Dreams of splashing out on little luxuries and living a tranquil life were dashed for two mothers who have had to refocus their thoughts on a different reality: how to feed their children.

I was surprised anyone was really offering to help without being judgemental, making no restrictions on me

Both women, single mothers, had countless sleepless nights, desperately mulling over how they could buy everyday staples, pay the rent and other commodities many take for granted.

Drowning under financial anxieties, Diana* and Jackie* were thrown a lifeline by the Catholic Action’s Social Assistance Secretariat, which not only helped them out financially but empowered them with the skills to face similar challenges in the future.

The two women are just a few of the success stories of the secretariat, which has just celebrated its 50th anniversary.

Diana, the mother of two boys under 10, cannot recall exactly how she had ended up on the secretariat’s doorstep. “I had knocked on the doors of other places asking for support only to be told the means available were very limited. I approached the secretariat at a time when I could hardly make ends meet,” she recalled.

A social worker with the secretariat, Linda Carabott, heard her story. Diana’s problems started when she was pregnant with her second son. She was about to complete her studies with an overseas education programme and had to give it up due to a back injury. The birth of her son led to increased difficulty when he was diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

Diana is extremely health conscious and tries to bring up her kids as well as possible. Throughout the interview she was busily chopping fresh marrows and peeling carrots to prepare a healthy soup for them.

“I want to prevent diseases and would like to give my kids a healthy upbringing. However, I often can’t afford to buy them meat or chicken as most of the relief money goes into the rent and other utility bills,” she admitted.

“Linda saw I wanted to give my kids the best. My career does not come first. My boys do,” she said, looking up and taking in her children’s crafts scattered on the floor and the pencil marks on the walls.

“However, Linda must have seen my resolve. Within two days of approaching them, they got back to say they were also willing to sponsor me with the studies. I was surprised anyone was really offering to help without being judgemental, making no restrictions on me. And for this I shall be forever grateful. I’ve been helped by angels.”

The secretariat has motivated Diana enough to make sure she passes her exams in the coming months. This, together with the chance of getting government housing, will leave some more cash with which to be able to live better. “My motto has always been ‘do it with love and fully or don’t bother doing it at all’. That’s exactly what Linda and the secretariat have done for me,” she said, coaxing her younger son to eat his last few spoonfuls of pasta.

Jackie has not had an easy life either. The 40-year-old mother of a bright 14-year-old, her troubles began about five years ago when she moved back into the premises her father said she could use.

The trauma and domestic violence – she was nearly choked to death by her father – have left an indelible mark on the woman, who is still having psychiatric treatment. “We used to live in a garage and my father provided me with an extension for electricity. The fridge used to be plugged in. Sometimes, he would switch off the supply and would laugh and snigger when he saw me throw away all the food I had in the fridge,” she recalled.

“Which father would do that to his own flesh and blood? To his own child? He brought us misery and lots of suffering,” she said.

Jackie recalled that she and her son never needed anything. She fondly recalled the time she used to own tens of pairs of shoes.

“Then we had nothing. We were not only homeless but we ended up begging people for morsels to eat. I could not let my son starve to death. I have no other family except my son, Linda and the secretariat and all the other people at the Millennium chapel ,” she said.

Wiping the tears, Jackie said that over the past year she had been working to upgrade the social housing unit she was given in Pietà. Money from the Housing Authority was not enough to cover the cost of a bathroom and the secretariat forked out the rest.

* Names have been changed to protect the persons’ identity.

‘When people knock, we are available’

The Social Assistance Secretariat was set up 50 years ago by the late Archbishop Michael Gonzi, who was used to seeing queues waiting for charity and had wanted to do something about it at a time of great economic turmoil.

The Catholic Action Movement had always been at the forefront of helping the needy and Mgr Gonzi entrusted it with the new set-up, secretariat secretary general Joe Rossi said.

“When people knock at our door we are available. The Catholic Action has been in the parishes and on the periphery. We have witnessed the ever-changing face of poverty throughout the years.

“The poor nowadays are the single mothers, those suffering from illness, abusing different substances, those who have had deaths in the family or experienced some tragedy and, most importantly, those who lack employment and basic skills.”