Setting up of Prateek Menezes Memorial Foundation Health Centre in Posenggagre, Meghalaya
Prateek Memorial Menezes Foundation (PMMF) has tied up with Sisters of the Destitute (SD) for the setting up of a health centre to cater to the health needs of the people of Posenggagre, Meghalaya and the surrounding hilly areas, who, otherwise ,would have to travel to Tura town, for any health related emergency. In recognition for the support provided by PMMF, the Sisters of the Destitute, who would be running the Centre, have named it as ‘Prateek Menezes Memorial Foundation Heath Centre’. The Centre was inaugurated on 31st May 2025 by Mr. Allen Brooks, former Chairman of Assam State Commission for Minorites and blessed by His Excellency, Most Reverend Jose Chirackal, Auxiliary Bishop of Tura Diocese. Thereafter, a cultural programme was organized with the local children participating in the same followed by a fellowship meal.
Prateek Menezes Memorial Foundation Health Centre on the day of its inauguration
Mr. Allen Brooks welcoming Mother Smitha Vembilly, Provincial Superior, Pushpadham Province cum President of Sisters of the Destitute Manav Seva Society, on the occasion of the inauguration of the Centre.
His Excellency, Most Reverend Jose Chirackal blessing the Health Centre.
His Excellency, Most Reverend Jose Chirackal and Mr. Allen Brooks after the inauguration of the Centre
A group photograph of His Excellency Most Reverend Jose Chirackal, Mr. Allen Brooks, Mother Smita Vembilly, Provincial Superior, Pushpadham Province cum President of Sisters of the Destitute Manav Seva Society and Reverend Fathers and Sisters in front of the Health Centre.
Children of the village participating in cultural programme
Fellowship meal being served to all
Further to the inauguration and in the course of running the Health Centre, the Sisters of Destitute felt that an ambulance would be essential for transporting patients with life-threatening emergencies and expressed this to PMMF which was readily agreed to. Once again, Mr. Allen Brooks played a pivotal role in this regard, and in the words of Sr Smitha , ‘selfelessly became the bridge between the Foundation and the people’.
On the 14th August 2025, the dream of the Sisters came true when Force Motors Ambulance was delivered to the Centre. This occasion was graced by Rev. Dr. Namseng R Marak, Secretary General, CBCNEI, Rev. Fr. Tom, General Secretary for Ecumenism in North East India, Mr. Allen Brooks, Dr. Kechongol Sophie, Medical Secretary, Council of Baptist Churches in North India, Dr. Editha, Medical Superintendent, Christian Hospital, Tura, Fr. Amalraj, Deputy Secretary, North Eastern Regional Bishop’ Council, Mrs Manjula, Principal, Cynthia Lobo’s Memorial School and Sr. Teena Nambalampara, Superior cum Sr. in charge of Prateek Menezes Memorial Health Centre. This was followed by a cultural programme.
Sr. Teena Nambalampara, Superior cum Sr. in charge of the Health Centre is receiving the key of the Ambulance from Rev. Dr. Marak and Fr. Amalraj.
A group photograph of all invitees, Reverend Fathers and Sisters in front of the ambulance and Health Centre.
Message from the Managing Trustee regarding the PMMF health Centre
Health Camp at PMMF Health Centre, Possengaggere
A free Health Camp was held a Prateek Menezes Memorial Foundation Health Centre in collaboration with Tura Christian Baptist Mission Hospital on 28th February 2026. This was an ecumenical collaborative effort for the welfare of the people of Possengaggere, Meghalaya.
The camp progressed smoothly, making it an opportune time for collaboration. A significant number of patients, totaling 110, received medical attention. The team commenced operations at 9:30 am, and although the doctors departed at 1:30 pm, patients continued to arrive. The camp ultimately concluded at 4:30 pm. Despite the hectic nature of the event, it brought substantial satisfaction and joy.
