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Fili-Inc. was born from the love, kindness, and camaraderie of a group of five philanthropic ladies: Lisa, Maria, Cleo, Roberta, and Rosa. Fili-Inc. partnered with Ekota Film and recently, Fili has appointed Dr. Anna Yallourakis as their CEO and welcomed a new board member Nicole Capsopoulos. In 2008, Fili began its first mission: raising funds and drawing awareness for the Theotokos Girl’s and Boy’s Orphanage and St Ignatius School in Bakeswar a suburb of Kolkata India.
A humble nun, Sister Nektaria, has been the sole leader of these organizations for the past 25 years, and Fili responded to her call for funds to help sustain and educate the orphan children in her care.
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FILI, together with you, our fellow “Friends Improving Lives Internationally”. This month we highlight the food distribution for the very poor in Kolkata (Calcutta). |
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FROM YOUR HANDS……….
A hungry and ragged child carefully holds a cup so that her younger sister can have a drink of precious milk. This may be the only food that they will have for the day and the big sister understands that she must care for the little one as best she can.
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For several years, Sister Nectaria has provided a serving of reconstituted dry milk and a small biscuit to approximately 60 children who come to the churchyard each morning from the neighboring slum. Including the labor of mixing and serving the milk, washing the metal cups, and purchasing the dry milk and biscuits, each morning’s feeding costs only $10. Imagine staving off starvation for sixty children for only ten dollars! |
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Each afternoon, 100 disabled street people gather, each holding a plate or bowl as they hungrily await a serving of rice with sauce. That topping can be a vegetable, potato, or dal curry. The aroma of onion, ginger, turmeric, and cumin fills the air. An older lady with a severe limp awaits the gate opening. There is the man who lost his toes to leprosy. Another walks with a stick for support. Some appear to have mental or cognitive problems or poorly healed injuries. The warm food is put directly into their containers, and, as they have no homes, they often sit on the curb to satiate their hunger as quickly as possible. Some of these “poorest of the poor” have never been inside of a building in their lives! Once a month, there is a special treat. The rice topping includes eggs! On one very special day of the year, there is fish included, and on one more day of the year, chicken curry tops the usual rice. What joy these treats must bring to the dear hungry folks. |
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The rice and dal is prepared in immense cauldron-like pots, cooked on an open fire, and served by faithful cooks. The simplest provision of dal and rice cost approximately $25 to feed all comers, and the meal with egg is $38. The annual “fish day" is $44, and the long-awaited “chicken day” is $78.
How can we help? How many days of feeding poor and hungry children can we sponsor? How many “chicken days” or “fish days” can we provide? This is a great project for an individual, a family, a club, a Sunday School or a scout troop. A church could sponsor months of meals.
Contact us through Fili-inc.com for using PayPal or checks can be sent to FILI, 6430 Bose Lane, San Jose, CA 95120. All contributions are sent receipts, and the funds are tax-deductible.
From your hands….to the hungry of Kolkata.
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Fillo-nthropy 4 Cooking for a Cause |
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Missed the program or want to replay it?
Click on the link below.
Chef Sarintha demonstrated how to make an easy vegetarian Indian meal like a pro. They spiced up our menu all while supporting Sr. Nectaria's work.
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To learn more about the Sister Nectaria's work visit our website to see the documentaries EKOTA and EKOTA II |
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We invite you all to read the recent article from the National Geographic: "Stolen Lives: The harrowing story of two girls sold into sexual slavery." One of the regions the article highlights is in West Bengal, India, the location of the Theotokos Girls' Orphanage. In 2016, a staggering 55% of Indian girls trafficked were from West Bengal. The work we do at Fili, with the help and contributions of our donors, fights child sex trafficking by providing vulnerable girls with food, housing and an education. Please continue to support our work and please forward this email to spread awareness of of our mission. Please click on the photo to visit the article.
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Does your company match donations? Please email us at help@fili-inc.com and we will provide you any required information.
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