Christmas is a season of sharing love and happiness with others either through gifts or blessings. During this season of Hope, the Caritas India Ashakiranam partners in Kerala took a decision to spread brightness and strengthen the dignity of the lives of cancer patients.

The Ashakiranam Cancer Care Campaign is an exemplary initiative implemented by Caritas India along with thirty-two Diocesan Social Service Societies (DSSSs) in Kerala. For the past eight years, these diocesan societies have been working tirelessly to create a cancer-free state by giving priority to preventing cancer and helping cancer patients.

The diocesan communities have done a variety of events and pronounced to the cancer patients that You are not alone, and we are with You. This year’s Christmas cancer care support was conducted under the umbrella of the Ashakiranam Tree for Treatment campaign. 

The cancer patients’ get-together was one of the noble programmes conducted during Christmas by many of the DSSS partners. More than a hundred cancer patients participated in each of the programmes. Art programmes and motivational talks were held for cancer patients and the patients shared their testimonials. After the programme, cakes, stars and financial assistance were given to the cancer patients as Christmas gifts. “In this good time of peace and love, you should be able to get through it all with more inspiration. This illness is not the end of anything, it should be able to be turned into the beginning of something good,” said Mr. Bibin George, Cine Actor and Director while inaugurating cancer patients’ gathering and distribution of Christmas gifts organized by CSSS, Cochin. 

All the 32 DSSS partners across the state have shown their solidarity to share the joy of happiness with Cancer patients through care and support programmes. Altogether 119 events were organized during Christmas in Kerala and reached around 5,000 Cancer patients. The programmes included cake distribution, food/nutrition kit distribution, hygiene and medical kit distribution, income generation programme support, tele-counselling and house visiting by volunteers, hair donation and resource mobilization events. Around 1,200 cancer patients received financial aid worth Rs. 41,56,680 for their treatment and 1,584 cancer patients received food, medical, and hygiene kits this Christmas season. 

“It was a great inspiration to the Volunteers like me when we went into the homes of cancer patients on Christmas days with gift wraps and felt the ripples of joy that was visible in those homes. Through this work, I got the realization that there are many people who still require our presence and earned the determination to work more efficiently in future for the good of the patients” expressed by Ms. Vimala the Ashakiranam palliative lead volunteer of QSSS, Quilon after the home visits and counselling support programme in the dioceses.

A good number of fund-raising activities were conducted to help cancer patients. Since Christmas is a time when people don’t hesitate to help, they tried to reach out to more people to raise funds. Cake Challenge, Christmas carols, crib competitions, star selling, donation coupon distributions, New year calendar distribution, stall setting etc. were the major resource development programmes organized by the DSSS partners. A sum of Rs. 69,95,880 was raised as part of the Tree for Treatment campaign. The mobilized amounts are being distributed by the DSSS partners days to the cancer patients for their various treatment needs, financial and food/nutrition. 

The Christmas cake challenge was the most popular event adopted by almost every partner for resource development. Mr. Ebin, Ashakiranam DLO, HDS, Idukki says, “Cake challenge was our major focus, and we were able to raise funds by making cakes in our bakery using good quality ingredients and selling them to many people at affordable prices. This way we raised around ten lakh rupees and were able to help many cancer patients this Christmas”. 

Lavender Army School volunteers extended their support and solidarity to the Ashakiranam Tree for Treatment campaign. They made this Christmas beautiful by performing carols, cultural programmes at school, holding competitions, and making Christmas cards. They have mobilised money with these activities and pocket money from family and relatives and buying cakes, visit cancer patients’ homes and giving them gifts and cakes. Around 28 schools were partakers of this initiative, and 162 students donated their hair to poor cancer patients. “These children not only celebrate Christmas but also help vulnerable and poor people to celebrate their Christmas. Many people encouraged and appreciated the good work of these young minds. We teachers also stood with the children in this happiness and supported them” said Ms. Indhu Sunil, Ashakiranam School teacher lead, St. John’s Academy School, Vettukkadu, Thrissur. 

Other notable activities undertaken by the Diocesan societies included Cancer patients gathering, Christmas celebrations, Treatment support, financial aid, medical kit, food kit, hygiene kit distribution, home visits, tele-counselling, cake and gift distributions are the major activities carried out by DSSS partner societies.