Sr Teresa Roszkowska of the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians sent a letter with a message which is not a Pulitzer prize-winning photograph, but it is the photograph of the lives of millions of people in Sudan.
"In our school in Khartoum there are 400 children,” says Sr Roszkowska, “120 in kindergarten and 280 in the upper classes. 80% of these children are victims of the war in South Sudan. Many are deeply wounded, scared, sick and above all very hungry. We help them as much as we can. "
The work of the FMA in Sudan is a good example of work among the poorest. It is a great service that still works thanks to benefactors from around the world. "Every child has a uniform and a hot meal every day. The sick children are taken to the doctor. Visits are made to families living in very difficult conditions, in particular to young mothers. Some very poor families live close to the FMA communities. We help them daily and someone from the community brings them something to eat.”
Before classes begin the children have 15 minutes of gymnastics to the rhythm of music. The exercises help to relax them and calm them down. It is a slow process of healing for the injured hearts of the children. On Fridays and Sundays, more than 300 children go to the oratory, where they can play games, watch a movie or just enjoy themselves. Some bathe and others wash their clothes, because where they live there is no water. At the end we pray and give them whatever Divine Providence has sent: biscuits, sweets and soap.
Sr Teresa writes in her letter: "The sight of so much poverty and suffering fills our eyes with tears and our hearts with sadness."
