Province Calendar - InTouch Newsletter | Salesian Family ... · PDF fileProvince Calendar...

USA West Province Newsletter • San Francisco, California May 14, 2017

PLEASE PRAY FOR OUR SICK

Fr. Luis Gryzko...................01Fr. Ric Fernando.................05Fr. Joe Farias.......................08Fr. Larry Lorenzoni............12Br. Bob Delis .....................13Fr. Rafael Saiz....................16Fr. Edward Liptak..............16Br. Benito Guerrero............20Fr. John O’Brien.................23Fr. Lucian Lomello.............27Fr. Juan Muñoz...................29

APRIL BIRTHDAYS

Fr. Lucian Lomello, SDBBr. Jerry Weirich, SDBBr. Tony Matse, SDB

Fr. Armand Oliveri, SDBFr. Mario Rosso, SDBFr. John O’Brien, SDB

Fr. Avelino Lorenzo, SDB

Dear Salesian Sisters and Brothers,

I am in Orange, New Jersey visiting our brothers in the post-novitiate. I flew into Newark last night after my visit of St. Bridget’s Parish in Los Angeles. The main purpose for fly-ing out here to New Jersey was to attend the graduation ceremony of two of our brothers, James Nguyen and Paul Garcia. Both received a Bachelor of Arts from the Immacu-late Conception Seminary School of Theology which is also part of Seton Hall University. Br. James Nguyen also graduated with a summa cum laude. We want to congratulate both of our brothers and assure them of our prayers as they move into “Ti-rocinium,” the two years of practi-cal training before their Graduate work in Theology in preparation for priesthood.

I was grateful to have been able to attend the graduation ceremony which lasted three and a half hours. The ceremony was held in an out-side arena with partial covering. I must say it was cold and windy. But, most people did not mind as they were proud of their loved ones who had worked hard and earned their degree. We pray for all our graduates from all our schools and wish them the best. We are proud of our brothers who have worked hard to earn this degree. After the Graduation, we came home to a bar-becue feast put together by Br. Tom Dion and some of the brothers who stayed home. Friends of the gradu-ates stopped by at different times to be part of the celebration.

I will fly back to San Francisco to-morrow afternoon. On Wednesday I will drive down to Watsonville for the Members meetings at St. Fran-cis High School. Then, on Thurs-day afternoon, fly back down to Los Angeles for a joint Members and Board meeting and dinner at St. John Bosco, Bellflower. The following weeks will include com-mitments to preside at the Mass in honor of Mary Help of Christians at St. Dominic Savio, Bellflower, the Gala dinner for St. John Bosco High School and a meeting of the Trusts Members back in San Francisco. These will be busy weeks as the

1 INTOUCH • May 14, 2017

provincial council prepares for our planning meetings up in Lake Ar-rowhead, retreats, SYLC, SES and summer ministries.

Today we begin the novena to Mary Help Of Christians. I encourage all of us to keep this special novena to Don Bosco Madonna. The Rector Major, Fr. Angel Fernandez Artime wrote a beautiful reflection at the start of these nine days. He tells us, “We are family and Mary Help of Christians is our attentive and consoling mother. She took Don Bosco by the hand and takes ours also to guide us along the paths of

this world.” Fr. Angel reminds us again of Don Bosco great love, trust and faith in Mary. Don Bosco many times said, “It is impossible to go to Jesus except through the love of Mary,” and also: “Mary has always been my guide. Whoever places

his trust in her will never feel let down.” The Rector Major also re-minded us of the famous conversa-tion with Don Bonetti in Nizza and with the Salesian Sisters. Don Bos-co said to the Sisters, “I only want to tell you that the Virgin Mary loves


