ABOUT US
Pro
Labore Dei (In aid of the
destitute)
(For
the Labour of God)
Pro
Labore Dei is an ecclesial movement with a radical fundamental option for the
poorest of the poor. It is a covenant community whose members
comprises of:
(1) Consecrated
Virgins who in this case live a life of poverty, virginity and obedience -
giving up everything for the service of Christ in the poor and lonely and
living in the world so as to be more closely in touch with their poor.
(2) Married/Unmarried Volunteer
from all works of life - these work with the Consecrated Virgins. They join the
Sisters in their prayers also as much as time permits apart from the practical
work on the fields. They go through some training/formation. Any Christian who
is not opposed to the statutes of Pro Labore Dei and teachings of the Catholic
Church is welcome.
(3) Support groups
who just help when and how they can financially and morally.
(4) PLD
Juniors (ages 9 –14 years) whom we teach to love God and to help the poor
from this tender age.
Pro
Labore Dei’ mission /apostolate is to feed the hungry, cloth the naked,
shelter the homeless, nurse/treat the sick poor and the aged deserted by
relatives, to visit the imprisoned, be mothers to the orphaned and the abandoned
children, educate the young poor whose parents cannot send to school, bury the
dead, and care for the spiritually hungry also through the weekly/monthly prayer
meetings and counseling.
Christ
is the model and Him the members imitate through this radical option for the
poorest of the poor, the marginalized and the down trodden. The Holiness of
Christ is at the heart of all that they do as they strive to deepen their
spirituality and to grow in holiness while they work.
Pro
Labore Dei exists in Africa,
United States of America
and in the United Kingdom.
What is it all about?
Pro Labore Dei is a Non Governmental Organization that is committed to
working with the very poor, the destitute in our society for the
improvement in their condition.
MOTTO
The Motto of Pro Labore Dei is "We shall Serve"
GOAL
To bring God's loving kindness to the poor, the destitute.
GUIDING PRINCIPLES
Pro Labore Dei operates on the guiding principle that to give freely to
the destitute continuously is to make them to remain destitute forever.
It is for this reason therefore that Pro Labore Dei makes all efforts to
encourage and train these people and their offspring to earn their own
living so that they can take their place side by side with their
Fellow-Citizens in the society. (The aged and the incapacitated don't
need to learn any trade they are taken care of).
HISTORY
Pro Labore Dei began on the 16th of May 1990 as a response to God's call
to Sr. Stella-Maris Okonkwo to go out into the street and to the slum
areas where people are suffering and look after the very poor. She began
with a few of those destitute in the area of Ibadan with only a few
Naira notes in her pocket.
BENEFICIARIES
The Jobless, Poor, Lonely orphans, Aged poor, Abandoned beggars,
Disabled destitute, Homeless stranger, Sick poor and Children of the
destitute, the uncared for the starving poor at home yet to generate to
street begging etc.
OBJECTIVES
The mission of Pro Labore Dei to the destitute is to:
1) Feed those who are hungry
2) Clothe those who are naked
3) Nurse those who are sick
4) House those who are homeless
5) Train those who are able: to have a skill using simple methods
and informal learning techniques.
6) Rehabilitate those who are abandoned and help them as much as
possible to become self-reliant
7) Develop a sense of self worth and dignity in the destitute.
8) Develop within the community at large; respect for those who
are destitute and a sense of responsibility towards them.
9) To bring to Government agencies awareness of the problems of the
destitute and the need to address these problems.
MISSION STATEMENT
Our mission is to work, guided by his Divine Majesty, to redeem His
people from destitution. With this in mind, we consciously strive not to
rob the client of whatever little dignity he has left, we avoid
publicity. Clients' histories are treated as confidential. On no account
should clients' data or persons be covered by media publications. Our
business is to restore again their lost dignity and self-esteem, another
aspect of clothing. This clothing is to reflect on all areas of the
apostolate, for in this is the actualization of our goal.
ACHIEVEMENT TO DATE
-The Headquarters sitting on 9.2 acres with 13 houses - housing about 50
needy-adults and children.
- There
are now 24 Branches in Nigeria falling under two regions – Mary our
Mother Region in the Eastern side and Mother of Mercy in the Western
region.
- We
are feeding over 10,000 people a day in the town of
Lagos
alone not to talk about the other
23 branches where we are feeding in
Nigeria
.
For instance
-Ibadan Branch feeds 300 destitute daily and about 350 prisoners on
Saturday only.
- Oyo Branch is feeding 150
destitute daily
-Asaba branch feeds 1000 destitute daily
-Enugu branch feeds 240 destitute daily
- The
4 primary schools which we run in 4 different states continue to provide free
educations to children who otherwise will be on the street.
- Las Vegas branch feeds 100 destitute weekly
- Madison Branch feeds
100 destitute weekly
- London Branch feeds 120 destitute weekly
RESOURCES
HUMAN: volunteers, men and women from different professions who wish to work for
the destitute execute the projects of Pro Labore Dei. They include Nurses,
Doctors, Teachers, Traders, Religious, Farmers, Bankers, Engineers, Pharmacists
Lawyers and other professionals.
FINANCE: The projects of Pro Labore Dei are primarily financed through donation,
philanthropists within the society, church groups, charitable organizations as
well as funds from sales of blessed PLD products. With confidence in God, it is
expected that very soon some national and international funding will come to the
aid of this organization.
