What began as a food kit program for just five families on the 16th of July in the name of Mother’s Meal program by Claretians under the Hope Society, has very soon become a succour to over 2500 in distress in four countries and will soon be launched in another continent, Uganda in Africa.
The latest and the largest expansion of Mother’s Meal movement, it was in Kerala with a special focus for 1400 families with palliative care patients on 2nd of October, Gandhi Jayanthi. The movement with the collaboration of Distress Management Collective of India (DMCI) was inaugurated by Minister for Revenue and housing in Kerala, E Chandrasekharan in Trivandrum. Separate inauguration was done in every District of the State as the Mother’s Meal Kits were distributed to 100 families from every District.
Launched on 16th of July, the 50th year of Claretian presence in India, by the Patron of Mother’s Meal, Former Supreme Court Judge Justice Kurian Joseph with five families, it was nationally expanded on the 15th of August by providing support to 1000 families in all 36 States and Union Territories of India.
In September is was initiated for 50 families in Macau, China. By the end of the month it was launched in Hong Kong, both by the Claretian Missionaries there focusing on the migrant population from various countries that had lost their jobs and incomes. On the 20h of September Mother’s Meal was started in Nepal which was ravaged by earthquake in 2015 and now by COVID. It was given to 50 families in Chitwan District and for 75 families in Kathamandu, 50 of them from the Budaneelkanda leprosy colony.
Mother’s Meal program for the families under the care of Indian Association of Palliative Care, Kerala, is a joint venture of Hope Society and Distress Management Collective of India. Fr George Kannanthanam, founder of Mother’s Meal and Sujith Kumar, Coordinator for DMCI in Kasargod joined the Minister to hand over the Kits.
Speaking on the occasion Justice Kurian Joseph said that Mother’s Meal is the expression of the over of every mother who would want to see their children have enough to eat. Member of Parliament KJ Alphonse was hopeful that we will find enough of support to extend this program to all families under the palliative care. He thanked the Muthoot and the Manappuram groups forward to support the program in the first month.
Manoj Kumar, who coordinated the program from DMCI, said that Mother’s Meal Kit will be provided for six months as a sustained support to 1400 families, who are selected by the Indian Association of Palliative Care, Kerala Unit (IAPC). 100 most deserving families from each district are selected for this program. Each Kit contains food items worth five hundred rupees, supporting the families to tide through the COVID times.
According to Fr George Kannanthanam, the founder of Mother’s Meal movement, the objective of Mother’s Meal is that no one should die of hunger in the world. According to OXFAM and World Food Program, as many as 12,000 people might die everyday due to COVID induced hunger globally, more than the number of people who will die to COVID disease itself. The target of Mother’s Meal movement is to provide support for a million people over a period of time. The strategy is to create a Family to Family Support between the 50 % of world’s families that can afford to support the 10% of people in extreme poverty.
The most vulnerable sections are the beneficiaries for the Mothers Meal program. These are families of people with disabilities, terminal illness, widows, refugees and tribals. In Kerala, the focus is on the families with terminal illness in association with IAPC Kerala.
Fr George, speaking on the further expansion programs of Mother’s Meal said that the next destination for Mother’s Meal will be Africa. It will be provided for the most deserving families in Uganda. He said that Mother's Meal program was inspired by his mother Brigit, who died recently.
The organisers requested the support of the community at large to be able to continue the program and to reach out to more families in need. Anyone can become part of this movement, by adopting a family or referring a family in extreme poverty in our website www.mothersmeal.life