Province Calendar

Province Calendar 2017 Province of St. Andrew the Apostle

San Francisco, California As of February 22, 2017

January, 2017 1 SU Mother of God 3-5 TU-TH Provincial Council Meeting, Salesian Preparatory, Richmond 4 WE Provincial Council Presentation: Care of the Elders 5 TH Provincial Council: Report on Novitiate 10-19 TU-TH Provincila Visitation, Salesian Community, Bellflower 16 MO Martin Luther King, Quarterly Day 17 TU Province Financial Advisory Mtg. 18 WE Board Members @ 1:30 PM SJB Bellflower 24 TU St. Francis de Sales, Patron 31 TU St. John Bosco, Founder February, 2017 1 WE Mass for Deceased Confrere 1 WE Members Board w/Dinner @ 4:00PM St. Francis High School 2 TH Members Board @ 12:00 PM Salesian, Richmond 2-6 TH-MO Provincial Visitation, SS P&P, San Francisco 7 TU Pius IX 7-10 TU-FR Visit, Curatorium, Orange, NJ 9 TH Bl. Eusebia Palomino Yenes, vir. 12-14 SU-TU Provincial Council Meeting, Don Bosco Tech, Rosemead 13 MO Provincial Council Presentation: Sharing the Mission with the Laity 16 TH Trusts Meetings 17 FR Board Meeting, Bosco Tech, Rosemead @ 10:00 AM 17-20 FR-MO Provincial Visit, St. Mary’s Parish, Los Angeles 20 MO President’s Day 23-26 TH-SU Religious Ed Congress 25 SA SS. Louis Versiglia & Callistus Caravario, Salesian Protomartyrs March, 2017 1 WE Ash Wednesday 3-6 FR-MO Provincial Visit, St. Dominic Savio Parish, Bellflower 8 WE Board Members @ 1:30 PM SJB Bellflower 10-17 FR-FR Provincial Visitation, Don Bosco Hall, St. Ambrose, Berkeley 13 MO Provincial Council Presentation: On-Going Formation

13-15 MO-WE Provincial Council Meeting, Villa Maria del Mar, Santa Cruz 17 FR St. Patrick’s Day 19 SU Salesian Family Province Day, Bellflower, followed by Rock Out Poverty, Bellflower 26-2 SU-TH “Conjunto”, Cochabamba, Bolivia April, 2017 5 WE Directors-Pastors Meeting, 10:00 AM to Dinner, Corpus Christi, San Francisco 6-7 TH-FR Provincial Council Meeting, Provincial Residence, San Francisco 11-17 TU-MO Provincial Visitation, San Luis Rey, Laredo 16 SU Easter Sunday 24-26 MO-WE North American Salesian Conference New Hampshire 28 FR Board Meeting, Bosco Tech, Rosemead @ 10:00 AM 28-3 FR-WE Provincial Visitation, Provincial Residence, San Francisco May, 2017

2 TU Province Finance Advisory Committee, San Francisco @ 5:20 4 TH Members Board w/ Dinner @ 4:00 PM Salesian, Richmond 5-6 FR-SA Provincial Council Meeting, Provincial Residence 6 SA St. Dominic Savio 9-12 TU-FR ESA, Medellin, Columbia 12-14 FR-SU Provincial Visit, St. Bridget Parish, Los Angeles 13 SA St. Mary Domenica Mazzarello 16 TU St. Louis Orione 17 WE Members Board @ 10:00 AM St. Francis High School 18 TH Board Members W/ Dinner @ 1:30 PM, SJB Bellflower 19-22 FR-MO Provincial Visitation, Corpus Christi, San Francisco 24 WE Mary Help of Christians 29 MO Memorial Day 31 WE Trusts Meetings @ 9:30 AM

you very much—very, very much. And… you know, she is here in our midst.” Bonetti tried to explain Don Bosco words to the Sisters by saying that what Don Bosco meant was that Mary was their Mother and would protect them. But, Don Bosco insisted, “No! No! I want tell you that the Virgin is truly here, in this House; that she is happy with you and that, if you persevere with the spirit you have now, that this is what the Virgin Mary wants.” Once again, Bonetti tried to explain to the Sisters that Don Bosco meant that if they were good, Mary would be happy. But, again Don Bosco, filled

with emotion, said, “I want to say that the Virgin Mary is truly here, here right in your midst! The Vir-gin Mother walks in this House and covers it with Her Mantle.” (Bio-graphical Memoirs, vol. XVII).

Don Bosco believed that in that first dream he had at the age of nine, Mary took him by the hand and nev-er let go. She does work miracles in our lives if we believe. Let us keep these nine days in a special and sa-cred way. Let us ask Mary that, like Don Bosco, we may have greater trust and faith in her intercession for our province, for our communi-

ties and for our young people. May Her mantle be a symbol of her pro-tection and guidance. Like the the pillar of fire or the cloud that guided the people of Israel in the desert, Mary too will guide us through our own deserts. Trust in her and you will see miracles.

