St. Joseph’s Boys Hostel, Gujranwala, Pakistan.
St. Joseph’s hostel is located in the city of Gujranwala in Punjab, Pakistan. Since 1965 It has provided boarding facilities for poor and vulnerable boys from both urban and rural areas to receive a quality Christian education at the nearby St Joseph’s High School. The De La Salle Brothers have been managing the hostel since 2020. Currently there are 30 boys aged between 8 and 16 years old who board at the hostel
Most of the students who arrive at the hostel are disadvantaged financially and socially. Some boys come from broken families and have been placed with other families. Others have parents who are unable to afford the necessities of life. Parents and guardians contribute what they can to cover some of the operating costs of the hostel and the tuition of the boys, but their capacity to contribute is very limited.
The boys in the hostel are all Christians. In Pakistan being a Christian is to be part of an economically disadvantaged group who have menial jobs if they can get jobs at all. Pakistani Christians suffer discrimination for their faith they are sometimes persecuted using blasphemy laws, and occasionally are injured or killed by Muslim extremists simply because they are Christian. Seventy percent of Christians, particularly day wagers and labourers, lost their jobs during the pandemic. Unemployment, under-employment and poor housing are widespread in the Pakistani Christian community. Churches are surrounded by armed police or soldiers during Sunday masses to protect the worshippers from terrorist attacks.
The boys who board at St Joseph’s Hostel can get a good education and break out of the poverty cycle that characterises most Pakistani Christians. They have a secure and ordered environment and receive educational and social support from Brother Naqash, the Hostel Supervisor, and other staff with their educational and personal needs.
There is a shortfall of AUD 80 (NZD 90) per student per month in covering the basic living and educational expenses of the boys in the hostel. The Lasallian Foundation is reaching out to Lasallian teachers, students, families and former students in Australia and New Zealand to obtain sponsorship that will enable the hostel work to continue and flourish. The best way to make a contribute is by using the ‘donate now’ button on the Lasallian Foundation website and make a regular monthly contribution that will provide a partial or full scholarship. Your support is both needed and appreciated. Online Donation
