Archives for category: Stories from the Field

Understanding Caste in Development

March 13, 2012 //
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SAFP Canada Staff Cassandra Griffin writes from the field in India.

For a foreigner who is an outsider to Indian culture, the concept of caste can be extremely difficult to comprehend. While the effects of this cultural practice may not always be easily apparent, it can be very difficult to reconcile with our own values and beliefs when we do encounter it. We may have contact with caste structures in simple ways, such as having your laundry done by a local dhobi, a low caste person whose traditional occupation is to wash clothing. Or we can find that caste relations become a major challenge to the development process when working with rural communities to overcome their problems, as can be the case with communities participating in the SPED III program.

The caste system has been deeply ingrained in many aspects of Indian social life for centuries and can be broadly described as a social structure that places people into different groups based on their traditional occupation. A person’s caste can dictate what job they can pursue, who they can marry, where they live, and what kinds of social interactions they can have. Different castes are ranked in a complicated hierarchical order and low caste people continue to face hardship and discrimination, especially in rural areas, despite many efforts to bring them into the mainstream.


Caste issues recently became an obstacle to development for the people of Bhutikuna, a small village in Uttar Pradesh near to the border of Bihar. I came to this village to meet with members of the Village Action Team, which had been recently formed as a part of Save A Family Plan’s SPED III program. The women and men of the village told us about the many problems they were facing, including not having a proper drainage system in the village. They showed us where all the waste water in the community was currently collecting in a pond in the village, very close by to some of the villagers’ homes. It was easy to see how this situation was causing many difficulties for the community members, including increasing health and environmental problems.

We were delighted to find that the community had taken up the challenge of the SPED III program with great seriousness and conviction. They had already elected a new Village President from amongst themselves, who spoke to us passionately about his commitment to improve life in the village. With the assistance of the local field staff, the people had also made an application to the local government to request funds for the construction of a drainage system in the village that would dispose of the wastewater in a safe way. The application had been approved and the construction was ready to begin.


But the villagers faced one more problem. The drainage channel would run along the edge of a piece of land belonging to a high caste family and the family was refusing to give permission for the construction since the channel would carry waste from the homes of low-caste people as well as high-caste people. In accordance with their rigid beliefs about the caste system, they found this contact with people of lower castes completely unacceptable. Despite this problem, the local field staff were not deterred. They encouraged the community to discuss this issue with the high caste family, while offering to help them to build awareness about the importance of this project for all the members of the community.


A few weeks after my visit, I received news that the community had been able to overcome this problem and the drainage system had been completed with the agreement of the landowners. The whole community was happy that the wastewater was removed from the village through their effort and cooperation.

Although the caste system in India has deep historical roots and will likely continue to impact communities for years to come, it is important that we begin taking steps to challenge the negative effects of caste and to promote a society where all people are valued. We congratulate the people of Bhutikuna for taking this meaningful step to promote change and unity across caste lines in their community through the SPED III Program.

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Categories Stories from the Field

Grassroots Action leads to Change in SPED III

January 28, 2012 //
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SAFP Canada Staff Cassandra Griffin writes from the field in India.

The road that led to the village had never been paved. It was narrow and rocky, and as our driver navigated it with both skill and courage, we were tossed and shaken around in the jeep. We had already driven many hours like this to find the remote village of Mane Goan, but all that was forgotten when we saw the large group gathered outside the only building in sight, waiting to greet us. These were members of the recently formed Village Action Team and other interested community members who were meeting to discuss the community’s problems and search for possible solutions as part of the SPED III Program.

The SPED III Program (Sustainability Through Participation, Empowerment, and Decentralization – India) is currently being implemented in 580 villages all across India. The people who benefit from this program belong to 10 different states, speak a wide variety of languages, and come from different religious backgrounds, tribes, castes, and political parties. The SPED III Program asks them to stand together to gain access to the many programs provided be the Government of India to assist communities in overcoming their problems and realizing their basic rights.


The people of this particular village are from a tribe called the Gonds who long ago ruled a large part of the area that is now Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisghar. Now, they face discrimination from mainstream society and many live without access to basic facilities. After we were greeted in the community with the washing of our hands, a traditional song and dance, garlands, and of course a cup of tea, we discussed some of the activities that had been going on in the village.

The villagers explained a long list of issues to us, some of which they had been trying to overcome for more than a decade. The SPED III program asks the village to select just one or two issues to address each year, so this community had chosen sanitation and cooking fuel. There was not a single family that had a latrine in the village and no public toilet was available, so the people were simply using open areas. This practice can lead to many health issues and makes problems of privacy for women. They also had difficulties finding firewood for cooking, since the land in the area is very bare.


