Loveina Noronha is Bengaluru’s very own Santa Claus, one who works all year round, that is! With over 40 years of raising funds for charitable causes under her belt, Noronha, the personification of the Christmas spirt, is still going strong. She talks to Ranjani Madhavan about a lifetime of service to the poor and needy.
A long line of women troop quietly into the Holy Ghost Church in Richard’s Town each afternoon, making their way to the courtyard where plastic chairs have been arranged for them. Groups of volunteers appear, clutching plastic boxes of freshly cooked food, which the women accept eagerly. Several of these women take the boxes and leave, for it is all their families will have to eat for the day. The Church began their initiative nearly ten years ago, using donations from the parish to pay for the caterers, who provide them with vegetarian and non-vegetarian meals.
On Friday afternoon, DC visited one of the backbones of the initiative. Loveina Noronha is in her mid sixties, full of life and warmth. She smiles nervously as we enter – the limelight has never fascinated her and the prospect of being interviewed causes her some trepidation. She is no stranger to charity work, however, having begun her tryst with social service nearly 40 years ago in Abu Dhabi, where she lived and worked as a banker.
“I joined the Indian Ladies Association, which was relatively new at the time. I was thrown into the deep end, so to speak, starting out with raising funds for their activities. It was a challenge, but one I enjoyed,” said Noronha, whose house is bursting with Christmas cheer already. Presents line the foot of her beautifully-decorated Christmas tree and a Biblical painting adorns the wall behind her. Every day is Christmas, though, as far as she is concerned.
Loveina returned to Bengaluru six years ago and threw herself into charity work almost at once. "I began raising funds for the local chapter of the Overseas Women's Club," she recalled. A year ago, Father Paul, the head of the Holy Ghost Church came to bless her house and they got to talking. The parish was struggling to make ends meet - 70 women were being fed everyday and donations from the congregation just weren't enough. "Father Paul asked me to attend the daily mass, where I met other senior citizens like myself," she said.
Given her experience in gathering sponsors, she introduced her group members to innovative ideas of fund raising. “They had never heard of a walkathon until I told them. I took charge, and helped them organize it on Jan 14 last year. What we earn is given to the church,” she explained.
The event will take place at the St. Mary’s ground within the Church, but she and her group are not raising their hopes, due to the recent demonetization policy. “We are finding it a little difficult this year because people’s businesses have taken a hit but we will still try to achieve our fund target,” she said, confidently.
With the New Year round the corner, the group is looking for best possible resources to collect enough money for the next 365 days. Walkathon tickets will raise some funds while more will come from personal sponsors.
“The one thing I understand from all of this is that only people who know you and trust you will sponsor. I have tried to reach out to my personal contacts for this cause. I don’t take it from people who hesitate, but those having goodwill,” Loveina Noronha said.
While most love to associate with humanitarian causes, for the name and respect that comes with it, for her, hitting the limelight has never been her agenda. “ I don’t ever want my name highlighted for this work. It just makes me really happy. I have always loved helping the elderly, poor and most importantly, those who are lonely,” she said, while never giving even a hint of self indulgence throughout the conversation.
