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Where Does the Money Go? (continued)

Medellin:

New Center of Worship

Father Bob Seguin and the parishioners of Ecce Homo are hoping to begin work on a new center of worship in one of the poorest neighborhoods of the parish. They have gradually acquired the land and have begun architect studies. They will build little by little according to their means.

The parish has recently expanded to include many new parishioners because of a welfare housing project for displaced people. A new road which will soon be built will pass through the middle of the old parish. The people, who are extremely poor, have raised the equivalent of $2,500 US over the past year from door to door collections once a month, and from selling food after the Masses. Other donations have helped them acquire a good land site for the project, although more property will need to be acquired.

Architect's Plan for the new church
(click to enlarge)

The plans call for a church for 300 people (seated) and parish offices, a four story social service building and classroom space. The estimated cost to complete the center will be about $300,000 US. Perhaps some generous donor will send the modest sum of $200 for a statue of Our Lady, Help of Christians, for an outdoor grotto there. Here, as throughout our mission territory, your generous donations provide not only help, but encouragement for the people to help themselves.

Existing chapel in Medellin

Basic Living Skills Program

Over the past year, 500 families have moved into government housing in this parish. These families were displaced from rural areas in Choco y Uraba and forced to move to the city a number of years ago, living in shacks on the side of a mountain. Three and a half years ago, a fire swept through their homes and destroyed everything. They are finally moving into government built apartments; 500 families remain to be moved. This year, the parish hopes to begin a project with these people in Mirador de Calasanz to help them acquire basic skills in living and coping with life in the city and in the new situation in which they find themselves. 

“Corporacion Educativo - CLEBA” Provides training for adults in basic reading and writing skills. A new program, it is designed to last for three years. Some of the previous volunteers will continue their work with the community and new volunteers will be prepared.

“Taller San Basilio” Offers young people a chance to work in carpentry and art crafts and earn funds for their education and family support.

Parish Library and Computer area. This is open to the public and is in constant use, especially by the students of the three nearby schools.

Rabbit Project. Parishoners of Ecce Homo hope to begin a new project to raise rabbits as a source of food for the poor and to try to enable people to begin raising rabbits in their homes so that they will have a source of meat in their diet.

Cooperation with other religious orders: the Basilians work with a number of other religious orders including the Redemptorists in a program called Stores for Peace which provides food to the poor, the Centro Medico San Basilio with Mother Teresa’s sisters, the Madres Escalopias with the school next to the parish, and the Marianitas in faith formation in small communities.

Mexico

Xalapa:

House of Studies. Father Alejandro Romero is stationed at the new house for young men interested in pursuing the religious life and joining our Congregation. The house is located near the excellent seminary of the Archdiocese of Xalapa in the state of Vera Cruz.

Tehuacan:

“Sanatorio Sagrado Corazon de Tehuacan” This program is an economic foundation to help the sick poor pay their medical bills at the Sacred Heart Hospital in Tehuacan.

Caltepec:

Father John Boscoe is the pastor at Caltepec and is assisted by Fathers Jess Owens and Jesus “Chucho” Herrera. They have charge of twelve pueblos in the parish, and each Sunday the three priests go out to say Mass at ten of the outlying churches. The priests have been able to obtain used, small pickup trucks to help them negotiate the many miles of steep, rocky, muddy roads in their mountain parish. The Basilians work closely here with the Violetta Sisters from Mexico City in catechizing the people. Our history of working with this order of sisters is a long one and Basilians have worked with the same order in the Texas mission areas as well. 

This November, Father Herrera will celebrate his first anniversary of ordination. Congratulations, Father Chucho!

San Felipe Otlaltepec:

Father Bill Frankenberger reports the completion last May of a recent project to pipe potable water for the first time to San Felipe Otlaltepec. Until now, the people had to purchase bottled water or boil all the water used for drinking and cooking for fear of cholera.

St. Lucia

Recent projects in Father Clair Watrin’s parish and its attendant missions include a reading program with donated books to encourage the more literate mothers and older siblings to read to the young at home. Father Clair and the volunteers who so generously labor here know that encouraging a love of reading among the young will help promote their desire to learn to read. One of the constant problems here in St. Lucia is the high rate of illiteracy among the people. Since many of the poorest families of the parish have begun attending Mass regularly, volunteers in Canada with sewing skills were asked to help sew “Sunday clothes” for the children.