REHABILITATION AT STREET PROVIDENCE FOCUSES ON HELPING HOMELESS / individuals with mental disabilities regain stability in their lives.

This post is about true goemkarpon which i lived in Goa when I was a small child.

Today, we are seeking public assistance for a 45-year-old Goan Hindu Brahmin man from Priol constituency, who was born into the Bhatji/priest profession and completed his 12th standard education. 

At the age of 30, he experienced a mental health decline and has been on psychiatric medication for the past 15 years.

Due to his condition, he is unable to live with his elderly mother, as he becomes physically aggressive towards her and refuses to take his medication. 

For approximately 18 months, we have been providing him with rehabilitation services in our Shelter Home.

Initially, he exhibited destructive behavior and became easily agitated by even the slightest disturbances, such as someone coughing in the shelter home to an extent he would even break glass window panes , such was his irritation.

He would frequently cry and display heightened emotional reactions. However, through living with other men in the home and adhering to his medication regimen, he has gained control over his destructive tendencies, irritability, and emotional outbursts.

Although this young Goan man has made significant progress, it is crucial for him to continue his medication, receive further exposure, and engage in work related to his profession to enhance his confidence. 

Today he aspires to go back to his bhatji profession. 

2 min Video attached in konkanni.👇

As he is a Bhatji by birth, it is my aspiration that he can practice his Hindu faith and support himself financially.

We are seeking someone to train and guide him in his profession, enabling him to feel accepted in society. 

Despite approaching several Swamijis to inquire about his placement under their guidance for relearning his profession, we have not received any responses or opportunities for him to reside and learn in such a setting.

Street Providence aims to rehabilitate individuals from Hindu, Catholic, and Muslim backgrounds, regardless of their mental disabilities. Our shelter homes do not offer any religious services.

We take care of homeless people from all religions like Hindus,  Catholics,  Christians, Muslims.

For us HUMANITY is all that matters.

Our organization comprises Hindu employees across all our operations in Goa and our men's homes have an entirely Hindu staff, while 50% of the staff in our ladies' homes are Hindus.

Typically, when a Catholic individual passes away in our shelter home, we arrange a funeral in the local church, including a holy mass, prayers, and burial. 

However, when a Hindu individual passes away, we conduct a cremation without any religious rituals, as we are unable to find a Hindu priest to perform the service.

If this Goan man is trained to conduct these rituals, I would be grateful to have a Hindu person cremated according to their religious customs.

Additionally, he can earn a living while residing in our shelter home and he can daily buy his ice cream as he has a sweet tooth.

If any Hindu organization can assist me in helping this young Goan man return to his profession as a Bhatji, please contact me via WhatsApp at 8380097564.

As a Roman Catholic, my faith remains within the confines of my personal home. 

I am driven by my belief in Jesus Christ:

I see the presence of Christ in those who suffer and are marginalized. 

However, my wish is for this Goan Hindu man, born as a Bhatji/Priest, to reclaim his profession and become self-sufficient. 

The Goa I knew when I was in school 30 years ago differs greatly from the present. 

I hope that we can all respect each other's religions and beliefs, and through this post, I aspire for this Goan man to fulfill his duties as a Bhatji with confidence and sincerity.

All help is welcome towards this Goan Hindu man in this post.

Www.streetprovidencegoa.com 

God bless you all

STREET PROVIDENCE GOA rescues and accepts this highly educated goan homeless man aged 59 years old from the streets of Chinchinim two days ago.

♡♡♡ Thanks to the Sarpanch of Chinchinim & fellow panch members for getting all the paperwork done within 12 hours of me informing them about this goan homeless man sleeping on a bus stop right next to the Chinchinim church & getting the police involved.

Super fast speed by Cuncolim police station in verifying and getting their paperwork done with a short span of a few hours of being informed by the Sarpanch.

This goan man is a Bcom graduate with inter CA and has worked abroad but he is disappointed in life as his wife and children have left him.

To top it all , his sister has taken over the ancestral house and that can be due to genuine reasons I can't decide who is right or wrong.

His other brother is a priest in Mumbai and again it can be that they must have tried to help him but he is all confused and lost in life.

A mixture of being :

Carrying alot of rejection and add a mix of sickness and disappointment in life.

