Message from Father Provincial

Vol. 13, No. 15
SALESIANS OF DON BOSCO, PROVINCE OF ST. PHILIP THE APOSTLE
October 8, 2015
Birthday Celebrations
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14
20
21
21
21
October
Fr. Matthew DeGance
Bro. Charles Mayer
Fr. John Mariapragasam
Fr. John DiFiore
Bro. Craig Spence
Bro. Simon Song
Pray for the Sick
The Salesian community of Surrey: (l to r) Frs. George Atok, Junji Zarate, Jan Staszel,
Steve Shafran, Gigi Ravasco, and John Cosgrove and Bro. Jerry Harasym. Courtesy of Fr.
Steve Shafran.
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Message from Father Provincial
During the last few weeks I was privileged to visit our confreres
serving the Salesian missions in Edmonton and Surrey, Canada.
There is great spirit and life in the northwest part of our province,
where we serve four parishes, are present to several schools, and
animate a variety of groups and ministries. The confreres come
from six countries, and the faithful they serve come from diverse
cultural backgrounds as well. This richness and beauty reflects the
universal Church in a marvelous way. It is here that our Salesian
charism responds wonderfully with the threads of hospitality, family spirit, joy, and generosity.
What a great example I found in the confreres who are seeking ways to evangelize beyond their immediate apostolates. They are animating lay collaborators and Salesian Family members as well as the young. In Edmonton, where we are new to the parish ministry at
St. Andrew and Annunciation parishes, we are blessed to have the experienced leadership
of Frs. Antony Raj Kumar Fernando and John Louis Mariapragsam. They are gradually
introducing Salesian traditions to the faithful. They are present to the schools in the territory of the parishes and are also creatively using ways to reach the young through unique
ministries and modern means of communication. They have the wisdom and fine example
of Frs. Romano Venturelli and Bernie Gilliece. It is great to see their response to the call of
GC27 to the importance of the Salesian mission to the wider area.
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Fr. Dominic DeBlase
Fr. Sid Figlia
Fr. Bernard Gilliece
Fr. Peter Granzotto
Bro. Jerry Harasym
Fr. James Marra
Fr. John Masiello
Fr. Armand Quinto
Fr. Gennaro Sesto
Fr. Chester Szemborski
Salvatore D’Angelo, Fr.
Anthony D’Angelo’s brother
Alviera Nazzaro, Fr. John
Nazzaro’s mother
Josephine Reynolds, Fr.
Anthony D’Angelo’s sister
Elena Villaraza, Fr. Mario
Villaraza’s mother
Remember the Deceased
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Thaddeus “Ted” Bruchalski,
Don Bosco Prep Class of
1942, teacher there for 35
years
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The Salesian mission in Surrey is abuzz with a myriad of
activities. What an incredible oratory spirit. Our Lady of Good
Counsel is the second-largest parish in the archdiocese of Vancouver. It was a delight to see the involvement of so many Salesian Family members and lay collaborators from so many diverse backgrounds. The faithful include Filipinos, Poles, Canadians, Indians, and a small, growing number of Hispanics who
make up the mosaic of the Church here. The witness and support this community gives to one another in their devotion and
faith life is inspiring. One can easily see the fruit of the ministry
in the cheerfulness, generosity, and love expressed for Jesus,
our Blessed Mother, and Don Bosco. Bro. Jerry Harasym is the
Surrey veteran, with Fr. Jan Staszel of the Krakow province
next in number of years of service. The director, Fr. George
Atok, and new pastor, Fr. John Cosgrove, have a strong SDB
team that includes the experience of Fr. Gigi Ravasco and Fr.
Junji Zarate. The brief lived experience that I was able to have
gives me great hope for the continued growth of the Salesian
mission with the example of strong lay leadership.
If you have the chance, I know our confreres in Western
Canada would love to hear from their brothers in other parts of
the province. I take this opportunity to wish a very happy
Thanksgiving to all of our confreres celebrating throughout
Canada. You have our prayers on October 12. We are grateful
to you, your ministries and the richness you bring to our province of St. Philip the Apostle.
