Restoring Dignity: Inside the Leprosy Care Project
Leprosy is a curable disease, yet in many parts of India the stigma surrounding it far outlives the illness itself. Men and women affected by leprosy are often abandoned by their families and rejected by their communities — left with nowhere to belong. It is into this gap that Agape Reaching Ministries stepped, believing that no one should be forgotten by the love of God.
Today, ARM's Leprosy Care Project serves 320+ leprosy-affected men and women in and around Sambalpur, Odisha. The ministry purchased 1.5 acres of land and has built 14 residential quarters, giving residents a permanent, dignified place to live rather than the roadside or begging colonies many once called home.
More Than a Roof
Housing was only the beginning. Each week, ARM's team holds church services and prayer cells directly within the community, so that residents don't have to travel — or face the stares of a public congregation — to worship. Many residents have accepted Jesus Christ as their personal Savior since the ministry began, finding not only physical shelter but spiritual family.
"For years I was told I had no place among people. Here, I have a home, a church, and brothers and sisters who never turn away from me." — A Leprosy Care Resident
A Ministry of Presence
What sets the Leprosy Care Project apart is simple presence — pastors and volunteers who show up week after week, sit with residents, pray with them, and treat them exactly as they would any other member of the church family. In a culture where leprosy-affected individuals are frequently avoided out of fear, that consistency itself preaches a sermon.
The needs of the community are ongoing: medical supplies, food, and the continued maintenance of the residential quarters all require support. Every gift toward the Leprosy Care Project goes directly toward sustaining this community and the church that has grown up within it.
If you would like to partner with ARM in serving Odisha's leprosy-affected communities — through prayer or giving — we would be honored to hear from you.
Leprosy Care FAQs
It's a ministry serving leprosy-affected men and women in and around Sambalpur, Odisha, providing housing, community, weekly worship, and prayer support to a population that faces significant social stigma.
The project currently serves 320+ leprosy-affected residents, housed across 14 residential quarters built on 1.5 acres of land purchased by the ministry.
You can support the project through prayer, a financial donation earmarked for leprosy care, or by contacting ARM directly to learn about current needs such as medical supplies, food, or facility maintenance.