With warm regards and gratitude,

Fr. Ted Montemayor, SDB


Provincial Visit, St. Bridget’s Chinese Parish, Los Angeles, CA (May 12-14, 2017)


Enjoy the photos of the Immaculate Concep-tion Seminary School of Theology graduation, at the Cathedral-Basilica of the Sacred Heart in Newark, New Jersey. Br. Josh Sciullo, Paul Garcia, and myself graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Catholic Theology.

Your friend in Don Bosco,

Br. Jame Nguyen, SDB

Congra

tulation

s!


The Salesian Boys and Girls Club, San Francisco, presents to one of the Board Members the FR. ORESTE TRINCHIERI MEDAL for his out-standing service to the community and the club. The presentation took place on May 1, 2017 at the “Old Timers Mass and Dinner”.

The Fr. Trinchieri Medal was a brainchild of Angelo Fusco and Bill Dito in 1938. Following the sudden death of Fr. Trinchieri on January 15, 1936, the club was in a precari-ous position as the depression took hold of the country and the City.

Angelo Fusco thought it would be a great thing to memorialize Fr. Trinchieri with an annual event that would include the presentation of medallion named for the beloved founder of the Club.

Bill Dito along with Fr. Armand Oliveri, SDB were the first club members in 1921. Bill suggested to Fusco, Executive Director of the Club that they design a medal with images representing the Ss Peter and Paul Church and Fr. Trinc.

Carl M. Johnson, the master en-graver was a friend of Bill and they agreed this could be done. After several meeting and discussions, the final design was cut in steel in 1939. As can be seen in the photo of the medal, the twin steeples of Ss Pe-ter and Paul Church and in the back ground with Fr. Trinc and a number of the club boys are surrounding him in the foreground. The medal is coated in gold.

Fr. Oreste Trinchieri, SDB MedalBy Br. Joseph Lockwood, SDB


ROSEMEAD, CA - Thank you to Bosco Tech’s generous supporters who joined us at the Annual Black & Gold Gala on April 30 at Los An-geles’ beautiful and historic Millen-nium Biltmore. All proceeds from the evening, that featured both live and silent auctions, will help hard-working students through tuition as-sistance. Together we can continue educating young men in the Salesian tradition become leaders in science, technology, engineering and math.

Special honorees of the evening were Bosco Tech past president Fa-ther Nicolas Reina, SDB (ME ‘65); long-time faculty member Jim Curi-el (ME ‘73); the John Devaney fam-ily (John’s sons Cedric (MS ‘92), Roger (ME ‘80), and Trevor (ME ‘84) are graduates of Bosco Tech) and their company, Hi-Rel Labo-ratories. Each honoree has greatly contributed to the school’s long-term success.

Karen E. KrynenCommunications OfficerDon Bosco Technical Institute(562) 883-4031 Mobile(626) 940-2148 Office

2017 Bosco Tech Black & Gold Gala--April 30, Millennium Biltmore Los Angeles


ESAIV Medellin By Fr. Nick Reina, SDB

Sr. Ignacio Carrillo, Sr. Josephine Ochoa. Sr. Ann Cassidy, Pat Rico, Rosario Davila, Barbara Simons, Anita Averill, Al Vu, Memo Gutierrez, Pat Lee, Nick Reina

From May 8 thru May 12 representatives of the FMA San Antonio Province and the SDB San Francisco Prov-ince joined 350 Salesian educators from all parts of the Western Hemisphere to attend ESA IV. Organized for the purpose of sharing Don Bosco’s educational patrimony and furthering the cause of Salesian youth spirituality in our schools,

ESA provided an opportunity for our two provinces to

learn the best practices for insuring the deepening of our Salesian Charism occurring in our Salesian schools south of the border. In addition it provided us with an incentive to propose to our respective provincial councils a plan to collaborate in our various Salesian schools to renew and advance our Salesian charism. Friendships formed and information exchanged will lead to closer bonds for all involved in fostering the uniqueness of Don Bosco’s preventive system in our schools.