Totally sad case but then sympathy and pity is not what is needed but :

And this is what we @ Street Providence can and will provide.

And these types of goan men turning homeless  are increasing where wives and children have either left the husband's or the wives & children have migrated abroad and just because the husband is either sick or can't work, the husband is just ignored and abandoned. 

Today homelessness in Goa is increasing drastically and we always think and understand that the homeless In Goa are all outsiders/ non goans.

But believe me, the no of goans reaching the streets is rising and we are always reaching out in the quickest possible way to help such local goans on the streets of Goa.

To all out there in Goa , who see the homeless and wish to help them get off the streets a small request ” kindly send me pictures and a video with clear clarity of the concerned person on the streets and immediately contact the nearest police station informing them that the homeless needs to get off the streets and to route them to a shelter home “.

We use the network of Goa Police to verify and do the necessary paperwork including the homeless person medical and once all is okay the police drops to our shelter Home.

WE DONT PICK ANY HOMELESS PERSON DIRECTLY  NOR DO WE ACCEPT ANY HOMELESS PERSON INTO OUR HOME WITHOUT THE POLICE VERIFICATION. 

In the last 2 month, too many calls are coming requesting to pick the homeless.

We understand that summer heat is bad & the monsoon is approaching.

We are really overloaded with close to 165 + homeless of which  many many are  sick, old, amputated and people suffering with mental disabilities and our manpower is stretched and overloaded.

Its not that we don't want to help the homeless the issue is we are overloaded and rehabilitating the homeless with mental disabilities is not easy service.

Your unconditional support in so many ways is needed as we run 8 rehabilitation Homes in Goa for both ladies and Gents. 

Www.streetprovidencegoa.com 

God bless you so much 

FOOD BANK FOR THE POOR SANGOLDA GOA  now starts food bank fridges in Jharkhand to collect extra food in big cities and feed the poor in Jharkhand and very soon we will be starting food bank fridges across many states.

By this year end we have set a target of 200 fridges to be installed in states where we are setting up shelter Homes for the homeless.

We require your support as we go across different states in India collecting extra cooked food to feed the homeless and also rehabilitating them in our upcoming homes across India.

But to collect this extra cooked food we need to install fridges in public places.

In the last 6 years in Goa we have consistently run the food bank fridges without any issues and we must be the only state in India where fridges are placed in public places in an organized manner with the required food bank license running non stop last 6 years.

To go a little further our food bank fridges in 11 police stations in GOA is the only place where one will find fridges in Police stations across INDIA ,  which indicates the commitment of the Goa police department to end hunger & homelessness.

We all feel emotional and concerned about the extra food being wasted or about the poor homeless sleeping on the streets.

But not all and everybody can start food bank fridges and open shelter homes. 

But YES , you all can help people like us @ Street Providence by donating for a worthy cause a fridge which you never know might be bringing one daily meal to that poor family situated next to the fridge you donated and in return you and your family earns blessings from God.

We as the food bank with 6 years hard core ground experience and you as our benefactor can work together towards feeding the hungry and YES together WE can reduce hunger across different states in India.

We are attempting to set up fridges starting from Jharkhand.

All your donations towards this worthy cause entitles you to Income Tax exemption under Section 80G of the I TAX ACT.

Come Walk with us in Jharkhand as we attenpt to feed those who need that little extra food.

Www.streetprovidencegoa.com 

God bless you so much 

STREET PROVIDENCE GOA has set up our 1st shelter home outside Goa @ Jharkhand along with 5 food bank fridges to accept extra food to feed the poor.

Attached a link of the innaugration.👇

Bit long , all in Hindi but at 46 minutes I speak in English & hindi.

With this home taking shape,  we will now going to send back many of the homeless In Goa who are from Jharkhand and surrounding states,  living on the streets and suffering from disabilities as well as those homeless who are in our homes in Goa but from these surrounding states.

This home will also serve the poor homeless men suffering from mental disabilities in Jharkhand.

We have collaborated with Daltonganj Diocese and decided to use one of their homes @ Bhusar which is very big and comfortable enough to hold 20 homeless street men suffering from mental disabilities. 

Space is not a constraint here and more men can be accommodated once we settle down.