The confreres of Edmonton with Fr. Steve Shafran at the
Youville Rest Home: (l to r) Frs. Antony Fernando, Romano
Venturelli, and John Louis Mariapragsam with Fr. Bernie
Gilliece front.
God bless you!
Fr. Steve Shafran, SDB
Provincial
CORRECTION
On page 10 of last week’s issue we
had the wrong photo for Fr.
Dominique Britschu of Montreal,
who is celebrating 50 years of ordination. This is what he really
looks like.
Published weekly by the Salesians of Don Bosco for Canada and the Eastern U.S.A.
SALESIANS
OF DON BOSCO
Copyright ©2015 - Salesian Society, Province of St. Philip the Apostle, Inc.
PO Box 639, New Rochelle, NY 10802-0639 USA
Publisher: Very Rev. Steve Shafran, SDB, Provincial
Editor: Fr. Michael Mendl, SDB - [email protected]
Design & Distribution: Fr. Dennis Donovan, SDB
When reading on electronic media, click on photos or links for more info.
October 8, 2015
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Fr. Steve with…
… representatives of the Young Caglieros pose next to the relic of St.
John Paul II, top right.
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Provincial visits Edmonton and Sherbrooke
… the senior members of the Praise (Dance) Team, top left. Beth
Reyes, youth minister, is kneeling on the left.
… representatives of the Don Bosco Past Pupil Association of British
Columbia, middle right.
… representatives of the OLGC parish assembly leadership of the various ministries and outreach, bottom right.
… representatives of the Parish Council and volunteers along with Fr.
John Louis at Annunciation Parish, Edmonton, bottom left.
MEN IN FORMATION: Week of October 11-17
Brother Stephen Eguino
The Scripture passage that speaks to Bro. Steve’s vocation story
and journey into consecrated life is “O come, let us sing to
the Lord; let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation!” (Psalm 95:1). For Bro. Steve, being Salesian means that
you help others see that they, too, can be saints.
Bro. Steve is one half of the rapping Bosco Boys.
SALESIAN VOCATION OFFICE
October 8, 2015
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He makes the ties that bind
Bro. Marcel Gauthier, SDB
by Fr. Dennis Donovan, SDB
Sherbrooke — Down in
the basement, in a dark room
with only one window, there
is a large device painted
black. About shoulder height,
it has a large horizontal
wheel at the top, attached to a
long vertical screw. At the
bottom is a flat, square metal
plate, about the size of a
manhole cover. At first
glance, it looks like an instrument of medieval torture. But
the reality is that this device,
top right, has produced some
of the most beautiful books
ever seen.
This and several other
devices make up the bookbinding operation at Le
Salésien, run by Bro. Marcel
Gauthier. He enjoyed telling
the story of how he got here
and how the students at the
high school learn from him.
Born
in
1934
at
Herouxville, Quebec, Marcel
was the ninth of thirteen children. His father, a lumberjack, and his mother raised
nine boys and four girls.
One day when Marcel
D DONOVAN
was in the sixth grade, Salesian Fr. Pierre Decarie gave a
vocation talk to the children about St. John Bosco and the
work of his Salesians. Marcel found it all very interesting. A
short time later he found himself with a number of other recruits at Don Bosco Tech in Paterson, N.J., attending high
school classes and learning the skills of several trades.
At first Marcel wanted to be a cook, but there was already
an accomplished cook there: Bro. Ben Natoli. Instead, Marcel
was directed to a room filled with pots and pans that needed
washing. That’s when he decided to try woodworking. The
wood shop was very noisy with the sound of buzz saws, however, and filled with dust. So Marcel decided to try the print
shop. He saw the men standing for long hours, patiently sorting hot type and bent over large printing machines. He visited
the shoe repair shop, but the supervisor said, “No!” So he
finally tried bookbinding.
