Dear Friends of Mission,
Reasons independent of my will did not permit me to communicate with you earlier. Unfortunately or not, I am still in Greece, since India due to the pandemic remains closed for foreigners.
From here I am coordinating the whole work by online means, until God permits my return.
In general, as you know, the situation in India is tragic. The pandemic has gone out of control. Consecutive lockdowns have hit the economy so hard that far more people are currently dying of starvation. Barely had they managed to recover from last year’s catastrophic cyclone when a bigger one hit West Bengal a few days ago resulting in severe destruction and chaos!
As regards the consequences for our Mission, we praise God for not having human losses except for one of our catechists, Stephen, who was also the village doctor in Damordapur. A big loss for Mission indeed, but the Lord of life and death knows best. We pray for the repose of his soul.
In our orphanages the children are safe as they have been completely isolated since last March. Visits are prohibited and support staff does not even enter the buildings or come into contact with children.
Kassiani is in charge of the girls and Cherubim in charge of the boys; both are in daily contact with me, with excellent cooperation, obedience and a spirit of sacrifice.
As regards finances, I have left Areti in charge; she holds a master’s degree in economics. We took her to the orphanage in 1999 when she was still a little girl, and now she is my right- hand person. Responsibilities have been shared among older girls with a weekly rotating schedule and task sharing.
Since March 2020, e-learning has been introduced in India. This is a problem for hundreds of thousands of poor students who do not have access to the Internet. They cannot afford to buy a computer or a smart phone, especially at a time when it is very difficult for their families to make a living.
In the orphanages the problem has been solved; our children, who attend our own English school, attend their classes every day, and are making progress. However, in the villages, where we have 5 schools with free tuition for about 1500 students in total, it was impossible to provide them with mobile phones and Wi-Fi… I am very sorry that they have lost one year of their studies…
Meals at the Greek Church in Calcutta, with special permit from the police and all the necessary precautions, are being continued because now more than ever these people can survive with a plate of hot food provided by the Mission on a daily basis.
Fortunately, with the help of God, our five clinics in the villages are operating smoothly.
Last year’s cyclone Amfan took lives that terrible night on May 20, leaving behind utter destruction. Even the repairs to our premises have not finished yet as we have to move slowly depending on the revenue from donations. For the last 4 months we have stopped any kind of repairs work. These are difficult times for everyone.
This year’s cyclone completed its disaster in West Bengal by destroying what was left standing.
Fortunately, God took pity on us and only our orphanages and the area around them was left untouched as, all of a sudden, the wind changed direction. Now everyone is talking about a miracle!
Of course, our institutions in the villages where the catastrophe is biblical did not have the same fate. At the end of the lockdown we are planning to see and evaluate the damage caused, which from what we learn is, unfortunately, great.
This is, in short, our news from the Mission. Thanks be to God always!
With earnest appreciation and love in Christ,
Sister Nektaria
