The Christmas Cake Challenge, a humble gesture of fundraising to support cancer patients during this festive season has spread its wings. More than 20,000 volunteers from Shreyas, Bathery in Kerala are engaged in selling Christmas cakes to support poor cancer patients and bringing happiness under the Ashakiranam Cancer Care Campaign.

The challenge is running in 7 districts with the active support of 2,632 Self Help Groups. The entire raised fund from the sale will be given to cancer patients as a gesture of love and compassion during this festive season.

“Each volunteer is buying one cake for his/her family and another one for their neighbour. Altogether 12,000 cakes would be sold by these SHG volunteers. They are expecting to sell another 1000 cakes through other sources like Parishes, Convents, Schools, Police stations, and Panchayath offices,” says Ms. Bini Thomas, Regional Coordinator of Pulpally Region. The volunteers plan to raise Rs. 15,00,000/- from Christmas Cake Challenge which will be given to cancer patients for their treatment. The patients would be selected by the unit committee based on set criteria.

“On Christmas, the festival of love and peace, this cake distribution can impart meaning and dignity to the needy, poor cancer patients who are living in despair and make their lives sweeter. This Cake challenge, setting a real challenge in front of everyone to spread the real happiness and love of Christmas” says Fr. Benny Edayath, the Executive Director of Shreyas.

The Christmas Cake Challenge was inaugurated at Shreya by Mr. K.E Vinayan, President of Meenangadi Grama Panchayath on 11^th December 2022. He said, “In this situation where there is high fear that there is no other option but death after cancer, we can act in two ways. We should be able to support them by giving them mental courage and bring them back to normal life and at the same time we should also be able to ensure financial support for them.”

“We as human beings get great opportunities to do God’s works in life knowingly and unknowingly sometimes, we don’t pay attention to it. This initiative of Shreyas is a great opportunity to transform our hands into God’s own hands” said by Ms. Mercy Sabu, President, Poothadi Gram Panchayat President after the first sale of the Cake challenge campaign. All the ward members and standing committee chairpersons of Meenangadi and Poothadi Grama Panchayath participated in the Cake Challenge Campaign inauguration program.

The initiative has garnered huge support from all walks of life including the community, Grama Panchayath authorities, businesspeople and all the SHG members. Mr. Samson, the program officer of the Shreyas Pulpally Region and Ms. Bini Thomas, Regional coordinator of Pulpally Region shared the story of the Cake Challenge with the audience.

Mr. Shanson confirms that this Cake Challenge was our dream to help poor cancer patients. The whole of 11 Community organizers and regional coordinators were behind this intervention. Shanson says this initiative was discussed in the unit and regional-level monthly review meetings and later shared with the Shreyas Executive Director, Fr. Benny Edayath. Who extended his full support in rolling out this initiative.

“We as human beings get great opportunities to do God’s works in life knowingly and unknowingly sometimes, we don’t pay attention to it. This initiative of Shreyas is a great opportunity to transform our hands into God’s own hands,” said Ms. Mercy Sabu, President of Poothadi Gram Panchayat. The Cake Challenge Campaign inauguration was attended by all the ward members, standing committee members, and chairpersons of Meenangadi and Poothadi Grama Panchayath.

This cake challenge is already a hit among the people, and it is gaining momentum. A similar fundraising campaign has been undertaken in other areas to support cancer patients under the Ashakirnam Cancer Care Campaign.