During a recent pastoral visit to India, I was extremely blessed to have many first-hand encounters with direct recipients of CNEWA’s good works. Some of these took place at seminaries, some at child-caring institutions, some at parishes, some at diocesan offices, some at facilities for children and adults with special needs and some with individuals.

The photos here remind me of a special visit with a Dalit woman (an “untouchable”), wife and mother of three children, living in squalor in the village of Podiyattuvila in the Syro-Malankara Archeparchy of Trivandrum. The first photo shows where she lives today. As an untouchable she was not entitled to own anything or to have any benefits or rights. But thanks to her parish priest and in collaboration with CNEWA, God has brought to her family a newfound dignity in being the actual owner of a new home, being built in the second picture.

It is with a sense of gratitude that she invited me to see what was, block by block and bucket by bucket of cement, becoming her home. She, her husband and neighboring helpers and parishioners are the contractors and builders. A humble gift of $1,800 made all this possible. CNEWA is assisting in building five such houses.

Your charity as a donor allows CNEWA to bring such dignity to countless suffering poor in India and many other countries. And perhaps the greatest expression of gratitude from the poor, besides the smiles and the obvious quiet pride, is the promise of prayers.

As you are a cherished member of the CNEWA family, the poor Dalits of India, nourished and sustained by your charitable giving, consider you as part of their family and send you their loving thanks. In that sense, the photos above are now part of your CNEWA family album.

God bless you.
Msgr. John E. Kozar