Sum

mer A

ssign

men

ts 2017

Salesian Youth Leadership Conference (SYLC) Program Director: Bro. Al Vu Program Coordinators: Gina Robles, Andres Neria Spirit Team Coordinators: Elizabeth Suarez Chaplains: Fr. Thien Nguyen, Fr. Tom Juarez Economer: Bro. Khoa Luong Conference MC: Bro. James Nguyen, Idaelia Preciado Spirit Team Adult Animators: Bro. Benito Guerrero Bro. John Han (CIN) Damien Ho Quang Nguyen Bro. Vien Nguyen

Camp St. Francis, Aptos Camp Director: Fr. Tom Juarez Program Coordinator: Fr. Thien Nguyen Counselor in Training Coordinator: Sean Roche General Assistant: Bro. James Nguyen Economer: Bro. Vien Nguyen

Head Cabin Counselor: David McCormick (GBR Volunteer) (13) Damien Ho (12-11) Quang Nguyen (10-9) Bro. John Han (CIN) (8-7)

Salesian Boys and Girls Club, Los Angeles Bro. Fabian Cardenas Bro. Paul Garcia

San Luis Rey Day Camp, Laredo Bro. Benito Guerrero Bro. Gustavo Ramirez

Oratories, turin Bro. Peter Le

Studies Fr. Joe Nguyen Bro. Jhoni Chamorro

Jaryn BreakfieldSt. Luke Parish, Stockton

Jenny HoSt. George Parish, Ontario

Megan KellySt. Francis High School, Watsonville

Simone LamboySt. Ambrose Parish, Berkeley

Eligio MarquezSt. Dominic Savio Parish, Bellflower

Sofia OrtegaSt. Francis High School, Watsonville

Tyler PaniaguaSt. John Bosco High School, Bellflower

Vivian PhamSt. Barbaras Parish, Santa Ana

Katie SoSt. Francis High School, Watsonville


Sum

mer A

ssign

men

ts 2017

Salesian Youth Leadership Conference (SYLC) Program Director: Bro. Al Vu Program Coordinators: Gina Robles, Andres Neria Spirit Team Coordinators: Elizabeth Suarez Chaplains: Fr. Thien Nguyen, Fr. Tom Juarez Economer: Bro. Khoa Luong Conference MC: Bro. James Nguyen, Idaelia Preciado Spirit Team Adult Animators: Bro. Benito Guerrero Bro. John Han (CIN) Damien Ho Quang Nguyen Bro. Vien Nguyen

Camp St. Francis, Aptos Camp Director: Fr. Tom Juarez Program Coordinator: Fr. Thien Nguyen Counselor in Training Coordinator: Sean Roche General Assistant: Bro. James Nguyen Economer: Bro. Vien Nguyen

Head Cabin Counselor: David McCormick (GBR Volunteer) (13) Damien Ho (12-11) Quang Nguyen (10-9) Bro. John Han (CIN) (8-7)

Salesian Boys and Girls Club, Los Angeles Bro. Fabian Cardenas Bro. Paul Garcia

San Luis Rey Day Camp, Laredo Bro. Benito Guerrero Bro. Gustavo Ramirez

Oratories, turin Bro. Peter Le

Studies Fr. Joe Nguyen Bro. Jhoni Chamorro


ROME, April 2017 - A group of 9 experts in the theme of the Salesian Volunteer Program gathered to start de-veloping the Salesian Volunteer Framework that is go-ing to be offer to the whole congregation.

This process started last year when the youth ministry and the mission animation departments got together to evaluate the volunteer program at the world level. Meet-

ings where the Youth ministry delegate and the mission animation delegate of each province gathered to talk about what was happening in regards of the volunteer program. These meetings were conducted in each re-gion.

From these meetings a document came out with the findings about he Volunteer Program in our congrega-

Salesian volunteer Manual

By Juan Carlos Montenegro


tion. This findings were part of the material reviewed in this meeting in Rome. Another important information was the results of the doctorate research that took place in 2016 where 428 ex-volunteers where surveyed.

The future frame of work proposed has the following topics: the volun-teerism in the world now, the Sale-sian Missionary Volunteer, the theo-logical aspects of volunteerism, the Salesian dimension of the Mission-ary Volunteerism, characteristics of the Salesian Missionary Volun-teerism, organization and structure among others.

At the meeting all these topics were studied and reflected and a new propose document was worked on. Now is the job of the small commit-tee to put together all this informa-tion so the team can review it before presenting the pre-final document to the Youth Ministry and Mission Animation Councillors. Once this pre-final document is review. It will be sent to all the provinces for feed-back.

This is a long process, but it is a pro-cess that involves the whole congre-gation this will not be a document from the departments in Rome, but a document from congregation.


