Completed May 2009

New Dormitory Building at St. Joseph's Convent, home for children and orphanage of the Sisters of Holy Angels in Deniyaya

On April 28, 2009 I had the great pleasure to officially open the beautiful new Dormitory Building at St. Joseph's Convent in Deniyaya. The opening ceremony, which included a mass, the blessing of the building, the boiling of the coconut milk (for good luck) and songs and dances by the children, was beautiful; the gratitude from the children and nuns was overwhelming. This was an extremely rewarding and touching experience for me.

 
The new building has two floors. On the ground floor are 3 consecutive rooms: first a dressing/living room, then the study/multi-purpose room, followed by the dining room, with a connecting door to the convent kitchen. From the dining room stairs lead up to the 2^nd floor. This is the bedroom for the girls, extending over all 3 ground floor rooms.

What is most rewarding is that this new dormitory building will allow the nuns to accept 30 additional girls, who would otherwise not be able to get an education.

All girls at Saint Joseph will appreciate their new comfortable 'home' for many years to come.

Background

In March 2008 the Sisters of Holy Angels, who run several homes (including our first project in Elpitiya) for orphans and children from single parent or problem homes, asked for help with a re-building project at St. Joseph's convent in Deniyaya. St. Joseph's was built in 1942 and could accommodate only 20 children, far too little to serve the communities' needs.

Deniyaya is in the South of the country in hills surrounded by tea plantations. This is an area of very low income families/single parents, who often cannot send their children to school because they live in remote hill stations and do not have the means to support their education.

When the quotation for the new building exceeded our small fund's capability, Charming Shoppes, Inc. agreed to finance the new building, which was very much appreciated.

The old building was demolished in October and construction of the new one started in November 2008.

Erna Zint

Last Updated on Thursday, 14 May 2020 14:25