‘Gruppo India’: Solidarity worldwide for one human family
By Francesca Sabatinelli and Federico Piana
By providing both support and material assistance on the ground, the Charity’s work “breathes with two lungs.” Sister Mary Stephanos, Provincial Superior for Syria and Lebanon of the Sisters of Charity of St. Antida, highlights the essential support provided by Gruppo India for children in difficult situations in Sudan, South Sudan, Ethiopia, Egypt, Syria, and Lebanon. The organization plays a crucial role in supporting the homeless, the disabled, and poor people without access to food.
Fr Mario Pesce’s project
Founded by Jesuit Fr Mario Pesce, Gruppo India has been committed to this mission since 1980.
It all started when Fr Pesce involved some of his students from a Jesuit school in Rome, in a trip to India. Ever since, the organization has continued to honour Fr Pesce’s commitment to Christian solidarity by assisting individuals and families.
It has grown enormously and today it supports thousands of children worldwide.
Marco Petrini, one of the Jesuit priest’s former students, is the current president of Gruppo India. He talks about the organization’s establishment and its mission to foster love for those less fortunate.
Network of generosity
The "adoption scholarship" initiative, which began in 1980, extends its reach to India and to 30 other countries. With a monthly contribution of 16 euros, children are given the opportunity to attend school from primary school right up to high school.
Gruppo India acts as an intermediary, collecting and sending funds to partner religious institutions, such as Jesuits, Sisters of Charity of St. Antida, Canossians, and Maestre Pie Venerini, who are engaged in educational, healthcare, developmental, water, and electricity supply initiatives.
The tireless efforts of the Sisters
Luisa Marolla, a retired paediatrician and a regular donor for 40 years, provides firsthand witness to Gruppo India's activities.
She shares her appreciation for the dedication of the Sisters working alongside single women, children, the elderly, AIDS patients, and even the untouchables. The Sisters work tirelessly, often covering long distances on foot or by scooter, providing immediate medical support through house-to-house visits and mobile clinics, irrespective of the recipients' religious affiliations.
Charity at Christmas
A scholarship can provide a child in a developing country with the right to education, helping them escape exploitation and receive a substantial and dignified meal.
Donations can support visually impaired children in India, preventing them from experiencing abandonment and marginalization.
Contributions can also bring smiles through microcredit, enabling groups of women to start production activities or by constructing wells, tanks, and brick houses with essential amenities to ensure shelter and fight disease.
Sixteen euros a month can change the life of a child or an entire village.
Petrini concludes by highlighting the joy of witnessing communities becoming self-sufficient over the years, thanks to the contributions facilitated by Gruppo India. The organization aims not only to respond to emergencies but to be attentive to the needs of neighbours, both near and far, embodying the essence of charity in its spiritual sense.
Christmas, according to Petrini, is truly about paying attention to our brothers and sisters, and practicing charity in its fullest sense.
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