MAY SALESIAN MISSIONARY INTENTION

FOR SALESIANS IN AFRICA That, as prophets of mercy, justice and peace, they may know how to educate the young to the social dimension of charity.

Africa, in many countries, continues to suffer serious social problems, such as ethnic divisions, political corruption, the radicaliza-tion of the political groups, the lack of equal opportunities for all and freedom of expression. It is part of our commitment to education and evangelization to propose itineraries of faith that will lead our young people to be, in their context, brave citizens who are builders of a more just and fraternal society, credible witnesses of reconciliation and peace

IN THE LIGHT OF THE HOLY FATHER’S PRAYER INTENTION

28th ANNUAL BOSCO TECH GOLF CLASSIC IS JUNE 30 AT SAN DIMAS CANYON GOLF

COURSE

Tournament Proceeds Provide Tuition Assistance & Scholarship Support

ROSEMEAD, CA – May 12, 2017 – Don Bosco Techni-cal Institute (Bosco Tech) will host its 28th Annual Golf Classic at the San Dimas Canyon Golf Course on Friday, June 30, 2017. Tournament registration is $150 on or before June 10, and $200 after that date. Registration includes green fees, range balls, golf cart, goody bag, prizes, lunch and re-freshments, and an awards buffet.

Check-in for the scramble format event will begin at 6 a.m., followed by an 8 a.m. shotgun start. The awards buffet will be hosted immediately after the tournament. Visit www.boscotech.edu to register or sponsor the event. All tournament proceeds provide tuition assistance and scholarships to Bosco Tech students. Celebrating its sixtieth year, Bosco Tech is an all-male Catholic high school that combines a rigorous college-preparatory program with a technology-focused educa-tion. The school’s innovative curriculum allows students to exceed university admission requirements while com-pleting extensive integrated coursework in one of several applied science and engineering fields. With 100 percent graduation and college acceptance rates each year, more than 60 percent of Bosco Tech graduates pursue STEM-related majors in their university studies.

Visit www.boscotech.edu or call (626) 940-2000 for more information.


N. 101 - May 2017

Newsletter for Salesian Missionary Animation

A Publication of the Missions Sector for the Salesian Communities and Friends of the Salesian Mission

We now have a new edition of the Manual of the Delegate for Missionary Animation (DIAM). It is in the press. However, here are a few tips that could be helpful to our communities: "Today we are guided by Pope Francis: to live the missionary dimension of our charism means to live our Salesian life in a permanently missionary state always trying to reach out to ‘all the peripheries that need the light of the Gospel’. It is in this fashion that we keep alive our passion for Jesus and his people. It is this that will help us overcome pastoral ascidia, malice and the psychology of the tomb. A missionary heart rediscovers the ‘joy of being Christian, supported by the inner happiness of knowing Christ and belonging to his Church’. From a missionary option comes the "joy of evangelizing". It is this joy that overcomes the "fatigue of faith" and the loss of apostolic dynamism. “On the other hand, this missionary spirit that every Salesian must live does not exclude, but in reality implies, that there are Salesians

with a specific vocation to be a missionary among those who do not know Christ or have abandoned him (ad gentes), outside of his own country (ad exteros), and through a lifelong commitment (ad vitam).”

…… in a permanently missionary state

Cochabamba (Bolivia), March end 2017: The Rector Major presided over the Team Visit to Interamerica Region. At the heart of all these events and meetings there shown the appealing face of Fr. Luigi Bolla, all painted up in the bright colors of his beloved Achuar, with the added dignity of a long white beard. In this month of May, the Provincial of Peru will lead a pilgrimage in the traditional style. He will be carrying with him the mortal remains of Fr. Bolla over land and rivers. The revered missionary will return from Lima to Kuyuntza, to the beloved land and people where Don Bosco's son had been “all things to all" (1 Cor 9: 22). "We are burying our dear missionary brother, Don Luigi, once again," I would like to tell the Salesians during this Bolivian Visit, "but we are careful not to bury also the missionary spirit of our communities and our provinces!" This is the ardent and confident prayer that we place this Marian month in the hands of the Help of Christians at Valdocco: Help us, dear Mother, “let us not allow ourselves to be robbed of missionary vigour" (see Evangelii Gaudium 109).

