(ANS – Nkerefi) – People living in the Nkerefi community in the Enugu state of Nigeria have access to clean water thanks to funding from the Salesian Missions “Clean Water Initiative.” The funding provided for the implementation of a new water borehole. This will contribute to the livelihood of the local community, curtail the outbreak of waterborne diseases and infections, and help reduce the rate of women and infant mortality.
(ANS – Adwa) – It is more than 4 months since the war broke out in the Tigray region of Ethiopia. Even though there was a total silence in the beginning regarding the whole issue, after many weeks and months, many front-line medias and agencies have started reporting about the terrible situations of the people in this part of the Country.
(ANS - Madrid) - Rupa is 25 years old and lives in Tirupur, India. The pandemic has caused her parents to lose their jobs and she has not found a job to help her family either. Grace, in Ghana, was unable to open her own fashion store, her dream since she was a child. Jency lost her teaching job, but in this pandemic period she has gathered the 43 children from her village in India around a tree. Priscilla, a retired nurse in South Africa, returned to her hospital to help her colleagues with the pandemic. “For months I worked more than 12 consecutive hours without even having time for a coffee,” she says.
(ANS – Sliema) – The Maltese National Federation of Past Pupils and Friends of Don Bosco and the “Association des Anciens de Don Bosco au Burundi” have launched a new project “Giving Every Child a Chance – Helping Poor Burundi Children”. This partnership project is supporting 38 children who are among the poorest in Burundi as they are orphaned children who do not have the means to attend school and spend their time on the streets living the life of beggars. The aim of the project is to support these children in their education as well as to support some of their mothers to help them earn a living and teach them skills on healthy cooking, budgeting and try to help them access work to earn a living.
(ANS - Bethlehem) - The "Christian Media Center" of the Custody of the Holy Land, led and made up largely of members of the Community of "Canção Nova", 25th group of the Salesian Family, dedicated a report to the Salesian bakery in Bethlehem. In the video, available in several languages, it is emphasized that “The ingredients of Salesian bread in Bethlehem are not only flour, water and yeast, but endless amounts of mercy and generosity are also added to its dough, so the city's Salesian bakery has become a point of reference in helping the poor and needy.”
(ANS – Cowley) – On the International Childhood Cancer Day, which occurs today, February 15, we share the beautiful story of Maureen and Brian, two Kenyan children suffering from cancer, saved by the generosity and solidarity of a British Salesian past pupil, Francis, and his wife, Joan. The English Salesian Fr Francis Preston, born in Oxford, Great Britain, but long active in Nairobi, the capital of Kenya, tells us about it.
PHOTO GALLERY
INTERVIEWS
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Democratic Republic of Congo – Fr Owoudou on the situation in the eastern parts of the country: “No matter how dark the night may seem, dawn will inevitably come”
(ANS - Goma) - During his latest phase of the Extraordinary Visit to the "Mary Most Holy Assumption" Province of Central Africa (AFC), Fr. Alphonse Owoudou, Councillor for the Africa Madagascar Region, conducted an interview with the magazine "JAMBO VIJANA," representing the youth engaged in the Salesian works of the Province's Eastern Delegation. Addressing the ongoing violence and conflicts in the region, Fr. Owoudou expressed hope, saying: "No matter the length of the night, dawn will inevitably come."
EDITORIAL
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“Speaking with the Heart”: A great Antidote for the Ills of today’s world
‘Revolutionize the world with your kindness, by speaking with your heart’, is the dream that Pope Francis envisions for humanity through his 57th World Communication Day message, that falls on this Ascension Sunday, 21st May 2023. ‘Speak with your heart in truth and charity’, and this is the best antidote that can cure the ills of today’s society.
EVENTS
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Italy – "Labs To Future": the final event of the "Labs To Learn" project in Valdocco
(ANS – Turin) – The final event of the "Labs to Learn" project was held on Tuesday, 5 March 2024, entitled "Labs To Future: The path – The results – The challenges" . The project was selected by the "Con i Bambini" social enterprise within the framework of the Foundation for the Fight against Child Educational Poverty and came into being with the intention of combating early school leaving and preventing educational poverty, increasing the number of young people with difficulties who fulfil their school obligation, access higher education and/or job placement, and opening the way for personal growth according to their inclinations and aspirations.
SPECIAL REPORTS
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Peru – Centenary of the High Altar of the Basilica of Mary Help of Christians in Lima
(ANS – Lima) – The centenary of the consecration of the high altar in the Crypt of the Basilica of Mary Help of Christians in Lima was celebrated on 19 March, on the feast of St Joseph and in homage to Fr José Calasanz Marqués, then Provincial of the Salesians in Peru and Bolivia – now recognised as Blessed by the Church – on account of his name.
MESSAGES OF THE RECTOR MAJOR
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DREAMS THAT KEEP COMING TRUE!
THE MESSAGE OF THE RECTOR MAJOR, Card. Ángel Fernández Artime, SDB
When reflecting on all this, I feel I have a little authority to say: “Dear Don Bosco, your Dream is still VERY ALIVE.”