Czech Republic: building of social apartments for families in need and improvement of in-home hospice care to be funded from Epiphany Collection

(Bratislava) - Over 14 million CZK (€560,000) have been collected during this year´s edition of the annual Epiphany Collection in all dioceses of Bohemia and Moravia. The project, one of the greatest and most successful Czech charitable initiatives with a decades-long history, is due to culminate on Sunday this week. In the past years, the collection was performed by children dressed as the biblical Magi who visited the households carolling and bringing the good news of Jesus’ birth to all people of good will. “This year, due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the collection system had to change. We had to install static money boxes in Caritas offices, shops and churches. We are also happy to see that many people chose to make online donations”, explains Lukáš Curylo, director of Caritas Czech Republic. Unfortunately, the money raised in this year´s collection is expected to be much lower than last year´s when people donated more than 120 million CZK. The projects that will be supported include the funding of an in-home hospice care service that respects the dignity of the terminally ill, new social apartments for families in severe financial crisis, and the purchase of clothes and shoes for the most deprived. “Thousands of people in need are going to benefit from the generosity of donors who, year by year, show that they really care about solidarity and a human approach”, concludes Lukáš Curylo.Gigliola Alfaro