THE INSPIRATION BEHIND SAFP

On the occasion of the 60th anniversary of Save A Family Plan in 2025, a plaque has been installed at the door of the Save A Family Plan Canadian headquarters. It proudly reads: “The Msgr. Augustine Kandathil Centre – Dedicated to love in action.” It is a constant reminder of our origins and mission.

The story of Save A Family Plan begins with Msgr. Augustine Kandathil, affectionately called “Father Gus” by everyone who knew him. Born in 1920 in India, he was ordained in 1947, and earned a PhD in Chemistry in 1960 at Notre Dame University in the USA. In 1963 he moved to New Brunswick, Canada, to teach. In December 1964, he traveled to Mumbai (then called “Bombay”) to attend the International Eucharistic Congress. It was at that time that the world learned from Pope St. Paul VI about the desperate poverty that Fr. Gus already knew first-hand; when he was a child, his mother would receive local beggars at their family home and helped them to meet their needs. “My mother encouraged my desire to bring good to them.”

During his time in India, Pope St. Paul VI was appalled by the widespread poverty and famine he witnessed in India. He called attention to the starvation and suffering, calling on the world to take notice, and to take action: “May this our anguished cry go forth to all nations and governments of the world and may God inspire them to undertake this peaceful battle against the sufferings of our less fortunate brethren.”

CALL TO ACTION

The word Pontiff literally means “bridge-maker” and this was certainly so when the pope inspired Fr. Gus and his colleague, Dr. Leo Ferrari, to commit themselves for the cause of those in dire need. Following the pope’s example of creating awareness and raising funds, they created Save A Family Plan to bridge the great chasms of distance and inequality by linking generous North American families with impoverished Indian families.

The connection was not just a vague notion; the idea of linking the families was seen as integral to the concepts of charity and social justice. It was caring at a personal level, with affection and correspondence from both sides, realized through correspondence by letters, cards, and photographs. 60 years later, we continue to hear from partner families that the compassion and encouragement of faraway strangers is inspiring to them; donors tell us that their experience is humbling and profoundly moving.

LAYING DOWN ROOTS

At the beginning, Save A Family Plan started with five families and operated out of office space provided by St. Thomas University in Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada. What began as a “charity” model later evolved into programs promoting sustainable development.

In 1972, Fr. Gus had a heart attack and worried that the work of Save A Family Plan might die with him. In 1973, after an exhaustive search for a long-term base of operations, he moved Save A Family Plan to St. Peter’s Seminary in London, Ontario. We remain there to this day, more than half a century later.

SAFP was incorporated in Ontario in 1977 and then federally in 1986. A U.S. branch office of SAFP operated in Dayton, Ohio in the 1960s and 70s. We are currently a registered nonprofit in both Canada and the United States of America.