“ I am not angry at God or anyone else for being afflicted with leprosy.”

Meet John Ponnya.

John was born in Tirunelveli, India and he and his three brothers and three sisters were brought up on a farm. As the eldest of the siblings, it fell to him to work on the farm. Going to school was not an option. His father was a rice farmer and things were not easy. He became an important part of the farm operation as he learned how to drive at an early age.

Around the time he was thirty, he started experiencing health problems and inexplicably lost a finger. After several trips to the doctor, it was discovered that John had contracted leprosy, a dreaded disease. He was immediately abandoned and asked to leave the house. He was devastated and felt like an outcast, a feeling that he carries with him to this day.

Leprosy is a contagious disease that affects the skin, mucous membranes, and nerves, causing discoloration and lumps on the skin and, in severe cases, disfigurement and deformities.

And so began a life of wandering, searching for a place to call home.  He moved to Kerala where he had no choice but to beg as those affected by leprosy were shunned, making employment all but impossible. His travels took him to Alappi, followed by Trivandrum and then Marthandam. Very often, he and others affected by leprosy ended up sleeping on railway platforms, catching the attention of local police. All the while, his leprosy progressed in severity making life all that more difficult.

It was in Nagercoil, where he shared a railway platform with many others, that a life changing event was about to unfold. One member of the group, a proclaimed leader of sorts, petitioned the government ( unsuccessfully ) for some kind of shelter for the group who simply could not find or afford a home. A local priest,  recognized their plight. He had a friend in the neighboring town of Kanyakumari. Her name was Sister Stella, a member of the Daughter’s of Mary at Stella Maris Convent, a Roman Catholic congregation committed to the plight of the poor and disadvantaged.

Sister Stella , the superior and Sister Archana Das were the driving forces behind this initiative.

The Sisters owned a parcel of land adjacent to their convent and offered the land as a place to start a small community for people with leprosy. Small thatched homes were constructed later with the hands of local youths and the Sisters themselves. These were replaced years later by concrete structures supplied by the government. John and his wife, Ayasha have lived there for the past twenty two years. They raised four children , two of whom  are deceased.

Ayasha operates a small convenience store which serves only the residents of the immediate community.

“ My dream is for the business to grow to a point where I don’t have to beg any more.”

Despite a life time of challenges, John is remarkably upbeat. He has a gleam in his eyes and laughs easily. His faith is unshakeable and he knows that some day his suffering will end and that the good Lord will be there to accept him when that time comes.

John did not choose leprosy. Leprosy chose John. He has done his best.

The leprosy community is badly in need of water taps. There are 60 homes and only 10 outdoor water taps to supply all the water required for cooking, cleaning and bathing. We are conducting a fundraising campaign to raise the money required to install 50 new taps. The taps are $100 each. To donate please go to:

Supporting The Daughters of Mary in India

Running. Good for the heart and the soul

“ I am so blessed. I live in a wonderful place. I love what I do. I have a great partner.”

Meet Lena MacDonald

Lena was born in Sydney Forks, Cape Breton. Her father was a school bus driver and her mother worked for the telephone company. In the early years, she and her brother had to be driven everywhere because they lived outside of the city. Freedom showed up for Lena at the age of ten when new sidewalks were installed.

She loved taking part in sports at school. A big thrill in junior high was playing basketball. It was doubly so as she now had a uniform with matching socks!

With grade twelve looming on the horizon, she turned her thoughts to university. She didn’t have a clue what she would take but sciences and math were two subjects that she enjoyed.  Her uncle suggested that with all of the new medical advances, the health care field might be worth pursuing. A visit to her school guidance counsellor sealed the deal, in an odd sort of way. She was told that the nursing program was very difficult…. maybe even too difficult.  Lena decided to prove to the counsellor, and herself, that she had the ability and determination to take up the challenge.

Her four years at St.F.X. were not easy. The work load was very heavy, leaving little or no time for extracurricular activity or even a part time job. And there was added pressure at home as her father was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease.

Nursing jobs were scarce in Nova Scotia and across the country. She and three classmates ended up in the same hospital in Florida. By the time she left, that number had swelled to ten and the institution was dubbed “ The All Canadian Hospital.” While she enjoyed the work and the company of colleauges, as Lena said, “ It wasn’t Cape Breton.”