There he saw happy people
sorting paper into neat
folds, pressing the paper,
and binding it to make a
book. Best of all, there was
a box of chocolate on the
table! It was a match made
in heaven.
Marcel continued his
studies and graduated in
1953 with Don Bosco
Tech’s first graduating
class. To obtain his diploma, he created a beautifully
bound Vulgate version of
the New Testament, bottom
left, complete with leather
binding, decorative gold
trim, and a decorated gift
box for presentation. He
keeps this on display in his
basement shop.
Marcel entered the novitiate
with George Sheehan,
James Weigand, Carmine
Vairo, George Parent, and
Joe Lockwood. All 22 novices made their profession
as Salesians.
As a young brother, he was
approached one day by Fr.
Joseph Perozzi, who told
Bro. Marcel he had a phone
call from Cardinal Spellman, archbishop of New York. The
archdiocese had produced a new book about its history. They
wanted Bro. Marcel to create a special edition bound in leather
and gold to be presented to Pope John XXIII as a gift. The volume was so beautiful that a few years later they had Bro. Marcel bind another book for presentation to Pope Paul VI.
Bro. Marcel tells the story of the time a wealthy man from
St. Petersburg, Fla., called him to tell him that an heirloom family Bible that had come apart. No expense was to be spared.
When completed, the man paid to have Bro. Marcel return it to
him in St. Petersburg, and even gave him a $300 tip for doing
so.
In 1969 Fr. John Malloy, provincial at the time, moved the
bindery shop from Paterson to the aspirantate for brothers in
October 8, 2015
Haverstraw, N.Y. And in 1970 it moved again, this
time to a Canadian city called Sherbrooke. Bro. Marcel moved with the shop, and has been in Sherbrooke
ever since.
The nature of the binding operation has changed
considerably over the last 20 years. The school children make greater use of iPads in place of text books.
Instead of binding new publications, Bro. Marcel
now spends his time repairing older volumes and
school textbooks for Le Salésien. He has trouble acquiring the binding paper and leatherette materials
these days since these are now sold only in bulk. He
has enough material to last for two more years. After
that, he will have to find a commercial operation that
will sell him a portion of their stock as he needs it.
Another complication is that for the governments
of Canada and the U.S. bookbinding is seen as international trade. The tax upon a book crossing the border can be as high as $30. For someone to mail a
book from the U.S. to Bro. Marcel for repair, and
then have him mail it back is quite costly. He has
tough competition from a group of Trappist monks in
Oregon who have a bookbinding operation of their
own for much less.
Repairing and binding books is not the only thing
Bro. Marcel does. Once a week he brings Holy Communion to residents at an assisted living facility. He
also plays the harmonica for them. He spends time
with the students at Le Salésien. They gather in the
shop with him a few times a year to create their own
photo albums and memory books of their days at Le
Salésien.
Fr. Paul Cossette was a member of the community in Sherbrooke until his passing on January 13,
2013. “He was the soul of the community, and we all
took it very hard,” says Bro. Marcel. But he is very
happy to be with his confreres, who include Fr.
George Harkins, director, Fr. Romeo Trottier, Fr.
Alain Leonard and Bro. Gerard Richard, who works
daily in the wood shop, right next to the bookbindery. Together, these men make up the warm-hearted
community of Salesians in Sherbrooke, deeply rooted
in the spirit of Don Bosco.
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R TROTTIER
R TROTTIER
Top, Bro. Marcel with a class of students in the
book bindery shop.
Middle, a pile of school textbooks recently rebound
by Bro. Marcel.
Bottom, the Salesians of Sherbrooke, left to right,
Fr. Roméo Trottier, Fr. George Harkins, Bro. Marcel, Bro. Gerard Richard and Fr. Alain Léonard.
D DONOVAN
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“My country needs missionaries, but I’ve learned that mission has no borders!”