With local government representatives present, we discussed the possibility of accessing government resources to overcome these problems. We learned that the government will pay half of the cost of constructing a sanitary latrine for anyone living below the poverty line, which included more than half of the villagers. They would need to contribute a small amount of savings, along with their labour. There were also grants available to support communities in accessing more effective types of cooking fuel. Beyond this, local governments have large funds available that can be allocated for these types of projects that will benefit impoverished communities in their area.


Each year, large portions of these types of funds go unused because communities do not have the knowledge or the capacity to access them. Other amounts are lost due to government corruption. It is important for communities to increase their awareness of these types of programs and to understand that these provisions are not charity, but a part of their rights as citizens of the country. By standing together and making their voices heard, they can work to make their local governments more effective and accountable and create lasting change in their communities.

We look forward to sharing in the success of the people of Mane Goan and all the other villages participating in the SPED III program in the coming years.

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Categories Stories from the Field

Christmas in Haryana

January 2, 2012 //
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SAFP Canada Staff Cassandra Griffin writes from the field in India.

I woke up to a white Christmas this year, but not the kind I am used to in Canada. Out my window, thick white fog hung over the paddy fields and mustard flowers that make up the landscape of Haryana in North India. It was one of the coldest days yet in the area, falling to only 2˚C during the night, but my heart was warmed by the beautiful Christmas celebrations that were going on in this corner of the world.

This year, I had the wonderful opportunity to spend my Christmas at Sanjopuram Children’s Village in Chandpur, Haryana, just a couple hours from the city of New Delhi. It is a project of Save A Family Plan’s partner St. Joseph’s Service Society in Delhi and is home to more than two hundred children. A major goal of this project is to promote inclusivity for those with disabilities, including the blind, deaf, and physically and mentally challenged, by allowing them to live and study along with normal children. The children with special needs learn from specially trained teachers, as well as from their interaction with the other students. The other children develop compassion and learn to respect and help those who have different abilities than they do.


Some of the children have families to spend their holidays with, but most stay in the village and spend Christmas with the many religious sisters who manage the residences. Although I was expecting a quiet Christmas, it was anything but! In India, there is a tradition of going caroling in the nights leading up to Christmas, so for many nights, we packed all the children into a school bus with drums, shakers, and santa hats and made our way down the roughly paved roads to find others to share in our celebrations. Sometimes we’d go by foot, dancing along to the sound of the drums and our own voices with darkness all around us and the bright stars above us. Even in an area that is predominantly Hindu, the local residents greeted us as we went by.

Christmas Eve brought with it great celebrations, involving more caroling, crackers, and a long candlelight procession at midnight. On Christmas day, we shared a simple but wonderful meal prepared by the sisters and enjoyed cake and sweets. Warm clothing was distributed to needy people in the local area.


In a part of the country where marginalization and exclusion due to gender, religion, and caste persists in a very extreme way, it is wonderful to experience the inclusive and empowering atmosphere that exists at Sanjopuram. It provides an example of what is possible when we build communities based on acceptance and gives hope for the next generation to create a society where everyone is able to participate.

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Categories Stories from the Field

India Reflections

November 3, 2011 //
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In February 2011, SAFP Canada Board member, Patrick Mahon, and his son Thomas (who was 18 at the time) travelled with SAFP throughout Kerala and Tamil Nadu. This reflection was written by Thomas Mahon in October, 2011.

I remember first arriving in India. It was around 3 in the morning and even at that time the heat and the weight and smell of the air were staggering. My father, Patrick Mahon, and I stepped out of the airport and into the night to a dense mass of people, many of them staring at us, and a road covered in innumerable idling vehicles breathing exhaust fumes into that oppressive air. Our friend, Father Augustine from SAFP India, found us and soon we were off along tortuous roads, passing people making their way in the dark to temples and churches to attend morning prayers. In the light of the sparse fluorescent streetlights, dense masses of raw jungle and buildings leered from the gloom. I got a sense of a different world, and it felt like a dream.