During this time, her leadership qualities emerged and she was encouraged to become a charge nurse. She moved to Raleigh/Durham , North Carolina. There was a good deal of pressure associated with the work and after a year and a half, she was ready for a change. She contacted St. Martha’s Hospital in Antigonish and in March of 1998, she started work there, first as a casual and then full time in 1999. She worked both Emergency and I.C.U until 2006. During this time, she completed her Masters of Nursing Degree at Dalhousie University and became a nurse practitioner.

Because of her extensive work in I.C.U., she became very interested in cardiac care. She approached the hospital administration about establishing a Heart Health Clinic. “ St. Martha’s was very forward thinking and progressive and agreed to my proposal.” The Heart Health Clinic is for people who have a high risk of having a heart attack or who have had a heart attack or stroke. “ My job as a nurse practitioner is to manage the process for patients who have suffered a heart attack. I am totally hands on with the patients.”

Lena derives great satisfaction from her work. “ It is a privilege to be able to help people and improve the quality of their lives. I hope to be able to continue this work for the remainder of my career.”

Of course, exercise is an important aspect in everyone’s health and well being and Lena “ practices what she preaches.” Around seven years ago, she took a “ learn to Run 5K “ class as part of the hospital’s Wellness Initiative For Staff. She fell in love with running and has completed 5 half marathons. “ Running clears your head. The fresh air is invigorating and you get to see nature unfold in front of you.”

She and her partner of 19 years are outdoors people and can be found four wheeling or snowmobiling on Brown’s Mountain or Eigg Mountain where they enjoy the solitude of nature.

February is Heart Health month and Lena encourages anyone who may be at risk to come and have a “ heart to heart” conversation with her.

“ My dream is to be a small business owner. I would love to be self sufficient.”

Meet B. Krishnamma.

Krishnamma was born in the small Indian village of Chowtakunta Palli. She has two sisters and two brothers. Her father was a farmer who died in 2016. Because there were so many mouths to feed, she and her siblings could not go to school. Every set of hands on the farm was important. Hard work is all that she has known since she was a child.

She married and she and her husband, B Anjaneyulu , have two adult sons. Her husband has not been able to work for some time now because of bad knees. Krishnamma is a landless farmer, working as a labourer for other farmers. Her income is important to the family but she is quick to point out that her son, Prakash is the major bread winner in the family. He drives a tractor and his income is crucial to the family’s well being. Their other son is in the army.

She has been a member of a Self Help Group ( SHG ) for close to 15 years. “Many small villages in rural India are faced with problems of poverty, illiteracy, lack of skills and  poor health care. These are problems that cannot be attacked individually but can be better solved through group efforts. Self help groups have become the vehicle of change for the poor and the marginalized.” ( VOICE 2008 ).

People are born to be leaders and the community recognized early on that Krishnamma was the best person to give a voice to the community. For many years, she held the position as leader of the village SHG.

Just over a year ago, nine landless women formed a group with the assistance of MAS. MAS is an organization dedicated to providing technical expertise and education to groups like the landless women farmers. It was no surprise that Krishnamma was elected as group leader of Kanaka Durga Sakthi Sangham. They meet on the 23^rd. of each month to discuss challenges and look for solutions. They begin their meetings with a song about empowerment. The lyrics are powerful :  “ There is light in our lives. All together we can defeat poverty. We must have unity.” Each member of the group contributes 50 rupees a month and this money is used to loan money to the poorest of the poor in the group when the need arises.

As leader of the group, Krishnamma, feels that she has gained a sense of empowerment. “ While we may be poor financially, we all feel mentally stronger and more confident due to the interventions of MAS. One of the most important things that MAS has done is to make our group aware of other programs that we can access through various levels of government. And being able to loan money to ourselves, has been the biggest change in our lives.”

Krishnamma realizes that there is a long way to go before she and other members of the group can improve their lot in life but she is confident that this will come in time. As mentioned before, hard work and determination define Krishnamma and her neighbors.

Her neighbors and friends speak about her glowingly. “ She is our leader. She is a good listener and a good speaker. She has picked up a lot of knowledge over the years which she shares with us. “ They dream some day of collectively owning their own enterprise like a flour mill.

When that day comes and they cut the ribbon to officially launch their business, don’t be surprised to see Krishnamma holding the scissors. She wasn’t able to go to school but she has been a student her entire life.

Her greatest gift to her village is her leadership.

“ Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, concerned citizens can change the world.” Margaret Mead