Thanks to Our fellow Goan, BISHOP Rev Fr THEODORE MASCARENHAS of Daltonganj Diocese for inviting , supporting  and helping us in setting up this home for the homeless.

We both understand hunger, poverty & homeless especially with mental disabilites and we are going to work togther across Jharkhand.

Archbishop of Ranchi , Rev Felix Toppo blessed this small but yet cozy shelter home on 30.6.23 and our food bank fridges along with Bishop Theodore Mascarenhas.

This home was innaugrated by Mr Bandhu Tirkey Ex Education Minister of Jharkhand.

Also present was Mr Ram Chandra Singh, MLA of Manilka Constituency,  Jharkhand along alot of Zilla panchayat members , Sarpanches and rhe local BDO.

What started with a visit to Jharkhand in Jan 2023 by me and my fellow trustee Adv Mrs Caroline Collaso took 4 full months to get this home up and running along with the food bank fridges.

Bishop Theodore Mascarenhas In his address emphasized that no one should be homeless and go to sleep hungry 

Street Providence motto is ” Ending homeless and hunger “.

With a huge population of non goans in Goa and with homelessness in Goa increasing in the last many years, our 8 homes in Goa are getting full.

Infact we are adding another 8 homes for men & women suffering from INTELLECTUAL DISABILITIES as well soon.

The only way to address this issue of homelessness, ( which will reach full steam in 3 years from now ) is starting shelter homes across India and sending the homeless back to their respective states and later them join them back to their families.

When we started in 2017 , many ridiculed me saying there are no homeless in Goa and we are just wasting our time doing cheap publicity.

Today in Goa with  a 200 bed capacity,  we Have 165 + homeless with 100 + being ethnic goans.

Of these 165 + we care for, a combined total of  135 who are suffering from mental disabilities both men & women. 

By 1.1.2024 , we will be only accepting local Goans in our homes in Goa.

Rest of the homeless will be rehabilitated back in their respective states in our shelter Homes which we are setting up across India.

Rehabilitation is always complete when the homeless are reunited with their families in their own states and we will be doing the same.

Rehabilitation of the homeless with mental disabilities is tough and setting up such homes in Jharkhand is more tough.

We are now attempting to set up a men's home in Bihar which is most  tough state than any other state in India.

I even spent one full day in Bihar trying to see how best to go about .

Too many homeless in Goa and most are living in pathetic condition.

Our NGO might not be able to do much to completely end homelessness in Goa but a small start in two of Indias most difficult states is a challenge worth taking on.

Please do support us as we create homes for the poor and the homeless across India.

Www.streetprovidencegoa.com 

God bless you so much.

Its our 1st shelter home outside Goa.

STREET PROVIDENCE GOA is blessing and INNAUGRATING OUR 1st SHELTER HOME FOR THE HOMELESS STREET MEN WITH DISABILITIES IN DALTONGANJ DIOCESE , JHARKHAND TODAY

Honourable Mrs Jobha Majhi , Social Welfare Minister, Government of Jharkhand, is invited as the Chief Guest for the innaugration of this shelter home.

Archbishop of Ranchi , HE , Rev Fr Felix Toppo is blessings this small but yet beautiful home right in heart of mother nature.

Our fellow Goenkar , HE , Bishop Theodore Mascarenhas, Apostolic Administrator of Daltonganj Diocese is the motivating factor behind this project taking shape as we both share the same passion to help the poor homeless and the rising number of people with disabilites.

We have also invited the Local MLAs as Guest of Honour for the innaugration.

This home is for the poor homeless men suffering from mental disabilities as well as those homeless men who might be homeless.

♡♡♡  We thank alot of Government officials in the State of Jharkhand who are supporting our DREAM  in setting up this shelter home for the poor and the homeless people suffering from Disabilities.

Way back in Dec 2017 In Goa , we were the 1st ever shelter home to start & we still run free shelter homes for the homeless and the poor with disabilites in Goa.

No one in Goa understands HOMELESS & POOR WITH MENTAL DISABILITIES better than Street Providence. 

With Rock solid ground experience of running rehabilitation homes for the poor with disabilites we bring alot of experience to the states which require free shelter homes for the poor with disabilites. 

