UniSalesiano’s Mission Volunteering project delivers 5 tons of food to Indigenous villages

(MissionNewswire) The Salesian university UniSalesiano’s Mission Volunteering project recently went on a mission trip to the Meruri and São Marcos villages in the Brazilian state of Mato Grosso. Close to 30 people went on the trip to deliver five tons of packages of pasta and tomato sauce to the Boe-Bororo and Xavante Indigenous people in these villages. The food had been collected by Salesian Institute Dom Luiz Lasagna during the food collection campaign event that is part of the Salesian Games initiative.

According to one of the project organizers, Professor Juliana Mitidiero, other initiatives focused on health, education and environment. “Our objective is to strengthen the ties between the academic community and cultural diversity. It is a change seen and experienced by all who participate in this project.”

Franco Garcia, educational coordinator, explained this particular food donation. “The teams that had participated in the Salesian Games worked hard for a month to get the most donations from the entire school community and also from the city of Araçatuba.”

José Valentim da Silva Filho, pastoral care coordinator, reported that the pasta and tomato sauce food kits provided for many Indigenous communities in Mato Grosso. “It was a great campaign. This is the result of the heart of solidarity, which is the heart of the Salesian student.”

Salesian missionaries in Brazil provide education, workforce development, and social services throughout the country and specifically focus on children with disabilities within several programs. Missionaries help to meet the basic needs of poor youth, including street children, and provide them with an education and life skills to gain employment, break the cycle of poverty, and lead productive lives.

According to the World Bank, the COVID-19 pandemic has had a devastating impact on Brazil with poverty tripling in 2021. Nearly 17 million people fell into poverty in the first quarter of the year and the poverty rate now is higher than it was a decade ago. Researchers estimate that 12.8 percent of Brazil’s population, some 27 million people, are now living below the poverty line.

Sources:

ANS Photo (usage permissions and guidelines must be requested from ANS)

ANS – Brazil – “Mission Volunteering,” traveling to Mato Grosso, brings food donations and solidarity to indigenous peoples

Salesian Missions – Brazil

World Bank – Brazil