He was welcomed at the Bangkok airport by the Provincial, Fr John Bosco Theparat Pitisant, and two members of ADMA. Waiting for him in the provincial house was the bishop of Surat Thani, mgr. Joseph Prathan Sridarunsil, SDB.
Living and working in the Province of Thailand are 96 professed and two novices, divided into seventeen communities: 13 in Thailand, 3 in Cambodia and one in Laos. There are 65 Salesian priests, 14 brothers, 2 deacons, 6 theology students, 3 trainees and 6 postnovices. In the two aspirantates are 63 students and two prenovices are in the Sampran formation house.
The Salesian Family of the Thailand Province, which also includes Cambodia and Laos, is very large. In addition to Salesians and FMA, there are Don Bosco Volunteers (VDB), MHC Alumni, ADMA and other groups born in Thailand. These are: the secular institute of the Sisters Daughters of the Queenship of Mary Immaculate (DQM), the Sisters of Queenship of Mary (SQM) and the Sisters of the Immaculate Heart of Mary (SIHM).
The Extraordinary Animation Visit is held every 6 years on average. The last one, dating back to 2012, had been entrusted by Fr Pascual Chávez to Fr Andrew Wong.
The three main objectives of these two months of Visitation are: to foster communion between the Rector Major and the Province; to animate the Salesian Family and to contribute to the continuous growth of the Salesian charism, evaluating the work carried out in the last six years and thinking about what must be done in the future.
