Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Tando Adam (Agenzia Fides) - "We go out to reach the poor inspired by charity. We started this initiative thanks to the solidarity spirit of the parishioners, to provide for the needy. I thank God for the maximum support from my friends and the volunteer team. We are able to provide good quality clothing to people who need it, from any community", are the words Capuchin friar Fr. Shahzad Khokhar OFM Cap, parish priest of St. Joseph Church in Tando Adam, a city in the province of Sindh, who presents the "House of Mary", opened in his parish, noting that "it is truly a home for everyone".
Fr. Shahzad Khokhar tells Fides: "Our Mother Mary is everyone’s Mother, that is why we called it 'The House of Mary'. The facility is open in our parish school of St. Joseph and addresses all the people who live in the surroundings, without any discrimination of religious faith, ethnicity, language, culture. Anyone in need can come and get their clothes, according to their needs". The priest reports that "it is a totally free service, open every day, every afternoon".
Fr. Shahzad Khokhar is the first parish priest in the new parish of St. Joseph, recently opened in the Catholic diocese of Hyderabad, in the province of Sindh. Last month, the Apostolic Nuncio to Pakistan, Archbishop Zakhia El Kassis, visited and blessed the community and also the new initiative of the "House of Mary".
The Capuchin priest informs: "The new parish serves a community of mainly Punjabi people who emigrated from the province of Punjab. Most of them work as health workers or live off a daily salary. Seeing their needs, I started asking for support from friends, priests, nuns and laity, and I was able to collect many clothes used by people in various parishes in the dioceses of Karachi, Lahore and Hyderabad".
A group of parish volunteers, men and women, donate their time to carry out this work of mercy, selecting the garments, washing and ironing them, before making them available to the needy.
Fr. Shahzad explains: "In order to support this initiative, we bought a washing machine and built 20 stands with 2500 hangers. At the moment we have around 2000 pieces of clothing of different sizes".
In the parish, where Father Khokhar has the pastoral care of 130 Catholic families, the Capuchin friar has also started a sewing center for young women, facilitating the learning of this profession and giving them the possibility to work. The priest concludes: "We will also include the new clothes that the girls will sew in the House of Mary, asking for a minimum offer of money, thus helping these young women who are learning the art of cutting and sewing". (AG-PA) (Agenzia Fides, 9/2/2022)