Our destination on that early morning was Aiswaryagram. It is the headquarters and offices of Save a Family Plan, located near Ernakulam in the province of Kerala, very near to the southern tip of India. My father is on the board of Save a Family Plan in London, Ontario, and this presented him and me with the opportunity of staying in India for a month and visiting with the organization and its people. We arrived at the beginning of the month this past February, when my father was on sabbatical and I was out of school (for I had graduated the previous year and had returned to high school just for one semester to take a few additional courses). We had a couple days to recover from jet-lag and explore the Save a Family Plan headquarters – which consists of both a building with bedrooms, kitchen, chapel and offices, and a large farm around the back – before we were off, travelling the area and doing our work with Save a Family Plan. But I say this casually – the main work of the organisation is to help poor families of the region by using money from sponsors in Canada to provide the families with the tools necessary to start an Income Generation Project, a means of establishing their own source of income, so that after a few years they will no longer need the aid of the organization. What we were doing was not dropping off sewing machines or livestock, but for the most part, we were simply visiting families involved with SAFP and seeing the progress they are making with their IGPs. Also, as we travelled around, we attended gatherings of SAFP families at each area’s Diocesan Social Service Society, and we also visited other associated organisations such as orphanages and youth hostels. In a sense, we were ambassadors of Save a Family Plan Canada.


On our journeys with SAFP we toured just the two Southern-most provinces of India where the organisation’s work is among its strongest, Kerala and Tamil Nadu. We travelled with a couple representatives from Aiswaryagram and also with coordinators from each DSSS. Everywhere we went, we were received like kings! At each house, the families would take us into their small dwelling and ask us to sit while they lavished us with their freshly prepared food and juice, always trying to give us more. It was often uncomfortable accepting food and being waited on by people who had so little, and yet it made them visibly happy to see us take and enjoy their gifts. The houses were simple and small. The families were prevalently those of widows; Kerala and Tamil Nadu border the Indian Ocean and the water claims many fishermen. There was often a solemn man’s photograph in the main room of the house above the door.

We visited families and dioceses for a couple weeks. It was overwhelming. The families were always horribly poor, faced with formidable social and economic challenges, and yet their unwavering generosity was inspiring. Their whole attitude was inspiring, as they received us always with smiles and optimistic stories.

Each experience was powerful, but one family stands out in my mind. Their dwelling was some distance from the road, and it consisted of three walls of varying brick and stone, and a thatched roof which came down low in the front to serve also as something of a wall. The house was tiny. The family came out to us instead of trying to squeeze us in, but through the front I saw all that lay inside: a single bed and a power conduit with one outlet granted to them by the Indian government, a bizarre object in such an abode. The inhabitants were a young mother, a son, a daughter, and a grandmother. Save a Family Plan support had enabled the mother to purchase a goat. The family was only in their first year of SAFP sponsorship, and the local animator explained that it was likely that with time their situation would improve significantly. But I had a difficult time being optimistic. The hardship and obstacles of this family were altogether crushing. The mother was described to us simply as an “abandoned woman.” The grandmother was old and frail and would not move or speak, perhaps she was soon to die. The son, about age 9, suffered from acute eye problems and his mother had invested much in surgery and special glasses with little apparent success. It seemed from his manner he had other issues as well, though this was not confirmed. The girl, about age 7 was healthy – but as a poor girl in rural India, all that her family could hope for her was that she would eventually be married, and dowries are invariably outrageously expensive. It was unlikely that her family could ever afford one; I wondered if the best they could ever hope for would be for the mother to work for the husband’s parents, indefinitely.


Grasping all this and looking at the family before me I came to a realisation: for the most part, the problems and troubles of my life are comparatively meaningless. I saw then the world to be wider than I could have ever understood before the trip, and that it is on this reality that I should focus my own life’s interests. I thought of the playful, exuberant children we had seen in the orphanages, the generosity of the families, and the matter-of-fact way this family had recounted its hardships. The people we had visited are all confronted with immense challenges, and could be duly despondent from time to time in the face of these, but, somehow, they could still be happy too. I wondered if, in large part, this is because they are somehow ‘free’ of the negligible things we so often let haunt us in our lives in the privileged West.

As we left this family, the children waved and smiled and I tried to do the same.

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Categories Stories from the Field

Memories of India

August 3, 2011 //
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While hot, humid summer weather can be a challenge and a bother to most people, for me it brings back a flood of wonderful memories of my time in India. Last summer, I was lucky enough to spend three months in India as a Student Intern at Save A Family Plan’s office near Kochi, Kerala. I remember stepping off the plane into the warm, damp air for the first time, filled with excitement as I began a wonderful and humbling adventure.

The hot, humid climate in many parts of India, particularly Kerala, makes the land among the most fertile in the world. The vegetation cannot be held back; at times it seems to spill out into every available space, including the road! As a visitor to the country, I felt just like one of these plants as I soaked up many powerful experiences and felt my understanding of the world growing and expanding in so many directions.

