Anniversary gala raises money to lift India’s poor from poverty

Craig Macartney
Spur Ottawa Writer

Loving the outcast is a central message Christ taught. Rarely does this call go hand-in-hand with galas. However, a banquet coming up on September 28 brings these two things together: celebrating the 10th anniversary of the Dalit Freedom Network Canada (DFN) and raising money for a new elementary school in a Dalit community, in India.

“There are about 250 million Dalits in India. They are the bottom rung, below India’s caste system,” explains David Lundy, DFN’s Director of Development. “They have a 3000 year history of being taken advantage of by the higher caste people. DFN fights for their human rights by providing these people education in English. That enables them, if they finish high school, to go on to college and university, which is all in English in India.”

DFN’s anniversary gala includes a four-course meal at the Canadian Aviation and Space Museum. Although gala events cost a lot to organize, Lundy says a local businessman has underwritten the entire cost of the evening.

“The cost of a ticket is $100 and actually the whole amount is going to our special fundraising goal for the evening. It’s really a wonderful gift because normally we would have to take the cost of the event out of the ticket price.”

DFN is a registered education charity in Canada. Their international network has started more than 100 schools, educating more than 27,000 Dalit children in the last 15 years. The Canadian branch is the biggest global contributor to the ministry and Lundy says it increased again substantially last year.

Hindu leaders from the Dalit community asked DFN to give them a Christian worldview in the schools.

The ministry is Christian-based, but focuses on serving the physical and social needs of the Dalits. Lundy says they have a broad interfaith support base, but they still have amazing opportunities to share the gospel.

“We empower from the outside by impacting their worldview, self-esteem, and educational and job opportunities,” he explains. “We hoped and prayed and had a vision for [a visible Kingdom impact], but we’ve been amazed at the groundswell response. More than 3,000 churches have formed as an unintended consequence of the work to educate these children.”

Back in 2001, Lundy says Hindu leaders “from the Dalit community asked us to give them a Christian worldview in the schools. They said, ‘We know you believe that all people are created equally.’ So we work with the Indian-Christian community.”

Indigenous Christians on the ground, in India, operate all the schools and programs. That enables a practical witness of the gospel. Lundy says people are turning to Jesus as they see the love shown to their children and the empowerment of women.

“We really want to see the Dalits transformed, one child at a time, one family at a time, one community at a time,” Lundy states. “It’s an integral vision where we are addressing the needs of the body, soul, and spirit.”

The last day to purchase tickets for the gala is September 21, 2016.