It's a PASSION to help the people with Disabilities and its a challenge to get the government to support this PASSION.

Today in May 2023 , we are the 1st free shelter home for the homeless with disabilites in the entire state of -Jharkhand.

Homeless is rising and disabilities mostly follows the homeless and with many many different people working in Goa , the homeless from different states are reaching the streets in Goa.

Looking at the current situation & the future trends, starting shelter homes for the homeless outside Goa is the only way to reduce people living on the streets in Goa which is rising fast.

Our homes in Goa are getting full and to reduce the load on our 8 shelter homes in Goa, we have decided to open Homes for the homeless In :

and in this way , we will attempt in sending back the homeless  people from Goa to these homes in their respective states so that we can take into more Goans into our homes in Goa.

For us Rehabilitation is getting people back to their respective states due to culture , food habits, life style , language,  attitude,  etc 

Infact this 1st shelter home in Jharkhand will have staff from Jharkhand, West Bengal & bihar working here.

All these 3 homeless men are currently in our Goa shelter homes and will be reaching this home soon.

All are rehabilitated and fit and fine to start life again in their own region.

One is a cook, one is a care giver cum hospital attendant and one is a cleaner cum gardener.

Our next shelter home is planned in Bihar which might be by late July or early August which will rehabilitate those from UP & BIHAR  who are currently homeless and living on the streets of Goa.

Once again I thank our benefactors & CSR partners without whose support these Dreams would not have MATERILISED.

Say a small prayer after you read this message so that more and more shelter homes for the poor homeless with disabilites start across India soon.

Www.streetprovidencegoa.com 

God bless you all

FOOD BANK FOR THE POOR , SANGOLDA GOA completes 6 years as of today.

What started on 27.5 2017 with just a single fridge for over 6 months at Sangolda, today has taken a totally different approach.

27th May is the birthday our late Uncle , 

Rev Fr Walter Gomes , SFX , who expired in August 22 and we had innaugrated this fridge on his birthday 6 years back with his blessings.

Running a food bank was always considered risky due to food poisoning as a threat to the one running a food bank.

But in the last 6 years of our food bank program,  with the Grace of God we have never ever faced any issues of food poisoning or anything which brought bad light to our food bank.

With over 26 fridges installed in Goa of which 11 such fridges are in Police Stations, we on an average accept and receive daily 500 kgs of cooked good food enough for our 8 shelter homes and rest goes to other associates who feed the poor.

Our expansion of our Food bank fridges was planned across India way back in Jan 2020 and we had even sent 3 fridge to Bangalore, 2 to Delhi and 1 in Maharashtra but Covid lockdown early March 2020 brought this expansion plans to a complete halt.

Now on our 6th Anniversay of our Food Bank and which is also rhe birthday of our Late Fr Walter Gomes , we are installing 5 new fridges in a Jharkhand in North India on 30th May 2023.

This coming 6 months we intend to set up if possible with The blessings of The Almighy close to 200 + fridges across many states as food banks ( and shelter homes go hand in hand) are the need of the hour as hunger is everywhere as well as food wastage is increasing.

The only One regret in running the food bank program for the poor which I FAILED,  was we are not accepted and supported in GOA by the FSSAI / FDA DIRECTOR inspite of our excellent track record.

Infact we conceptualized and popularized the term FOOD BANK FRIDGES In public places , after which the FSSAI put a program and plan in place.

This is the only Government department I can say is not pro hunger towards the poor .

After 6 years we @ our food bank is collecting monthly on an average only 15 tonnes of cooked good food which if the FSSAI had supported could have been 150 tonnes a month.

♡♡♡ We thank alot of our benefactors who have in the last 6 years donated close to 80+ fridges towards this once upon a time A UNIQUE CONCEPT called FOOD BANK FRIDGES.

♡♡♡ We also thank our only FRIDGE supplier,  Global Enterprises,  Mr Savio from Porvorim for all the sales,  service and credit facility given to this food bank program. 

To all the factories, bakeries and unknown people who faithfully drop their good food in our fridges. GOD BLESS YOU .

♡♡♡ To my Wife and my little children ( 6 years back all 3 of them were small, infact  one child was an infant ) thanks for the support & patience you all had with me especially in the 1st 6 months but the rewards are now plentiful.