One particular experience that continues to have a profound impact on my life is the time I spent with Soundari and her children, Priyadharshini and Moorthy, the family I have been supporting through the Family Development Program since I first started working with SAFP as a volunteer. To reach the village where they lived, I first made the 12 hour overnight train ride to the city of Chennai in Tamil Nadu. Then on the day of the visit, I set out with the staff from the local partner organization for a long and bumpy jeep ride out of the city to a remote part of the state. Our journey was slowed by stretches of road left in terrible disrepair and also by a large political rally that had brought traffic in one town to a halt. Nursing a very upset stomach from the previous day (a key part of the India experience), it was a difficult journey that was well worth it in the end.

Soundari greets me and an SAFP India staff member when we arrive at the village.
When at last we reached the village, it seemed that the whole community was there waiting for me to arrive! I received a warm greeting from Soundari, who wrapped me in a shawl and performed a ritual with a dish of coloured water, following local tradition. I’m still not sure which one of us was more excited to meet the other, as we shared our joy with a field staff translating for us. Then Priyadharshini offered me a flower and an apple and sang a beautiful song for me that brought tears to my eyes.

Soundari is illiterate, a mother of two, and a widow at the early age of 30, only a few years older than me. Her husband passed away due to a heart attack just a couple of years ago and she faced many setbacks. After partnering with her family for only a year and a half, I was truly amazed to see the progress that she had already made! Soundari had bought a large wooden frame and the tools needed to start a sari embroidery project at her home. Her talent and skill was clear in the beautiful, intricate designs that she created. Her most recent piece of work was an elaborately beaded wedding sari, which she had hired four other women in the community for five days to help complete. Not only was she earning income for her family, but she was also able to provide work opportunities for other women in the village!

Priyadharshini wrapped in the beautiful sari decorated by her mother and other women in the village.

Soundari shared with me her plans for the future. She hoped to expand her business so that she could do her embroidery work all year round, instead of returning to farm work when business was slow. This would mean that she would be at home and available to care for her children all the time. She was working hard and had almost finished paying off a loan that she had taken to pay for surgery for her daughter, Priyadharshini, when she had broken her arm some months ago. She was also saving up to send her children to a better school where they would have more opportunities and resources needed to succeed. I was amazed that the support that she receives each month, which is such a small amount for me to contribute, could make such an incredible impact and give her the opportunity to plan a future for her family that she could feel proud of.


Back in Canada a year later, Soundari and her family are in my thoughts every day. Her courage and hard work continue to inspire me and remind me that the poor are capable of accomplishing wonderful things with a bit of support. They have many gifts and talents to share if they are only given the chance. SAFP’s Family Development Program offers people like me in the developed world a way to provide poor families in India with this chance. I was very lucky to have the opportunity to see first-hand the difference I can making and to meet such a beautiful family who live so far away, but are always close to my heart.

By Cassandra Griffin
SAFP Canada Staff

Categories Stories from the Field

Stories from the Field – A Visit to Kerala

June 21, 2011 //
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Cavorting emus. Have you ever seen emus cavort? If you visit Aiswaryagram, SAFP India’s headquarters and agricultural training and research centre, and farm, you may. I did as I looked out my bedroom window one afternoon. You will see cows, pigs, horses, monkeys, chickens, ducks and nearly every farm animal you can think of, including the two emus.

The farm is beautifully run and serves many purposes. Every morning, men on bicycles come to pick up milk and deliver it to neighbors. If you’re awake in the middle of the night, you will hear men and women taking care of the cows that need to be fed, and milked, and to have their stables cleaned out. Folks do every sort of work on the farm, including caring for the cars and the grounds, as well as the many animals. In this way, local jobs are provided throughout the community.

When I had called Lesley, Executive Director of SAFP, some month before my stay in Aiswaryagram, and expressed a desire to visit, she graciously invited me. This would be the sort of trip I could relate to; no 5 star hotels, just a chance to see South India from the perspective of the people who live there. When I arrived at the airport, Father Augustine met me in his small car.  At the farm, I was shown around and all my needs were met by the sisters, Maria Jose and Ann Mercy. Later, it was arranged for me to meet some of the families I had sponsored over the years. What a delight it was to visit families who had taken the donations they received and put them to such good use. Many families use the money to educate their children. One man explained that his parents had received support some years ago and this had made it possible for him to become a plumber. Now as a plumber he was able to earn enough to educate his three children. A son had become a lawyer, another son worked at information technology and a daughter was attending nursing school! Listening to this story made me think of my own parents struggles to educate me and my siblings. Sometimes just a little help is all that is needed.

