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FOLLOW US:
The Archdiocese of Goa and Daman rendered service to the people in Christian Social Formation and in Charitable and Welfare Works through Caritas Portuguesa till 1961.
The historic events of Liberation of Goa on 19th December 1961 resulted in the departure of the Portuguese. Always sensitive to the needs of God’s children and committed to their holistic welfare, the then Archbishop-Patriarch, Don Jose Vieira Alvernaz, as one of his first decisions in liberated Goa, established Caritas-Goa and constituted a Commission on 4th January 1962, comprising: Mons. Dr. Raul Nicolau Gonsalves; Fr. Gilberto Jose Salvador Ribeiro and Fr. Alberto Caetano Santana Pompeia Luis, as Members.
The Commission office was housed in the Paco Patriarcal, Panjim in the area now occupied by the Secretariat for Confraternities/Fabricas and Cofres. Fr. Gilberto was the Secretary of the Commission. The welfare work and education of children continued with little interruption, despite the prevailing circumstances. The Commission office, Saligao Seminary and Lar dos Estudantes were the storage and distribution Centres for food and other material sent by the Catholic Relief Services. Fr. Joao Pedro Fernandes, although not a Member of the Commission, was very much involved in the work. When Archbishop-Patriarch Alvernaz left Goa in March, 1962, Mons. Francisco Xavier da Piedade Rebelo was made In-Charge of the Archdiocese.
Mons. Raul Gonsalves undertook the responsibility with the other members, of locating and rendering all possible assistance. With the sudden demise of Fr. Gilberto Ribeiro on 19th July 1969, Fr. Cirilo Pascoal Pereira S. F. X. was appointed Director of Caritas-Goa on 19th August 1969. Fr. Pereira expanded the activities of Caritas Goa to address the growing needs of the Persons with Disability and relief work for the poor through subsidized projects in Animal Husbandry.
Caritas-Goa was civilly registered as a Society under Societies Registration Act 1860 under the Act Sl. No.336 on 8th November 1971 and was established on 18th November 1971.
Msgr. Alberto C.S.P.L. Luis, beginning his association as a member of the newly established Caritas-Goa in January 1962 and serving till 1964, after a gap of fifteen years, was appointed Director on 1st August 1979. As he took charge of the Institution, he dedicated his time and energy to the upliftment of the disadvantaged, neglected and oppressed. Several institutional projects concerning the disadvantaged women and children were initiated during his tenure.
Fr. Valeriano Vaz took over from Msgr. Alberto Luis from 1st June 2001 as the Director of Caritas-Goa who worked with dedication to uplift the marginalized by initiating new projects in health, self-help groups, rehabilitation and empowerment.
Fr. Maverick Fernandes was appointed Director of Caritas Goa on 1st July 2012 who through rights-based approach focuses largely on community projects to increase the reach to as many people possible. Through networks and partnerships with individuals and organizations, he continually emphasizes the establishment of a just society.
A Society, rooted in Gospel values, where all people of good will work in solidarity and live in harmony with nature and where Equality, Justice, Freedom and Brotherhood prevail
“Always the explanations of poverty begin by blaming the victim”, remarked the Neuro-Scientist, Dr. Olascinde Arigbede. Nobel laureate, Amartya Sen vouched for the entitlement of the poor when he explained that the reasons of poverty is the unequal distribution of income, of rural assets, of industrial assets, of human capital and of employment opportunities. In this context, the several interventions of Caritas-Goa through its various institutions and community programs to serve persons with disabilities, older adults, distressed women, vulnerable children, disadvantaged youth, marginalised dalits, the rural non-formal education programs, scholarship support for higher education, prisoners and their families and others on the margins are some efforts to enable the poor to seek their entitlement towards authentic development.
As the meaning of Caritas, is love, it is the obligatory for Caritas-Goa to permeate God’s love through actions and service.
Hence our service is packaged not merely for attraction but for relevance, growth and transformation of persons. Incidentally, the command to “Go and do likewise” of Jesus springs from His concern to search for the neighbour who is in need. This has moved Caritas Goa to venture into appropriate initiatives, at different times, in favour of the poor.
In many of the above endeavours, the generous service of hundreds of volunteers is a vital component of our outreach programs. In fact, our “We For You” program is precisely to strategize volunteers into our every initiative towards promotion of integral human development. International, national and local students’ internships form another significant aspect of our efforts towards engaging young minds to be available for community-based interventions, campaigns, institutional service, therapeutic work, and skill/ knowledge sharing including technology. The interns are driven not only to share their time but also to sacrifice their comforts towards authentic development.
We believe that the poor are always at the mercy of the advantaged. Thus, the task of entitling those on the margins of the society, certainly has the accompanying challenges but also the abundance of experiences of fulfillment of social duty as Jesus said: “I have come to serve not to be served”.