Ground Report OnThe PMMF Health Centre At Posenggagre
Prateek Menezes Memorial Foundation Health Centre, previously known as Grace Home Health Centre, is a newly constructed Centre and blessed on 31st May 2025 in Posenggagre, Tura Diocese at West Garo Hills, Meghalaya. We started it with no building or proper setup in the guest room of the convent. But, by God’s special providence, we have a beautiful building now with the generous support of the Prateek Menezes Memorial Foundation. This is the main reason that the Centre was named after the late son of Mr. Cesar and Dr. Mimi Menezes, the Managing Trustees of the Foundation. Sr.Teena Nambalampara is working there as the staff nurse and In-Charge. Every day, on an average, 10 to 15 patients come to the centre and benefits from our service.
There are 21 villages around this centre. Even though villages are 21, the population of the area is much lower compared to the other places. Mostly they depend on the cultivation as their income source. Therefore, the people are generally financially very poor and uneducated. The regular patients suffer mainly from viral fever, skin diseases, diarrhoea, common flu, joint pain, hypertension and other health issues. We have also come across patients with liver diseases and even many cases of cancer, which we refer to Tura Mission Hospital for further treatment. We had a meeting with Tura Christian Hospital run by Baptists and they have agreed to support us with their visits and medical camps.
It is our pleasure and privilege to work with them. For these reasons, we could conduct the medical camp very effectively. Many from far and near villages benefited from it. Even though there are lot of limitations, people are happy and they appreciate our service. Language is a barrier yet we are able to manage. God is so gracious to us that, with the generous help of Mr Cesar and Dr Mimi Menezes, we were able to buy an ambulance which arrived at the Centre on 23rd of August 2025. May the Almighty God bless and reward the good will that the Menezes family show towards us.
The Centre has become a blessing to the locality and the people of far and near. They can approach us any time of the day and we try to be there for them. Even though we charge very less, mainly for the medicines, many take our services for granted. It is a challenge when they don’t pay. There are some genuine cases, where due to their financial condition, they cannot pay. For this reason, we are not able to keep an extra staff. However, so far, we are able to ride the ups and downs. The local MLA was very generous in supporting our medical camp and we could provide the medicines free of cost during the last medical camp.
ACTIVITIES
- Regular Home visits
- Health awareness programmes
- Home based care for the bedridden
- Spiritual Support in Dying stage
- Mental support and counselling
- Free Medical Camps
I would like to share with you a small experience of joy and satisfaction working here in the centre Once during my home visit, I came across with an Acchu( Grandpa). His name is Wengnan R Marak, 75yrs old, suffering from a large abscess at his back which has the symptoms of cancer, filled with pus and foul smell and water oozing from it continuously since past 8 – 9 months. It has the size of big roti and it seemed like it was incurable and his general condition was getting worse by the day. His family and relatives had given up hope. For a few days, I regularly went up and down to do the dressing and it seemed no chance to dry the wound, because the wound was much deeper beyond our imagination. Every time I visited, I saw that he was soaked in blood and pus on the bed. Even his own people couldn’t bear the smell and walked away. So I advised them to take him for a scanning and further treatment in the hospital. But no one was ready to do that, and told me “Sister, please do what you can, we have tried so much. We are not able to take him for another treatment”. Since it was rainy season and I had to cross river every time I visited him (sometimes water was too high that it was impossible to get there), I told them to bring him to our centre.
I decided, with the permission of my fellow sisters, to keep him in the Centre for some time. I did wound dressing every morning and in the evening, I gave few courses of antibiotics injections and then some intravenous vitamins along with drip. To our surprise, after two weeks, he started gaining health and began to fresh and lively with the wound started getting dry slowly and the fever subsided. I really thanked God for this wonder. Within a month he got completely cured and was able to stand on his feet. It gave me lot of satisfaction and joy. God gave me the fruit of my hard work. It clearly showed that nothing is impossible with God.