Freetown (ANS) – Fr. José Hernandez Andrade Ubaldini,
a.k.a. Fr. Uba, is a Venezuelan Salesian missionary. He has
been in Sierra Leone since 2000 and is currently director and
pastor of Don Bosco Fambul in Freetown. In the missionary
newsletter Cagliero 11 he gives his testimony:
There are two elements in my desire to be a missionary. The
first is that I think my missionary vocation was formed in my
heart and mind long before I was aware of events of my life. My
mother belongs to the Legion of Mary, and I remember that
before learning the catechism, she took me to give food to the
hungry, comfort and hope to those who were sick. Gradually I
began to understand that to be a Christian means to leave the
house, to go out to meet and share with others, even the little we
had.
The second is that during my childhood and youth I had the
grace of knowing many missionaries who profoundly marked
me with their example of life, up to the point that I wanted to
imitate them: Spanish, Italian, Polish, Irish, Egyptians, Colombians, Argentinians, etc., who were plumbers, teachers, cooks,
psychologists, mechanics, nurses, or musicians. But above all,
they were men and women who love Jesus and others, and they
have left everything to serve. They left their homeland and came
to help, to live with us, to mourn and laugh, to sing and pray, to
walk and grow. Through their lives they shared with us a great
news, the news of Jesus. Through them I got my missionary vocation. I want to imitate their lives, their good works, their sacrifices, their dedication, and their perseverance. I always want
to love as they have loved.
Africa is a mysterious land where pain and sadness are always at our doors. Many young people have been pushed into a
life of survival, disease, injustice, danger, and death. In the
midst of this reality my greatest joy has been to discover the
loving and merciful action of God, and to realize that the more I
try to evangelize, it is I who am actually evangelized even more!
Certainly, many ask, “Venezuela also needs missionaries.
Why go to Africa?” This is a difficult question. Surely Venezuela, the land that I love, needs missionaries; but gradually I
learned that life is our mission and mission has no borders, that
our life is based on the call of Christ, who sends us.
How much joy I experienced in serving my people! But I felt
that the Lord was asking me to go to the farthest corner, so that
those who do not know him yet may encounter him.
To Salesians who want to be missionaries I want to say: let
us be attentive to the Lord’s missionary call ad gentes, and let
us allow ourselves be led by his Spirit! Let us not forget that our
father Don Bosco always dreamt of being a missionary.
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Varied activities open St. Benedict’s new pastoral year
Story and photos by Fr. Mike Pace, SDB
Toronto — Fr. Jim Zettel and 18 members of St. Benedict’s Core Youth Ministry
Team (top, right) made their annual beginning-of-the-year retreat at beautiful St. Ignatius Retreat Centre in Deemerton, Ont., September 11-13. The theme of the weekend was
“The Spirit and the Word: Being Authentic
Apostles.”
In the spirit of Don Bosco’s autumn passeggiate from Valdocco to Becchi, on Saturday September 26, St. Benedict’s Parish
launched our 2015-2016 pastoral year with
our seventh annual walking pilgrimage (middle, right) from the
parish to St. Paul’s Basilica: 39 pilgrims, 31 kms (19 miles), 8
hours, visits to two churches led by the Missionary Society of
St. Paul and the Franciscan Friars Minor, 1 delicious “pastizzi”
break (a favourite Maltese pastry).
On September 29, feast of the Archangels, we held our sixth
annual golf tournament at Glen Eagle. It was a fine day of fun,
friends, fundraising, fine food, faith, and fellowship. Our organizing committee (bottom, right) did a stellar job reaching benefactors and participants from within and beyond the parish. If
Fr. Pastor’s horrendous golf skills didn’t get him noticed on the
links, his golfing attire surely did (a gift from the organizing
committee, who found last year’s gear too drab!).
“ON” is for “Oratory Night,” St. Benedict’s weekly Salesian
family night, offering gym activities and a Good Night (below).
It started October 2, under the protection of the Guardian Angels. ON is an entry-level family ministry that in the past has
brought great pastoral fruit, most noteworthy of which is the
Salesian vocation of Bro. Branden Gordon.
http://www.stbenedicts.ca/