Building Dreams Brick by Brick: Mary Philomina’s Journey to a Dignified Life
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kolpingindiaIn the village of Pinkulam down South of Tamil Nadu in Kanyakumari district, lives Mary Philomina, a Kolping member whose determination has helped her and her family to own a decent house. As a daily wage worker, Mary earns her livelihood by offering home care to the sick and elderly in her neighbourhood. Her husband, Nelson, works earns his livelihood by climbing coconut trees and trimming coconut tree’s fronds. The family has two sons who, after completing their 12th-grade education, work as helpers for a mason, assisting in constructing homes.
Despite their hard work, the earning from the four members was not sufficient to have a decent living. They were living in a substandard old house, built of mud clay plastered walls covered with tin roof. The life under tin roofed house was challenging for the family particularly during hot summer and rainy seasons.
Mary learnt life skills through various trainings and started to aspire for better life with the Kolping Family members encouragement and support. The savings and credit system practiced in the Kolping Families and Kolping India’s Social and Economic Wellbeing projects gave Mary the courage to venture into a making her life-time desire of building a better house.
The couple decided to construct a new house on a small piece of land owned by Mary, located close to their old mud-walled house. The family decided to construct a new house with the support of Kolping India which sponsored Rs.50,000/- and the credit of Rs.75,000/- taken from the Kolping Family association. The used wooden materials which was available in the market was purchased to minimize the total construction cost of the house. Mary and her family gave their labour by serving as helpers to the Mason constructing the house. Having her two sons experienced in construction sector, the combined hard labour of the family did help them in reducing further the construction cost. It took 6 months to complete the house. As a result, Mary now owns a strong, concrete-roofed house, measuring 460 square feet which includes two rooms, a kitchen, and a toilet. This new house now provides them a safe and comfortable shelter, protecting them during monsoons and summers alike.
