Brave young Mary smiles again because she no longer has a terrible toothache!
The 11-year-old was in agony from an infected molar. But thanks to the Tondo site’s “Zero Cavities” dental program, an oral surgeon patched her up, free of charge!
Dental caries is one of the leading health problems among children in Tondo. Families are not always well informed about the need for good oral hygiene. The parents face so many other challenges, like unemployment and food insecurity – and dental care can start to slip as a priority. “Dental care and practice of good oral hygiene had been the least of the family’s concerns,” writes the Tondo site staff.
Our Lady of Mt. Carmel School has a glorious namesake, but this time last year, the school was anything but beautiful.
The walls were collapsing on rotten timber supports, exposing the students and staff to the elements year-round. They were cold, damp and muddy part of the year and sweltering and dusty the other parts. They are also dark and have poor air quality. The conditions prevented the students from focusing and caused a drop in attendance. In short, big changes needed to be made urgently in order for students to be given the education that they needed and deserved.
Chalice has been partnering with the Fondation Montesinos who run the Pierre Salvatti Orphanage, since 2018. Chalice’s sponsor site is called St Dominique, named for the children’s school, L’Institution Saint Dominique. The school is the meeting point for children who live at the orphanage, under the care of loving staff members and Sisters, and the children in the community who can live with their families.
“The skills training will impact positively on the life of many families at the site.”
These mothers are not just smiling because they’re bedecked with beads, but because they are modeling their popular new designs!
Communities in Ghana have been greatly impacted by shutdowns during the pandemic which closed markets, impacting both incomes and access to food and supplies. Once markets reopened families were eager to start new and better small enterprises and rebuild their families’ finances.
In his years living near our Ternopil site, Yaroslav and his wife have always had their hands full.
Not only do they have a daughter and granddaughter, but he also worked for years as an assistant to the mayor, while his wife is still a Chalice field worker. In her on-time, she looks after sponsored children, and in her off time, she takes care of homeless animals.
Ah, September. The time when parents frantically gather the components of school lunches, children beg for the coolest new backpack, and teachers frantically search for the right books for their classrooms.
With all the business that comes with going back to school, sponsoring a child might not be the first thing on your mind. But we’re here today with a few reasons why incorporating giving into your school year is a good idea.
Barikisu is no stranger to being strong. As a cancer survivor who lost her father at a young age, resilience is all she knows.
Barikisu
She and her siblings were raised by her mother near our Wa site in Ghana. After her father passed away, she was blessed by the support of a wonderful Chalice sponsor.
But soon, tragedy struck.
As a young teenager, Barikisu was diagnosed with cancer. Her only option was to head to Accra, Ghana’s capital, for treatment – 700 kilometres away.
“This was the most difficult moment for her family,” writes Abraham, Wa’s site director, “because the cost of travelling coupled with the treatment, feeding and accommodation was beyond the strength of her mother.”
But where God has a will, God gives a way.
Barikisu and her mother applied for support through Chalice’s critical needs fund. And when we say Chalice supporters showed up, we mean they really showed up.
With the support of our donors, the cost of treatment was completely covered. To top it all off, her sponsor personally covered the travel expenses, cost of food, and some of the medical bills.
Thanks to this incredible generosity, Barikisu has recovered from cancer, and is back where she belongs: the classroom.
From there, she plans to channel her experience in hospital into her new goal: becoming a nurse and helping people like her.
It’s a beautiful full-circle moment, isn’t it?
Learn more about helping young people like Barikisu through our critical needs fund!
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On top of costly health treatments and trouble finding work, Natalya faced a problem familiar to many parents: a broken gas stove.
Her family had a wood stove to spare, but it wasn’t good enough.
In comparison to a gas stove, a wood stove is much slower, taking longer to start a fire. Natalya was forced to get up earlier, and didn’t even have enough time to cook breakfast before her children woke up.
Taking a leaf out of St. Therese’s Little Way, Kristin McCarthy has launched a small fundraiser with big heart.
Klaire (left) and her mother, Kristin (right), holding a handmade Ukrainian flag
The owner of Kristin McCarthy Designs in Rockwood, Ontario, Kristin has begun making small, woollen Ukrainian flags. She’s selling them and donating the money to a special cause: Chalice’s sites in Ukraine.
