Dear Dehonian Missionary Family! Thanks to you, we did it again - together, we raised the funds needed for the long-awaited "House of Hope for Infants" to be built in Chad.
When Sister Ewa Milanowska, a Franciscan Sister of the Suffering serving in Chad, approached the Secretariat for Foreign Missions a few months ago about a project to build a "House of Hope for Infants," the question was not: "Will we?", but: "When do we start?".
The mission is home to many orphans, but also children abandoned by their parents. Most often they live with their grandparents and uncles. However, they do not go to school. Their only job is to herd cows... The increasing number of newborns whose mothers were dying in childbirth was the impetus for the Franciscan Sisters to begin feeding babies milk at the health center. News of the program quickly crossed the borders of the mission, and today caregivers of orphans living up to 100 kilometers from Baikoro seek help from the missionaries.
In early 2022, the Franciscan Sisters opened a new health clinic in Baikoro. Its construction was also made possible by Donors from the Dehonian Missionary Family. However, the increasing number of non-mission patients has created a new problem – lack of enough rooms in the center to keep patients for several days of observation.
During the examination, we often find that the babies are sick and require treatment and observation for several days. However, we cannot provide them with a stay due to lack of space. The family is forced to return home and come to us again after 12 days, because the baby requires a check-up or a change of medication. In fact, upon their return, treatment usually has to be started from scratch - explained the missionary from Chad in the letter written to us few months ago.
Sisters also notice a great need to educate the caregivers on how to care for a newborn baby. Busy women often ignore sickness symptoms such as fever, lack of appetite or lethargy, which are indicators of developing diseases. The House of Hope for Infants, which which is being built next to the existing clinic, will be the answer. Ultimately, the new building will be able to accommodate up to 100 people.
Construction work as of the closing date of the fundraising campain (04.28.2025) is still in progress, so we will be sure to report on its completion. In the meantime, to your hands we present a letter addressed to our entire Missionary Family by Sister Ewa Milanowska, a missionary from Chad responsible for this project.
Baikoro, April 28, 2025
Pax et bonum!
With a grateful heart, I thank our Donors for their commitment to building the "House of Hope for Infants" at the mission in Chad, Mbaikoro village. I am always moved by the generosity of our compatriots, in which love for others, especially the poor, is revealed. In the end, we made two buildings out of one, but this did not increase our costs. The change arose from the need to put a family in place to take care of the clinic, that is, the children with caregivers who will stay here and the grounds. The work is moving along fairly smoothly, as you can see in the photos...
The finishing touches take the most time, you probably experience this yourself too. I am happy with the team that is working on our construction, they try to do everything to the best of their ability!
Know that we are very grateful to you for every penny you have donated. We also remember about you in our prayers presented to the Lord. I remind you that every month there is a Mass celebrated in your intention, dear Donors.
I wish you, along with the entire team working at the Health Center, a fruitful Paschal season.
Sr. Ewa Milanowska
Franciscan
Learn more about the project Building a House of Hope for Infants in Chad.
