Flooding has killed more than 300 people in the region and close to 28,000 have needed to be rescued, according to India’s National Disaster Response Force. The flooding knocked out government services, stopped public transportation, damaged roads and left people stranded. As the flood water begins to recede, relief efforts are already underway. India’s National Crisis Management Committee recently reported that nearly 90 percent of the city has power, buses are running again and many schools are starting to reopen.

Salesian missionaries living and working in the region are dealing with the damage to their own facilities while responding to the situation with aid for the flood victims, many who have lost everything. Several Salesian houses situated in the worst hit areas were badly affected and the children living in them had to be moved to safety. Some older buildings and walls around Salesian compounds have collapsed due to erosion caused by the flooding.

Many of the children in the damaged Salesian houses lost the few possessions they had including clothing, bedding, pillows and blankets as well as valuable school supplies such as books and stationary. Also lost to the flood damage were major kitchen appliances, televisions and DVD players in the houses. At this point, the primary concern for Salesian staff is making sure the children remain safe and have their basic needs met including food, clothing and adequate shelter.

A Don Bosco Flood Relief Services team has been organized under the direction of Salesian Father Johnson, Father Mani Lazar and Father Jesumanickam and has been reaching out to hundreds of people in need. In addition, more than 100 youth volunteers with bikes have been aiding villages that are inaccessible due to flooded and collapsed roadways. For those in the surrounding communities of Chennai whose homes could not be repaired right away, Salesian missionaries and students have relocated villagers, mostly women and children, to safety by transporting them by boat to local church compounds and state school buildings. Missionaries have also set up temporary camps to provide shelter to those in need. In total, Salesian missionaries have been able to assist and provide supplies to close to 60 villages.

“Salesian missionaries were able to immediately assess the situation on the ground and move into action providing assistance and relief,” says Father Mark Hyde, executive director of Salesian Missions, the U.S development arm of the Salesians of Don Bosco. “Our programs are helping to provide food, clothing and shelter to those in need and our missionaries will remain in Chennai through the long recovery process helping the many affected families.”

With the support of students, teachers and volunteers, Salesian missionaries have distributed more than 8,000 packets of cooked food and candles as well as clothing and other supplies to families in communities and villages in the area. Looking ahead to the weeks and months to come, missionaries plan to repair their facilities and replace lost items while continuing to help local families in need.

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Sources:

ANS – India – Don Bosco Flood Relief continues

ANS – India – The Flood Relief works of the Salesians in the affected areas

CNN – Relief effort underway for flood-ravaged Chennai in India

The post INDIA: Salesian Missionaries are Providing Relief and Assistance to Those Affected by Intense Flooding first appeared on MissionNewswire.

The piece reported that 19-year-old Derontae Mason, who once slept in homeless shelters and on school playgrounds, is now headed to college thanks to the Don Bosco Cristo Rey High School in Takoma Park, Maryland, a Catholic college preparatory school for low-income teens.

In the piece, Mason says, “I had many obstacles that came across my way and made me want to be like, just forget it, throw in the towel you know? But the teachers, the staff, friends, family they all pulled together with Don Bosco and helped me overcome those obstacles.”

Mason, the piece noted, is part of Don Bosco’s first graduating class of 70 students, all of whom have already been accepted to various colleges and universities.

The CNN piece detailed early domestic problems and personal conflicts that forced Mason on to the streets when he was 15 years old. As one of six children being raised by a single mom with little money, he was in and out of homeless shelters. CNN reported that it was a child advocate that first alerted Mason’s mother to Don Bosco, which the piece notes is one of 24 schools in the country that use the Cristo Rey model: a combination of employment and academics.

Students, reporter Lazo reports, must work at one of the school’s designated job partners. The students are paid when the employer makes a financial contribution to the school.

Shafran explains to Lazo, “They’re picking up the culture of that corporate environment. They see the people that are there, and they’re picking up some great skills of interaction that’s helping to mold them and their own character.”

The piece goes on to say that Don Bosco went even further for Mason and helped him to arrange housing so he wouldn’t have to sleep on the streets. Families of other students at the school agreed on a rotation to let Mason stay in their homes.

Also in the piece, it says that high school was not always easy for Mason and that in his junior year one of his close friends was killed in a drive-by shooting. His teachers, the piece explained, kept prodding him to stay on track. CNN reports that Mason is now bound for Potomac State college in West Virginia on a scholarship with his sights set on becoming a pediatrician.

The article explains that for Mason this is just the beginning. Mason, a determined, soft-spoken young man, told reporter Lazo how much he will always cherish his four years at the high school. “I walk away from Don Bosco knowing I have people who care about me, more determination, perseverance than I can ever imagine.”

See to the original CNN piece: High School Gets Teen off Streets and into College.

The post CNN Piece Tells Story of How Don Bosco Cristo Rey High School Helped Teen Get Off the Streets, Into College first appeared on MissionNewswire.