THANK YOU! Your kindness in 2020 has helped give poor and struggling Christian communities the support and hope they need in order to survive these trying times.
The global COVID-19 pandemic; the explosion in Beirut, Lebanon in August 2020 and its aftermath; and intense conflict in the Tigray region of Ethiopia… These are examples of crises currently afflicting the regions where we work, and they have deeply impacted the poorest of the poor and vulnerable Christian communities.
Your great generosity over the past year has helped keep these families afloat. Thank you for your continual support as we adapt our program to serve these families living in their new realities.
As a faithful donor of CNEWA Canada, you are an integral part of our mission. Thank you for giving of yourself, in whatever way you can, to make life better for our brothers and sisters in need. Your help and prayers empower us to do our vital work throughout the world.
Northeast Africa
The Northeast African nations of Egypt, Eritrea and Ethiopia face formidable challenges — economic, environmental, political and social. Poverty, fear of the coronavirus, drought and other forms of climatic change are taking serious tolls on the most vulnerable. Also, conflict in the drought-ridden Tigray region of Ethiopia has increased the needs of the poor.
CNEWA’s primary partners in the region are the Coptic, Eritrean and Ethiopian Catholic churches. Some of the projects you helped to support are:
• Ethiopia: Training low-income women in vocational skills such as food preparation, sewing and hairdressing in the town of Meki.
• Egypt: Forming a generation of future priests at St. Leo the Great Coptic Catholic Seminary.
• Ethiopia: Feeding poor, hungry families and children with essential food in the Eparchy (Diocese) of Adigrat in the Tigray region.
Eastern Europe
CNEWA works in Ukraine, Armenia and Georgia — countries still struggling from years of oppression, war and political instability. Also, Russia’s ongoing unwelcomed interference in Ukraine and Georgia creates serious economic and social issues. On top of that, the pandemic is amplifying these problems.
Despite these trials, the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, and Armenia and Georgia’s small Catholic communities, continue caring for the displaced, the vulnerable and the marginalized.
Here are some of the projects your kindness helped support through CNEWA Canada:
• Ukraine: Assisting single mothers in Ivano-Frankivisk, who lost their spouse due to war, and supporting their children; by providing psychological and spiritual support.
• Georgia: Providing necessary food through a soup kitchen in Kutaisi serving the poor elderly.
• Armenia: Aiding poor families and elderly widows in Gyumri with at-home care and vital food support.
Middle East
Where we serve in the Middle East — Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Palestine and Syria — continues to be a land transformed by years of political strife, war, terrorism, persecution and economic uncertainty. On top of that, the pandemic and the explosion in Beirut have caused further suffering by amplifying these issues.
Your generosity makes it possible for devoted religious sisters, priests and lay people to feed the poor, care for the sick, and find opportunities and solutions for families seeking stability and security.
A few example projects you helped support through CNEWA Canada were:
• Syria: Providing much needed pastoral care and post-traumatic aid to distressed families.
• Iraq: Supporting health care initiatives and clinics for displaced families and the poor.
• Lebanon: Distributing necessary food to more than 6000 extremely poor Lebanese families and refugees.
India
Working with the Syro-Malabar and Syro-Malankara Catholic churches, you help us reach out to the very margins of India, witnessing the Gospel among the poor, the blind, the lame, and the untouchables.
The pandemic has increased poverty and suffering. Also, in recent years, weather patterns have become increasingly dramatic and have generated massive monsoons with devastating effect on the area — washing away soil, livestock and homes.
A few of projects in India you helped to support through CNEWA Canada are:
• Providing care to disadvantaged children, especially girls; including food, medicine and schooling. Some of these kids’ challenges include having HIV/AIDS, intellectual disabilities, blindness and deafness.
• Ensuring clean water for women with physical and intellectual disabilities at “Pieta Bhavan” home in the town of Pothy.
A Message from CNEWA
In thanksgiving, we honour the priests and religious sisters around the world who put their lives at risk every day in service to the poor. They face unimaginable hardships and many have lost their lives due to the pandemic. In India, over 520 priests and religious have died in recent months due to COVID-19. We invite you to include these courageous men and women in your prayers.