♡♡ To Late Fr Walter Gomes ( Uncle Babush ) your prayers,  motivation, advice and support is now only memories as we take this vision of yours forward both @ the food bank fridges, & the shelter home projects for the homeless with our 1st shelter home out of Goa being innaugrated in Jharkhand on 30.5.2023.

Www.streetprovidencegoa.com 

God bless you all

STREET PROVIDENCE GOA has a AFTER STROKE RECOVERY facility cum mini PALLATIVE CARE both for men & ladies separately in Bardez Taluka.

We @ Street Providence Goa primarily run  :

♡♡♡ We thank Alcon Resort Holding Pvt Ltd for the CSR grant which enabled us to purchase 25 Fowler beds and additional aids. 

With a good set of Physiotherapists & latest equipment at our Physiotherapy centre's we are treating already 6 such stroke related homeless and poor goans in our homes. 

Looking at the rising no of cases of homeless people suffering from stroke commonly from those who are consuming alcohol on tbe streets we set up these two after stroke recovery facility.

This trend is going up especially among the homeless and the cause is purely cheap alcohol.

Handling after stroke recovery patients is not easy task but with a huge manpower in our homes, qualified nurses and a perfect set of team force,  it was a desire to set up this after stroke recovery unit.

In the coming 6 months, we will have close to 

10 additional nurses trained for over a year, with specialty in Pchyistric care & after stroke recovery to help us meet the demand for the ever increasing cases of STROKE issues.

We are appealing for good Doctors both ladies & gents to assist us on part time basis especially if one has empathy for the poor and the homeless including our poor goans.

Both these facilities are primarily set up for poor goan homeless people & the homeless suffering from after Stroke and who require some support to get back on track till they regain some stability and mobility.

Our NGO has not only set up  Shelter homes in Goa , but we have diversified into Physiotherapy units, after stroke recovery unit and very soon we are starting shelter homes across many states in India.

For us @ Street Providence it's always about looking at the future seeing the number of homeless rising on the streets and our poor goans turning homeless due to mental disabilities.

I have seen the poor go through when they suffer from a stroke and this was one project that I was carrying on my mind for a very long time.

We plan projects based on the current homeless situations but looking at a long term futuristic situations where homelessness is going to be one big issue.

WE DARE TO DREAM.

Www.streetprovidencegoa.com 

God bless you so much 

This local goan mam is genuinely homeless last many years as his family has abandoned him due to his disability.

Are there genuine ethnic homeless Goans homeless on the streets in Goa ?

Few days back the  media highlighted through various channels that there are no ethnic goans on the streets.

Ganesh Gaonkar for years has been sleeping on the streets of Shiroda in horrible and pathetic state and it was a sad and horrible life he was leading all alone and abandoned.

Attached a picture of him.

Close to 18 months back we rescued him from the streets with the help of ponda police and we tried to rehabilitate him and put him on medication.

Thrice he escaped from our home and all 3 times we went in search of him as he is genuinely homeless and can't think and manage himself without medication.

The last time we rescued him was from margao circle when one of our care givers recognized him as a rag picker with a sack full of bottles

Counseling and medication is not working the way we expected it to work and if he gets another opportunity he will definitely walk away.

Whenever we have repicked him from the streets one will 100% conclude that he is a non goan as his appearance just changes beyond recognition.

Today we understood his mind very well and we have put him on alot of work like washing the utensils, drying the clothes, sweeping and mopping the floor daily.

Kept him so busy that at night he sleeps like a log.

Small small activities give them that sense of understanding that they are wanted by society.

Video attached.👇

Various times I SCAN the CCTV in all our 8 homes numbering close to 120 cameras running non stop 24 *7 and I evaluate each and every inmate to see how best their disability can be worked up upon so that they can get help.

Very difficult at times trying to evaluate close to 165+ people and fit a schedule for each one of them.

In and around MARGAO CITY there are like 200 to 300 of such unclean men and a few ladies of whom 50% are ethnic goans who are genuinely homeless due to disabilities.

And we call them GHATIS & OUTSIDERS which we are totally wrong.

No one in Goa knows Margao city better than me regarding the homeless and vagabonds that this city is having.

