha and team; dance by cute Little stars of Snehasadan; Mime; dances by Prajna and team/Shivaraj and team stole the show. These kids did rock the stage unleashing their hidden talents. The vote of thanks was proposed by Fr Shiju Joseph, while the programme was eloquently compered by Sneha kids- Neha and Shivaraj, and well coordinated by their mentor-Margarete Mathias. Yours Truly of Team Mangaloreanwould like to thank Fr Teji Thomas for his kind words of wisdom where he appreciated and thanked Team Mangalorean/Mangalorean.com for supporting their cause/activities through wide publicity in our portal.

In conclusion, according to Mathew 25:35-36, “For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, ….”, we should know that giving is something done voluntarily. Giving should not be done under compulsion, coercion, duress, or conviction. There are some exceptions, of course. When you do give, you are to give what you have chosen in your heart. Those who take pity on those less fortunate than us are true neighbors and care givers..

Knowing that you have helped make someone else’s life a little brighter and better is a special feeling, and one that will last with you for a long time. And in our world of plenty we can spread a smile of joy. So if you are looking for a way to enhance your act of sharing and giving experience, try giving back now. Let’s give to the less fortunate, ashrams, non-profit organizations, needy families and children, and others a feeling of hope, and make a difference in their lives. And one place you can donate some of your wealth is “Snehasadan” -a St Camillus Care Home, where the Community members are inviting well-wishers and friends to be partners in their endeavors to help the persons living with HIV to live a life of dignity. Open your hearts and give generously to a good cause and make a difference in the lives of these less fortunate. I end this column with thought-provoking words of Mother Teresa:

“If you judge people, you have no time to love them. Not all of us can do great things. But we can do small things with great love. If we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten that we belong to each other. At the end of life we will not be judged by how many diplomas we have received, how much money we have made, how many great things we have done. We will be judged by “I was hungry, and you gave me something to eat, I was naked and you clothed me. I was homeless, and you took me in. I can do things you cannot, you can do things I cannot; together we can do great things. A life not lived for others is not a life. Do not wait for leaders; do it alone, person to person. Yesterday is gone. Tomorrow has not yet come. We have only today. Let us begin.”

Or for more details how you can contribute contact: Snehasadan-St Camillus Care Home, KaikambaPost, Kaikamba-Mangaluru-574151 Ph: 0824-2258119; 2258119; 9448118119; Email : snehasadan05@gmail.com Website : www.snehacharitabletrust.org

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