"The poor will not come to us, we have to go to them"

Dear friends,

I am happy to introduce this new edition of Anuprerona. Beyond the daily activities of Howrah South Point listed here to inform our dear donors, I would like to highlight the effort we are making to maintain the precious legacy of Fr. Laborde. “We must go to the poor because they will not come to us.” It is this certainty that our motto “reaching the unreached” represents. Today we have decided that, not only the HSP staff whose daily work it is, but all the HSP staff without exception, will regularly go into the field to visit families. This includes administrative staff and those who work primarily in an office. We are organizing small teams who will begin the visits in May. Each team commits to meeting the poorest families in slums or tea gardens several times a year. It is so easy to forget about misery and turn a blind eye! It’s so easy to organize its own daily comforts. But it is so gratifying to meet the most deprived and share with them a little joy and hope! The daily joy and love we experience at HSP can only be preserved if we share it. The joy and love experienced at HSP are like the five loaves and two fish of the Gospel. It's not much, but by sharing it we can multiply it.

Lots of love,

Fr. Laurent

Come and welcome the delegation from Howrah South Point, made up by Father Laurent and the three didis (big sisters in Bengali): the HSP administrator and two didis responsible for the EPN (Howrah) and Bakuabari (Jalpaiguri) centers. Former volunteers and friends of the association will be gathering on 3 key dates to meet and discuss the values and projects supported by the association, all in a family atmosphere! A film will be shown and you'll have a great opportunity to ask questions about current projects.

To facilitate the work of the organizers of these events, registration by name is required. Follow the links! 

News

Fondation Day

28th February is an important date for HSP.

Father Laborde's birthday, this date was chosen to be the association's "foundation day".

The homes come together to commemorate the creation of the NGO and the birthday of its founder. It's an opportunity to gather around a commemorative ceremony, to pray together and to enjoy the many beautiful shows prepared by the children (songs, dances, games).

Speeches were also given, both to thank the staff present and to retrace the history of HSP or recall its fundamental values. Adults and children alike enjoyed a simple and convivial day, which allowed everyone to have fun and take acknowledge of the progress made over the decades in the service of the poorest of the poor.

Speech from Léopold Jalais - President of Howrah South Point.

"

Today, together, we celebrate the birthday of our dear Father Laborde.

He lived in Howrah for 55 years. He was a man of God.

What has he done?

He loved us. He loved us so much. He still loves us very much.

First with Elena Di, Devi Di, Theresa Di, Kalpana Di and Deepika Di, and then

with all the Didis, all the Dadas and all the dedicated workers. With them, and the

volunteers, all the members of the governing body and all the donors and well

wishers, they built together a wonderful family.

The family of Howrah South Point.

A family where everyone helps each other, a family who welcomes and

serves the poorest, the ones abandoned by society. A family in which we love

one another. A family, where we smile and where we are happy.

Today, but also tomorrow, all of us have to keep the love in this family, to

make it grow in love. Our world needs so much LOVE.

It is good to remember and to give thanks for the love which is the foundation

of HSP. The love of so many people who give service, “seva”, who share their

money and their talent. The love of God, the love of all those who are in

Heaven and continue with Father Laborde to love each one of us.

“Happy birthday dear Father”."

Festivities and celebrations

As well as the foundation day, the first three months of the year were shaped by other festivities that brightened the day-to-day lives of the children and HSP staff.

The first of these was the Republic Day on 26th January. To mark the occasion, each centre had a very special day. The children marched with music and the Indian flag was raised, sometimes in the presence of special guests (a deputy district magistrate in Jalpaiguri, for example). This was followed by a few speeches on the importance of this commemoration, dances and songs, and finally the distribution of a snack for the children.

We then celebrated Saraswati Puja on 14th February, an Indian festival in honour of Saraswati, the goddess of knowledge, art and music. The centers set up altars to pay homage to this goddess, with various offerings and prayers. Children, for example, left notebooks to ask for success in their exams. Festive dress and traditional dances were in evidence throughout the day.

We had a very colourful month of March with the Holi party! All the centres had a great day, and it was a really good time. The programme included colourful battles, dancing, games and sweets! The children were always delighted to colour themselves from head to toe!