We walked down a muddy trail surrounded by lush, green vegetation to the home of a woman who had been able to start a coir making business. We went to the back of her home and she demonstrated how she turned the fiber from coconuts into rope. She and her family all benefited from the money she earned. How proud she was to have this little business and to give me a piece of the rope she spun. It sits on a shelf in my office today.

Each family insisted on providing a meal for us. At the end of our trip, we had eaten many varieties of delicious Indian food and couldn’t eat another bite!


I also had the opportunity to visit two orphanages, where children as well as some adults with disabilities lived. The children at Home of Faith lived like sisters and brothers, attending school, and church services together. I rode the school bus to drop off children at their various schools. It brought tears to my eyes to see how the children helped each other.

One boy, who seemed bright and normal in every way had severely clubbed hands and feet. He accepted the need to roll wherever he went. When he needed to climb stairs or get onto the school bus, other children lifted him. There was no embarrassment or shame; just a feeling of loving cooperation as brothers and sisters helped each other.

Later I visited Mercy Home, also run by Sisters. Children were so delighted to have a foreigner visit, and had great fun attempting to teach me Hindi. I dutifully wrote down the words and tried to pronounce them. We all laughed long and hard at my flawed pronunciation.

One evening, several girls put on a show for all of us. They had sewn their own beautiful purple and silver silk dresses. Since they couldn’t walk, their dance consisted of synchronized arm and body movement as they as they sang and “danced” to the music.


I cannot give enough praise to the people who run these institutions and to SAFP for allowing me to take part in their wonderful programs. As I slept under my aqua blue Mosquito net, I knew that this adventure was one I would never forget.

By Judy Cirillo
Long time supporter of Save A Family Plan

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Categories Stories from the Field

Father Ryan’s Visit to India

June 7, 2011 //
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Years ago I read that when Pope John Paul II visited India his reaction was, “So many people!”  I understand exactly what he meant.  The state of Kerala, for example, is the size of Nova Scotia and has a population the size of Canada. India is truly rich in the resource that counts most in any country: people.  In many other respects, however, it is very poor.

I have been associated with Save A Family Plan (SAFP) for almost 45 years and served as its President for 30 years. I was involved in bringing it to St. Peter’s Seminary, getting it incorporated, and setting policy and planning projects.  Yet I had never been to India.  Finally, in what was a dream come true, I visited India from January 5th to 26th, 2011.  What I discovered was a beautiful country filled with warm and hospitable people.  It was a truly wonderful experience!

I spent time at the Head Office and training centre in Parappuram, a suburb of Kochi (population two million), about 10 kilometres from the international airport.  I travelled by car to various parts of Kerala and of the neighbouring state of Tamil Nadu.  I went by air to Nagpur, Maharashtra State, which is almost in the centre of India and to Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh State, which is the IT centre of India.  In all these places my priority was to meet the poor, especially families who were beneficiaries of SAFP and to visit projects in which SAFP has been involved, along with the Canadian government (CIDA) and other organizations.  What are my reactions?  Briefly, the following.


First, the family assistance program, which is the heart of SAFP, is successful in a way that far surpasses my expectations.  I found a very careful procedure in place for identifying the poorest of the poor, a network of trained animators, mostly poor women, who visit these families at least once a month and guide their efforts to become self-reliant through an income-generating project, a great spirit of co-operation among the Christians, Hindus and Moslems involved, and most of all, an atmosphere of hope.

Second, the sanghams, or neighbourhood self-help groups that SAFP helped to get started everywhere, composed mostly of poor women, Christian, Hindu and Moslem, are heart-warming.  These women have a sense of their dignity and have learned how to work together effectively to bring about needed change in their communities.

Third, projects in which SAFP is involved as a partner are awesome:  watershed projects that bring water to the homes of the poor; a school for tribal girls that is giving them a first-class education; the Sakhi Centre that, among other things, gives abused women a new start; a new hospital for people with HIV/AIDS that SAFP will soon assist.

We hear in the media about India’s booming economy and the growth of its middle class. The reality however is that the vast majority of people in this wonderful country are terribly poor, often living in one or two room, dirt-floor dwellings. SAFP is a source of light and hope to millions of these people. It is a compassionate, extremely well-run organization that can still guarantee 100% of what people donate does reach the poor.  It has identified hundreds of very poor families that are looking for a sponsor. It is eminently deserving of our support.

By Rev. Michael Ryan, former President of SAFP Canada

Categories Stories from the Field
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