Fr. Guillermo Basañes, SDB Councillor for the missions

Fr Guillermo Basañ

Help us, dear Mother, “let us not allow to be robbed of missionary vigour” (Evangelii Gaudium 109)

ssionaryyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyys that

mension

es tttttthhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaatttttttttttttttlivvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvveeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee

ustsians

Cochabamthe Teamand meetup in the

long whitp

pilgrimageg

remains return fro

Bosco's"W


��

Africa, in many countries, continues to suffer serious social problems, such as ethnic divisions, political corruption, the radicalization of the political groups, the lack of equal opportunities for all and freedom of expression. It is part of our commitment to education and evangelisation to propose itineraries of faith that will lead our young people to be, in their context, brave citizens who are builders of a more just and fraternal society, credible witnesses of reconciliation and peace.

Witness of Salesian Missionary Sanctity Fr. Pierluigi Cameroni SDB, Postulator General for the Causes of Saints

The Venerable Dorotea Chopitea (1816-1891), the first Salesian Cooperator whose cause for beatification was initiated, a wife, a mother of six children, was one of the very few people whom Don Bosco addressed as ‘mother’. And she really was a mother to everyone –always ready to go wherever help was needed. This "almsgiver of God" sacrificed a for-tune as no one else in Barcelona of her days. In her scale of values what came first was the love of the poor: "The poor will be my first thought."

My missionary vocation is a consequence and development of my Sale-sian and priestly vocation. The testimonies of missionaries I came across in person or through my readings in the time of my

adolescence were truly provocative ‘voices’. They made me understand the vastness of the boundaries of the Church. They made me realize the identity of the Church as ‘yeast’ in the World. The launch of Project Africa became my opportunity to concretize it. One of my motivations was to make it possible to share with others the happiness that comes from living with the dignity of the Sons of God. He is our Father (Dignity that encompasses and gives meaning to all human rights).

I remember what it cost me to move from Italy to sub-Saharan Africa at the age of 40, the difficulty of communicating, relating with people from a totally different world. The language problem was bad enough .... how much more difficult it was to understand and accept the new ways of looking at life and death. I had to adjust to a new society with the important roles of the elderly, the adults and the youth. I need-ed to find ways and systems to collaborate with all of them for the educa-tion of the next generation. ... I had to accept myself as an ignorant man who had a lot to learn yet. ... I had to be patient with myself and give myself sufficient time to understand what to do and how to do it. This, however, helped me understand that what the mission needed from me the most was not so much what I could do but the love I could put into relationships. I ought to thank the Lord for filling my missionary life with so many joys. Looking back at all my experiences in my 68 years, I must say that I never could have planned hoped for what my Missionary vocation has given me. I never imag-ined I could reach such vast horizons, that I could share my life with so many peoples and cultures. Only my missionary call could have made it possible for me to exercise my priestly ministry in so diverse environments and cultures. The mission I worked in has given me yet another joy. This is like the happiness of parents when they see their children succeed in life; and the satisfaction from seeing them live by the values they received The Salesian Province of Adriatica – my province of origin sent me to open the mission at Onitsha. I worked there my first 22 years. This mission has already produced 40 Salesians, two of whom offered themselves to the Rector Major for the “Mission ad Gentes". Onitsha has the first organized group in Nigeria of Don Bosco Alumni. Out of Onitsha has come the first African volunteer for Don Bosco ... The missionary lives with the certainty of what the Lord has told us: "I am with you always ...". He is aware of the call to collaborate with Him who wants to be the life, the soul and the joy of the world. The missionary vocation is to make Him Emmanuel: "the God with us".

Fh. Nicola CiarapicaItalian, missionary in Nigeria

For Salesians in Africa That, as prophets of mercy, justice and peace, they may know how to educate the young to the social dimension of charity.

T !


I am approaching the subject of weight gingerly. Why? I

don’t want people to think that I am critical of you just

because you might be on the “heavy” side. I want to

have a deeper understanding of weight and how that

affects your health. For the coming weeks, we will

unravel how our weight could change our health and

more importantly what can we do about it. I dare not

offend you by making broad statements about weight

or obesity. Hence I was extremely happy to come across

this website “Weight Matters” in their introductory

statement about why weight matters. It begins with an

opening statement which reflects my belief and my

motivation to begin our conversation on weight.

The issue of weight matters to people in many different

ways. It evokes many different emotions and can often

be difficult to talk about with your healthcare provider,

spouse, friend, loved one or others.