Finally, we ended March with Easter day. This was an opportunity for the Howrah centers to get together at Ashaneer. The children played games together and went on a treasure hunt to find the chocolates and sweets hidden in the center's garden. Just below, in the center of Bakuabari, children have made Easter eggs of all sizes by hand.

The annual sports event

Every year, the heart of HSP shines with the organisation of the annual sports event.

At the end of January, with winter really hitting the region, this cultural and sporting day brought us together in a spirit of friendship, sharing and joy.

For the occasion, HSP offers a multitude of sports and challenges, ranging from the more traditional such as sack races and relays to the more improbable such as the needle game (which consists of putting on a needle as quickly as possible and getting to a given point through a crazy race). The children all took part enthusiastically, and relished the opportunity to develop their team spirit and taste for sporting effort.

Creativity was also in the spotlight: the children showed their imagination and creativity to come up with some superb dances, with themes and costumes each more colorful and imaginative than the last. The idea is to come to the event "as you like".

In Howrah, we celebrated this event with the Baksara and EPN centers. All the students in classes V to X, along with their teachers, were involved and took part in a wide range of funs and games. The children went beyond their limits to give the best of themselves, putting on a marvelous dance performance and a march past practice that required rhythm and synchronization!

In Jalpaiguri, Manus Domini hosted the sports event. Parents were invited to take part in a number of activities with the children, including the "bomb blast" game and the sack race. A great opportunity to develop closer links with parents.

Father Laurent was also in Jalpaiguri this year to enjoy the day.

A football match was played with all the children, including those with disabilities. It was a great game that allowed everyone to play according to their abilities, and to experience team spirit and solidarity. The atmosphere was warm and friendly, with lots of smiles on everyone's faces.

At the end of the day, certificates and medals were awarded in recognition of everyone's efforts and achievements. Everyone received individual recognition for their enthusiasm and participation. The day ended with a moment of sharing over delicious dishes prepared for the occasion.

An event that transmits great values and creates wonderful memories. We were pleased to be able to organise it.

Works at HSP

It's now the time to thank the generosity of our donors and to highlight the work done this quarter and the work in progress.

Thanks to Terre Des Hommes Alsace and TDHA Youth for having made it possible for the Bakuabari center to obtain a new bus to make it easier for the children and staff to get around, mainly to go to school easier. The bus is now ready. It was made with the greatest care, from the purchase of the chassis to the final coat of paint, as shown by the photos.

Thanks to TDHA and COMGEST for having built a new water tower in Bakuabari. A vital donation for this center, where access to water is not always easy and where the old water tower was becoming a danger with a huge crack.

Meanwhile, the Alibaba and you association has also provided us with a great service by donating a new Toto to the Mogradangi centre. This will make the children's daily journeys to school and occasional but important trips to hospital and transport essentials commodities to Shikarpur school much easier. All the centers in Jalpaiguri now have their own Toto.

During his stay at our centers, Jean-Marie Grillon saw that water run-off had caused the collapse of a wall at Jordighi. All the surrounding buildings (offices, kitchens) were also affected and threatened to collapse. He and his association Alibaba and you supported the reconstruction work.

Thanks to an online fundraising campaign (Credofunding) and the generosity of several donors, significant funds have been received to renovate the boys' dormitories at Baksara. Extensive work will begin very soon. A more detailed article on this subject is available below.

Thanks again to all who have made these projects possible!

HSP family, donors and friends

The end of winter and the Indian spring are periods when the weather is fine.

It's a good time for HSP friends to visit.

We were very happy to welcome Giuliano Minisini and Jean-Marie Grillon (Alibaba), two loyal friends and donors who come to see us regularly. In particular, they are both donors of the 'After 10' project, which helps finance our young people's studies once they have completed class 10. Alibaba came with a young Swiss man, giving him the opportunity to discover the life of young people of his own age in India.

They have now returned to Switzerland. We'd like to thank them for coming and look forward to seeing them again!

We were also pleased to welcome Pascale, a long-standing friend of HSP who spent two months with us in Jalpaigury.

