(ANS - Turin) – Throughout the Salesian world and beyond, preparations are underway for the opening of the Bicentenary of the birth of Don Bosco on 16 August. This is especially true in Turin, the heart of the Salesian world. Here the focus is on providing facilities for visitors and training guides to accompany visitors.

Since yesterday, 24 July, there is an official website online for Italy covering the celebrations. It includes a calendar of events and a pressroom for journalists, as well as other sections enabling the visitor to get to know the places of Don Bosco and the services available.

Compared to the website created for the pilgrimage of the relics in Italy, the section of the pressroom is located permanently within the new website. The login credentials for those who have already registered will remain unchanged. For those who have lost or forgotten their password there is an active recovery system.

The new site will be updated regularly with precise information regarding future events, displays and meetings. It includes the history and the life of the saint, the places where he lived and worked, as well as an itinerary for visitors where the story is told as it happened.

The Bicentenary Committee of the Salesian Family in Piedmont and Valle d'Aosta has also launched a formation course on Don Bosco for guides to the places. The course is at two levels and is aimed at those who want to get to know Don Bosco and deepen their understanding of him, to prepare them to accompany the pilgrims to the Salesian places during the Bicentenary Year. For all participants in the course it offers an opportunity to study and learn more about the places where Don Bosco lived in Becchi, Chieri, Turin and Valdocco.

There will be two meetings a month, an introductory meeting and a field visit, usually on Thursday and Saturday afternoons. The course will start on Wednesday 24 September at 6.30 p.m. at the Salesian House in Valdocco, and will finish in March. The deadline for entries is Sunday 21 September. The course will be run by two Salesians, Fr Enrico Lupano and Fr Luca Ramello.

It is also worth mentioning that a Don Bosco Card is available on the internet from the Consortium MON.DO (Monferrato Domanda Offerta). This will allow pilgrims and tourists to avail of special offers and promotions from the companies in the consortium. These include discounts on overnight stays, wine tasting and typical culinary products.

"Dom Bosco - O Jogo" is an initiative of a different kind, an application for smartphones designed to raise awareness of Don Bosco among small children, according to Fr Robert Cappelletti, director of the Parque Dom Bosco. The game was developed by Claudio Rhenns, a teacher of computer science, with his students and it is freely available in English, Italian and Portuguese. This is the first version of the game, but between August and November it will be improved and other functions added.

Published 25/07/2014