Angadikadavu, Feb 5, 2022: A homeless mother with two children received a new house, thanks to the volunteers of Don Bosco Arts and Science College at Angadikadavu in Kerala’s Kannur district.

The project began when Lucy George, a Salesian cooperator, heard during a bus journey Jessy talk about her problems of being homeless.

George mentioned this to the students at Don Bosco Arts and Science College, who along with their teachers and management took up the challenge of constructing a house.

The 600-square-feet house has two bedrooms, a kitchen, a living room and a work area. The cost was provided for by donations from students, staff, management and well-wishers. It is the fourth house constructed by the college’s volunteers, reports Salesians Mission “Newswire.”

“This was a wonderful opportunity for students to pay it forward and help a family in need,” said Father Gus Baek, director of Salesian Missions, the U.S. development arm of the Salesians of Don Bosco. “This mother and her two children now have a place to lay their heads at night. They are able to have safety and shelter and hope for a better future.”

Don Bosco Arts and Science College started in 1994, offers pre-degree, undergraduate and postgraduate courses for around 600 students. Since then, the college has added a computer applications academic program and postgraduate programs in communication and journalism and in social work. Undergraduate programs were added in English literature, communications and mathematics. A men’s hostel has also been launched.

Angadikadavu is 53 km northeast of Kannur, a coastal town.

India has the world’s fourth largest economy but more than 22 percent of the country lives in poverty. About 31 percent of the world’s multidimensionally poor children live in India, according to a report by the Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative.

India’s youth face a lack of educational opportunities due to issues of caste, class and gender. Almost 44 percent of the workforce is illiterate and less than 10 percent of the working-age population has completed a secondary education. In addition, many secondary school graduates do not have the knowledge and skills to compete in today’s changing job market.

Source: https://missionnewswire.org/india-family-receives-home-with-help-of-students/