As she does every time she visits, this was an opportunity for her to spend time in our physiotherapy centers, advising and training our staff. We always need her valuable experience and knowledge as a physiotherapist.

Pierre Jacot, nephew of Pierre Joseph (a friend of Father Laborde) and a long-standing friend of HSP, was also kind enough to visit us for a few days.

Finally, we were delighted to see two former MEP volunteers: Alice and Gabrielle. On holiday in India, they spent a week in Lalkutti and were able to visit the Howrah centers to see the young people and staff with whom they had lived for a year.

MEP volunteers comings and goings

The start of 2024 marks a period of change for the French MEP volunteers.

We had to say goodbye to Hortense, volunteer in Baksara and with SMCS, who left in January after 1 year with HSP. Marie, volunteer in Ashaneer and at the office, also left us in March after more than a year with us.

We wish them all the best on their return to France and thank them very much for their presence, help and service!

As people leave, new people arrive... we recently welcomed 3 new volunteers! Rose and Jean-Baptiste, a young couple who are respectively a teacher and an engineer, arrived at the Ashaneer center in January. Jean-Baptiste is taking over Marie's position in the office, while Rose is working on education and schools.

We also welcome Remy, who recently graduated from business school and arrived in Howrah in February. He has settled in Baksara for a social work assignment.

These new arrivals are always festive moments for the children, the didis and the dadas, who give these new volunteers such a warm welcome.

After 10 news:

The end of February marks the end of the school year, and with it the 'Madhyamik' exam for class 10.

At the end of this class, our young people must leave our homes. Each center says goodbye to them with dancing, singing and gifts.

However, their departure does not necessarily mean the end of the HSP adventure; we are not really leaving them, because thanks to the after 10 program we continue to keep in touch with some of them and offer them financial support for their studies. Some of the boys are already interested in studying computer science.

In total, almost 20 students left our homes last February after many years with us.

At Howrah, their departure was an opportunity to offer them an outdoor activity: they went with the French volunteers to spend a day at the "Eco park" in Kolkata, where they were able to see reproductions of the 7 wonders of the world. Some of them were leaving Howrah for the first time and were delighted by the experience!

Finally, during the last GB meeting (Governing Body), we were able to approve an extension of the After 10 project: we are going to offer to young female students who do not have a healthy living environment at home (violence, alcohol, traffic, etc.) to live at Pushpa home in the center of Ashaneer so that they can continue their studies (nursing, teaching, etc.). In the same spirit, some boys in Jalpaiguri could stay in Joridighi center to continue their studies in peace.

Events of the quarter

• On Saturday 3rd February, a bus from Ashaneer took most of the Howrah staff to the beautiful ICOD center run by Brother Gaston. Brother Gaston is a consecrated lay priest from the Prado, nurse, from the same congregation as Father Laborde. He came to join Father Laborde in the slum of Pilkhana. He founded more than fifteen NGOs in Calcutta to care for the poor and disabled. It was an opportunity to forge links between our two associations over a superb picnic and an festive afternoon! The new volunteers even had to dance a french rock and one macarena!

   

• In the unusual category, the Jordighi boys caught a spectacular fish that they'll be able to claim as their own for a long time to come! See the photos!

   

• With the intention of refocusing on HSP's core values of helping the poorest of the poor, we are pleased to announce the opening of a new non-formal school in the slum of Sultanpur. It's been a great success, with numbers rising from 10 children to 50 in just 1 week! A more detailed article on this subject can be found at the end of the newsletter.

• We are very proud to celebrate another victory for HSP: 3 boys (2 bilateral club feet and one right club foot) and a girl from the Jalpaiguri centers have recently under gone successful operations and will gradually be able to start walking, or are already walking with crutches and calipers!

• We were pleased to celebrate the wedding of 2 HSP members from the EPN center in Howrah: Pinku and Priyanka. They got married on 18th February surrounded by their families and many HSP members. We wish them all the best!

• We also celebrated the Indian wedding of the two new French volunteers, Rose and Jean-Baptiste. Although they have already been married in France since August 2023, they had no choice but to be "remarried" Indian-style in Ashaneer. It was an opportunity for them to take a further step in their integration into HSP.

