A poor Filipino mother who was given a ventilator to help her survive severe asthma donated the life-saving machine to her neighbour's four-year-old son.
A few days earlier the woman, a mother of 11, was struggling to breathe and had to be rushed to hospital by the Dorothean nuns who paid for her treatment and bought her the machine.
"Some days later the woman told me that the ventilator, which we bought for €35, had saved her life and that of her neighbour's son," Sr Annie Catania said with a glowing smile.
"It's so rewarding to see how one deed can help two people," she added.
Sr Annie is on a mission to raise money to help run the Sisters of St Dorothy mission based in the Philippines that helps poor children, expectant mothers and families in need.
The mission, based in Tandang Sora, in Quezon City, runs a feeding programme that provides about 50 poor Filipino children aged between two and six with food, education and religious instruction.
A recently launched Pastoral Care for Children Programme helps pregnant women by providing them with medical attention and nourishing food before and after the birth. The mission also takes in about 40 families, once a month, and organises prayer sessions and meals for them.
Some of the mothers of children cared for by the mission have decided to give something back and did training that allows them to help others. These mothers attended a 10-day seminar where they were taught how to prepare nourishing food and a mosquito repellent concoction as well as how to handle medicine.
"The bishop awarded the mothers a certificate on completing this course. One woman was so excited about possessing a certificate. She came up to me and thanked me for helping her feel dignified. She said she would frame the certificate... In fact, it hangs in the small room where she lives with her 11 children," Sr Annie said.
Since the mission was set up, over seven years ago, it has been expanding the help on offer. Currently, all events are hosted at the Dorothean convent and Sr Annie wishes the mission would in future be in a position to purchase a building to convert it into classrooms for the children, clinics and a meeting place where families could gather.
While calling for more help through donations, she insisted on thanking those who have already helped as well as benefactors, such as the Knights of Malta who provide medicine, the Mission Fund and the Mission Movement, among others.
Every year, Sr Annie comes to Malta to visit her family and uses the time to collect funds for the mission. A fund-raising buffet lunch will be held at the Dolmen Hotel in Qawra on Sunday at 12.30 p.m. Tickets cost €15 for adults and €8 for children and can be purchased at the door.
Every Sunday, until July 26, Sr Annie will be organising a bazaar at St Dorothy's Convent, in Mdina, where she will be selling items made by the mothers whose children attend the convent in the Philippines.
Those who wish to help Sr Annie with her projects in the Philippines can send a donation to the Bank of Valletta account 18208305010 or to St Dorothy's Convent, Mdina Road, Żebbuġ.