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OCCUPANTS of the St. John’s Bosco Orphanage at Plaisance, East Coast Demerara, yesterday received a substantial donation of food items from the Comfort Sleep enterprise at Eccles Industrial Estate, East Bank Demerara. Administrative Officer at Comfort Sleep, Claudette Austin handed over the items and noted that the donation was an annual initiative which represents one of their many activities in “giving back to society.”
The company which manufactures mattresses and foam products has been making similar donations to other orphanages around Guyana, and Austin said the management is always delighted to be associated with such ventures.
Orphanage Administrator, Mrs. Grace Daniels expressed appreciation for the items and in praising Comfort Sleep’s management, she noted that the boys at the orphanage look forward to this kind gesture each year.
Daniels said that the success and smooth functioning of the orphanage depends on donor contributions and government stipends, adding that there is need for more such initiatives from other corporate entities. This is Comfort Sleep’s fifth year of contributing to the orphanage.
Yesterday’s donation included a quantity of cooking oil, wheat flour, various types of peas, Colgate toothpaste, chocolate, toilet tissue, sugar, rice, tea bags, onions, potatoes, laundry detergents, and noodles.
Genesis of the orphanage
The St. John’s Bosco Orphanage was founded in 1879 by Italian Jesuit priest Lugi Casati to help homeless boys in Plaisance Village and it was taken over in 1902 by the Sisters of Mercy, a private group that functions in the area. To date the orphanage has their own private school which accommodates some fifty-four male students. The students pursue studies in various subject areas from nursery to Grade 6 level before going off to secondary school.
At a time when survival was difficult in 1879, Father Casati, a Roman Catholic missionary in Guyana, gathered together a number of homeless boys he saw running around the streets of Plaisance. That was the genesis of the St. John Bosco Orphanage.
A blurb on the orphanage states: The word “Orphanage” in regard to St. John’s is probably a misnomer. Fr. Casati’s original idea was to get the boys off the streets – suggesting they were “homeless” but not necessarily orphans in the strict sense of the word.
Today, the accent is on the care of “poor, neglected boys”. A sociological study made a few years ago by Rosaliene Fung indicated that the majority of boys were not orphans, but had been abandoned by their parents for a multiplicity of reasons.
One of Bosco’s primary tools for healing the wounded souls of those under its care is music and this was integral to the establishment of the band room by the Tina Insanally Foundation. The Tina Insanally Foundation Bosco Steel Orchestra is being housed today in a spanking new band room, which was opened on May 21, 2012 at the orphanage.
The Foundation was established in memory of the youngest Insanally daughter, Tina, who passed away in May 2010 after a brief illness. Father Malcolm Rodrigues blessed the band room, which is a dedication to Tina, who loved and lived music.
Director of Bosco, Sister Judy, said that a steelband was a dream they thought would never materialize because of more pressing priorities. However, six years ago a donation from an anonymous donor concretized the dream; and with acquisition of drums from Demerara Distillers Limited (DDL,) the Bosco Steel Orchestra was established.
The company which manufactures mattresses and foam products has been making similar donations to other orphanages around Guyana, and Austin said the management is always delighted to be associated with such ventures.
Orphanage Administrator, Mrs. Grace Daniels expressed appreciation for the items and in praising Comfort Sleep’s management, she noted that the boys at the orphanage look forward to this kind gesture each year.
Daniels said that the success and smooth functioning of the orphanage depends on donor contributions and government stipends, adding that there is need for more such initiatives from other corporate entities. This is Comfort Sleep’s fifth year of contributing to the orphanage.
Yesterday’s donation included a quantity of cooking oil, wheat flour, various types of peas, Colgate toothpaste, chocolate, toilet tissue, sugar, rice, tea bags, onions, potatoes, laundry detergents, and noodles.
Genesis of the orphanage
The St. John’s Bosco Orphanage was founded in 1879 by Italian Jesuit priest Lugi Casati to help homeless boys in Plaisance Village and it was taken over in 1902 by the Sisters of Mercy, a private group that functions in the area. To date the orphanage has their own private school which accommodates some fifty-four male students. The students pursue studies in various subject areas from nursery to Grade 6 level before going off to secondary school.
At a time when survival was difficult in 1879, Father Casati, a Roman Catholic missionary in Guyana, gathered together a number of homeless boys he saw running around the streets of Plaisance. That was the genesis of the St. John Bosco Orphanage.
A blurb on the orphanage states: The word “Orphanage” in regard to St. John’s is probably a misnomer. Fr. Casati’s original idea was to get the boys off the streets – suggesting they were “homeless” but not necessarily orphans in the strict sense of the word.
Today, the accent is on the care of “poor, neglected boys”. A sociological study made a few years ago by Rosaliene Fung indicated that the majority of boys were not orphans, but had been abandoned by their parents for a multiplicity of reasons.
One of Bosco’s primary tools for healing the wounded souls of those under its care is music and this was integral to the establishment of the band room by the Tina Insanally Foundation. The Tina Insanally Foundation Bosco Steel Orchestra is being housed today in a spanking new band room, which was opened on May 21, 2012 at the orphanage.
The Foundation was established in memory of the youngest Insanally daughter, Tina, who passed away in May 2010 after a brief illness. Father Malcolm Rodrigues blessed the band room, which is a dedication to Tina, who loved and lived music.
Director of Bosco, Sister Judy, said that a steelband was a dream they thought would never materialize because of more pressing priorities. However, six years ago a donation from an anonymous donor concretized the dream; and with acquisition of drums from Demerara Distillers Limited (DDL,) the Bosco Steel Orchestra was established.