   

• We regret to announce 2 recent deaths. Firstly, father P.C. Matthew, SJ, a friend of Father Laborde and especially a Jesuit priest who had come to put his experience at the service of the poor and who helped Father Laborde a lot with the administration of HSP. He passed away on 11th February at the age of 87 after 67 years of religious life. His funeral took place 2 days later in the presence of Archbishop Thomas and all the priests and religious of the Archdiocese of Calcutta. Jesuits were also present to surround the man who was principal of St Xavier's College for 14 years.

  We also regret the loss of Netra Sherpa, who has spent all his life in HSP different centers. He passed away on 16th March at the age of 37. Our thoughts are with his wife and family, and our thoughts are with them at this time of grief. HSP cries for one of his own.

Video

HSP in January, February and March

A leaflet introducing HSP and its key activities has been produced. If you would like to print it, consult it or distribute it, you can download it here.

Portrait

Archana di

Head of the SMCS program

"The poor won't come to us, we have to go to them."

If one person embodies this phrase dear to Father Laborde, it is Archana Di. Aged 48, she is married with two children. She joined HSP's SMCS (Save Motherhood and Child Survival) program in March 2019, and took over the responsibility in April 2023. Together with 5 SMCS employees, she organizes visits to the shantytowns in pairs, provides medical monitoring and distributes food rations to the families, and coordinates the administrative follow-up to these visits.

HSP's main health program, the SMCS unit provides social assistance to pregnant women, mothers and babies in the shantytowns. The 4 shantytowns of Moukhali, Lalkhuti, Baksara and Coal Depo are divided into sectors, and the Didis ("big sister" in Bengali) visit each of these sectors in pairs to make as many visits as possible, as regularly as possible.

They intervene in a few essential aspects:

- Medical baby monitoring : each beneficiary has a card on which weight and BMI monitoring curves, vaccinations and observations are registered.

- Pregnancy monitoring : pregnant women are also medically monitored and are advised to go to hospital for childbirth.

- Monthly distribution of food rations to each family;

- Running awareness workshops in the slums on topics such as nutrition, women's health, the use of screens and hygiene...;

- Psychological and human support: the didis spend time meeting the mothers in their homes, taking an interest in them and their stories, and giving them sympathetic advice. Sometimes they even take the children to hospital.

And because Howrah South Point is fighting poverty on a global scale, the SMCS didis are also involved in the work sessions because of their deep knowledge of the shantytowns and their local vision of poverty: they can refer certain children to HSP homes, take babies with disabilities to physiotherapy or psychotherapy centers, or suggest the creation of new non-formal schools in areas where access to education is practically impossible.

As you can imagine, Archana is passionate about her work. Her involvement is reflected in her thirst for learning and her constant search for innovative ideas to help mothers and babies in the slums as best she can.

Hiranmoy Murmu

Child from Baksara home

Hiranmoy Murmu is a 14-year-old boy living in the Bakasra home. He comes from Asansol, a town nearly 200 km away.

When he was 7, his father left home, leaving him alone with his mother and grandfather. Hiranmoy's mother, Barnali, was a domestic worker. On her own, she was struggling to provide for her family.

It was thanks to word of mouth that she heard about HSP and applied for a place for her son. Hiranmoy has now been in our home in Baksara for 3 years.

Contrary to other children, he was lucky enough to be able to attend primary school in his village and is now a pupil in formal class VIII.

Here, he receives shelter and food, as well as access to medical care and entertainment. He says he's happy to be here, and enjoys playing sport (especially football), dancing and singing. In class, he is a serious student who enjoys studying science and English.

Cheerful by nature, he always has a smile on his face and enjoys sharing time with his friends.

His goal is to become defence personnel and work in the army. We hope that he will be able to fulfil his dream, and we sincerely hope that HSP will be able to provide him with everything he needs.

Thank you all for your support, we are always in great need of it, whether spiritual or financial!

If you would like to help us financially, please know that :

-There are no small donations!

-There is an income tax reduction equal to 66% of the amount paid, up to a limit of 20% of taxable income.

Thank you in advance for your generosity, which will benefit the children, young and old, of HSP.