The most important reason why weight matters is

because of your health.

There are many health implications that accompany

excess weight, such as diabetes, hypertension, sleep

apnea and others. Sometimes weight can even affect

emotional health as well. It is not uncommon for some-

one dealing with weight issues to be affected by

depression or a lack of self-confidence.

Gaining excess weight and realizing the health implica-

tions is not always the easiest thing to recognize. In fact,

most Americans do not realize that they are affected by

Weigh In OnYour HealthBy Sheila Kun RN, BA, BSN, MS(Salesian Cooperator)

excess weight or obesity, or even at risk for weight-

related conditions. This is why it is so important for you

to realize that YOUR WEIGHT DOES MATTER!

Let me begin by going into the physiological compo-

nent of a fat cell this week. From Wikipedia in its defini-

tion of Adipocyte: Adipocytes, also known as lipocytes

and fat cells, are the cells that primarily compose

adipose tissue, specialized in storing energy as fat.

Your homework assignment from the Care Ministry this

week: get your weight and height ready. Next week we

will need these measurements to know your BMI (Body

Mass Index).

The Care Ministry welcomes your

comments/suggestions: [email protected]

A Childhood Favorite Turns Sour

Life was simple when I was growing up in Macau in the 60’s. We, high school students, were easy to be pleased; we were happy with every new import to town. The nov-elty brought in a lot of excitement in this small town of 50 square miles. We enjoyed, say for instance, Coca-Cola when it was first introduced. Coca-Cola was advertised as a drink that refreshed your heart and mind. For many of us who did not have refrigerator, the only affordable cold drink was the sugar, colored flavored drink from the corner of the street. A nickel would quench your thirst with the icy cold sweet taste to your mouth. But get-ting a bottle of Coca-Cola was not within the reach of a high school student like me. It costed 30 cents per bottle. How much was 30 cents in those days? Well, the budget for an average family meal was 50 cents. With 50 cents, you could get fish, beef and vegetable to feed a family of eight.

Finally the occasion of tasting my first Coca-Cola came. It was in a classmate’s birthday party. Sandy came from a very wealthy family. So the girls were treated with Co-ca-Cola topped with a scoop of ice cream at her birthday party. And there were more luxury items – chocolates, cookies, and potato chips. The advertisement was right. This beautifully drink was very refreshing; it was tin-kling to the tongue and opening up all the taste buds in the throat. Alas, I tasted the real thing – Coca-Cola!

Fast forward, 50 years later, the memory of this child-hood favorite is still refreshing. However, now that I have grown older and wiser, I could dissociate myself

from the temptation of the sweet sixteen and say no to all sodas. Why such a determination? Well, the answer is simple. I could not name the benefits of drinking sodas. You might ask: “In the old days, many of us drank sodas, indulged in all kinds of sweet stuff, ate 2 to 3 bowls of white rice, we did not have issues with our blood sug-ar. As a matter of fact, we were reminded to eat more rice to improve our weight. What is wrong with sodas now?” As a teenage then, I was not educated about the chemicals that were packed in these drinks. All I knew it: “This is an in-thing, and I am riding with the tide.” To be able to afford 30 cents on a bottle of Coca-Cola was almost a status symbol.

By Sheila Kun, Cooperator


Economic growth and modernization are opening wide the entry point for the globalized marketing of unhealthy foods and beverages. We have switched from active life-style to sedentary one. Our metabolism is no longer the same. For the first time in history, rapidly growing pros-perity is making many previously poor people sick. Dia-betes is one of the biggest global health crises of the 21st Century. Sweetened drinks contribute to this epidemic. If you said in the 1960’s that bottled water could be a type of drink for sale, you would be laughed at big time. No one would pay for a bottle of water. Sodas yes, not water.

The world has changed; we are now confronted with health issues that we would not think about in the 60’s. Our lifestyle has changed, and so should we. Let us forgo those memorable fun times when we had our Coca-Cola or sodas and face the music. Our health demands that we make better choices. Let us say goodbye to sodas for good.

Your homework assignment from the Care Ministry this week: make a pledge; no more sodas.

The Care Ministry welcomes your comments/sugges-tions: [email protected]


Province Calendar - InTouch Newsletter | Salesian Family ... · PDF fileProvince Calendar...

Documents

Transcript of Province Calendar - InTouch Newsletter | Salesian Family ... · PDF fileProvince Calendar...