Divyalaya - Hostel Community

Philonagar - Darbe - Puttur - Karnataka

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History of Divyalaya community

The long-silent dream of Late Msgr. Antony Patrao, a great visionary and founder of all Catholic educational institutions in Puttur, of starting a hostel for women, was awakened after about three decades in the mind of Rev. Fr. Fredrick Mascarenhas, the Principal of St. Philomena College, in the year 1999.

The hostel was inaugurated on 30th June 2000, with the motto “Faith and Service,” by admitting 144 students from I PUC to III Degree. It is owned by the Catholic Board of Education of the Diocese of Mangalore, which is registered under the Societies Registration Act of 1860.

Having seen the possibilities of a women’s hostel, the management of the college approached Rev. Sr. Mercy Jacob, the Provincial Superior of Mysore, through St. Joseph’s Convent – Puttur. After a long discussion and discernment, the Provincial and the councils agreed to allow the management of St. Philomena College to take over the hostel with certain terms and conditions. So, on 1st June 2000, the Divyalaya community was formed in the hostel with the following sisters:

Sr. Leontine – Warder
Sr. Jean Furtado – Student
Sr. Lavina D’Souza – Student
Sr. Pramila D’Souza – Student

From the time of its existence the sisters of St. Joseph of Tarbes have been rendering their service in the campus. The hostel has been gaining strength year by year. It provides board and lodging for PUC, Degree and Post Graduates. The hostel has earned much recognition not only in and around Puttur but also in the faraway places. It consists of students from different walks of life, different castes and different places. But inside the hostel the students belong to one family.

Objective:

To provide food and accommodation with conducive environment for any ideal student to carry out her task at the best.
To provide guidance and support for the all-round development of personality of the students.
To provide favourable environment to achieve the goal who reside as an inmate of the hostel.
look upon each other as one family members with filial love and concern

Various Activities

Residential care for the college girls
All round development of the students
Spiritual animation
House visit
Visiting the sick
Taking care of the students with health problems
Inter Religious Prayers
Vocation promotion
Pastoral work in the parish
Guidance and counselling

The names of the wardens who rendered their service down the years

Sl. No	Year	Name
1	2000 to 2004	Sr. Leontine
2	2005 to 2010	Sr. Agnelo
3	2010 to 2013	Sr. Rosaline Martis
4	2013 to 2016	Sr. Rosy Saldana
5	2017 to 2020	Sr. Flora Machado
6	1st June 2020 to 21st June 2022	Sr. Janet Clara Cutinha
7	22nd June 2022 onwards	Sr. Lourdu Mary

By the grace of God, the community has been able to live the consecrated life meaningfully, experiencing God’s hand leading and guiding to accomplish, to a certain extent, the purpose for which the Lord called. The personal and community prayers, the Holy Eucharistic celebration, and the Word of God are the strength to give oneself in service. In this way, the community has been able to experience the hidden power to make vibrant the Charism of Communion.

There are Sisters at present in the community. Two sisters are engaged full-time in taking care of the Hostel, and one of them is a student who also assists the warden. Apart from this, the community is also involved in pastoral ministry and other activities of the church.

The sisters care for the students of PUC, UG, and PG in the hostel by providing food, accommodation, and attending to their every need. In addition to providing a secure residence for all the women students, the hostel also caters to the mental, spiritual, physical, and emotional upliftment of the students. As the hostel consists of students from different walks of life, different religions, castes, languages, and places, it has a unique experience of communion (a kind of fulfillment of Jesus’ prayer: “Father, may they all be one” [John 17:21]). Inside the hostel, the students feel they belong to one family and look upon each other as family members with filial love and concern.

St. Philomena Women’s Hostel is a home away from home for all the students who find traveling difficult. The history of the students who have been residing in the hostel gives us an accurate check of the progress and merits of the hostel’s smooth functioning. With satisfactory academic results, laurels in the field of sports, cultural activities, and all other aspects of college life, the hostel has proven to be an excellent place. All those who have completed their studies in this institution are well-placed in their jobs or pursuing higher studies. Some have secured jobs abroad. Thus, the hostel proves to be the appropriate place to ensure the academic and, more importantly, the overall development of all the inmates.