This issue was bound to explode , moment our shelter home in Margao was shut down.

Now who is facing the trouble?

We very rarely, under genuine circumstances  accept homeless street people from margao city.

People need to understand the value of shelter homes. 

We are often highlighting  with actual facts and details of the number of genuine goan turning homeless in our own state and something needs to be done to address this issue.

Our homes are getting loaded and at some point we will Have to stop taking in more admissions as we just don't have space.

Government needs to address these issues before things go out of control.

The only way to reduce homeless is to 1st accept the fact there are genuine homeless and plans are put onto place to solve the homelessness.

No one should deny or refuse to accept that there no genuine homeless goans on the streets of Goa today not after 25 years.

Denying the fact only compounds the problem and that is why homelessness is increasing in Goa by leaps and bounds.

We @ Street Providence are fighting with our backs against the wall against an unseen enemy but one thing good is The Government of Goa through its various departments is backing us up.

But that's not enough .

We require more support from the Government of Goa to reduce if not halt homelessness in Goa 

Www.streetprovidencegoa.com 

God bless you so much 

Are there genuine ethnic homeless Goans homeless on the streets in Goa ?

Few days back the  media highlighted through various channels that there are no ethnic goans on the streets.

Watch this 90 sec video and decide.👇

This ethnic goan homeless red saree lady was on the print & electronic media late February & early March 23 for many days as she was living on the streets in the heart of the Capital of Goa for months.

For years this lady has been living on the streets of Bardez and sleeping under trees and in bus stops due to severe mental disabilities.

We were requested in the last few years but we failed in trying to rehabilitate her.

The press in March 23 took it up, Goa police picked her up one night and dropped her home without attempting to admitt this ethnic goan lady into the IPHB so that she stabilises & bang next day she was back in Panjim.

☝️The above link if clicked will show you her condition two months back on the streets of Panjim.

We were again requested to help but by that time the Anjuna police got her relatives to give their assent in writing so that we could rehabilte her.

By then she was in panjim , Mermaid Garden and changed her saree so difficult to spot her.

A kind hearted & responsible Goa Police officer  Mr A Khan PSI , late March 23 spotted her , picked her up and brought her to us.

We appreciate the support given by the Doctors at IPHB bambolim in admitting , treating & stabilizing this ethnic goan homeless lady.

Something which did not happen in the last many years happened in just 1 month.

Today the red saree lady was discharged from IPHB and we admitted her into our home.

Never ever in the last 10 years have I seen this red saree lady walking without her bags under her arms and hanging from her shoulder.

And always muttering and murmuring to herself.

Today she has been totally set free of her mental disabilities and has left her bags.

No grumbling , no muttering. Cool & calm.

I was told that on the day of her admission into the IPHB & even after a few days she was clinging to those bags.

But now, the medication has started taking effect &  the treatment & the care and compassion shown at IPHB by the doctors & nurses is amazing.

If not kept in a shelter home for rehabilitation,  she will be bang again on the streets just wandering away to no where and sleeping back in the gardens, bus stops,  under trees,  etc.

For those who read and believed the reports in media few days ago ” there are no ethnic goans on the streets of Goa ” please read this post again and all facts can be verified at :

What do you feel ? Are they ethnic goans living on the streets of Goa ?

There are close to hundreds of such ethnic Goans suffering from mental disabilities & crying silently on the streets of Goa for a hand to start afresh. 

But no one, I mean no one in Goa , except our NGO is hearing their cries and we are opening our doors 24*7 to these ethnic goans living like destitudes in our own state.

This is our 2nd case we are highliting to send a message that there are ethnic goan destitudes on the streets of Goa and the state needs to do something about it.

I admitt this was one of the most complicated and difficult rehabilitation case as it involves 2 police stations and the lady was not easy to handle at all.

But WE DARE TI DREAM & we took the challenge and took the problem by the horns and today she is totally set free after years and years of torment on the streets of Goa.

Tonight she sleeps in a home witn other ladies, has a nice hot bath,  eats a warm meal in a plate and watched TV .

WE DID IT.

Thanks to all our team members and staff @ Street Providence Goa. 

Www.streetprovidencegoa.com 

God bless you all