Under the coordination of Fr Vaclav Klement, Councillor for the Salesian Missions, and Bro. Jean Paul Muller, Economer General, the heads of the major Mission Offices, directly related to the Rector Major, met from May 27 to 29: Mr. Nelson Penedo, deputy director in Bonn, Fr George Menamparampil, Bosconet India, Father Mark Hyde and Mr. Jaime Correa, New Rochelle, Fr Pierlugi Zuffetti, Turin, and host of the meeting, Fr Agustin Pacheco, Madrid.
Fr Klement, introducing the meeting, recalled how one of the main purposes of the Mission Offices, in addition to collecting funds for the Salesian missions, is also the fostering of vocations, something which Father Edward Capelletti gave much attention to at New Rochelle.
The agenda involved each director giving a presentation and sharing progress made by each Mission office in 2010 following the New Rochelle meeting. Among the achievements Fr Pacheco reported successful collaboration with the Real Madrid Foundation for setting up socio-sports schools in some developing countries and the relaunching of the the travelling Mission Museum Exhibition. Fr Mark and Mr. Jaime Correa reported on the fundraising activity, the process of accompaniment in place for the new Peru Province Mission office, and mission volunteer project. The involvement of the Bonn office with German companies and collaboration with other Congregations has been a positive feature. “Missioni Don Bosco” in Turin, among other related activities, spoke of the coordination of logistics for the pilgrimage of the Casket. In India, the new Mission office, which a year and a half since it began now has 17 lay employees, is engaged primarily in the discovery of internal resources for the advancing various charitable projects and has set up two branches, one secular interfacing with businesses and government agencies, called “Bosconet”, and the other, “Boscoaid Trust”, connected with the Catholic community.
Fr Stanislaw Rafalko, who is partr of the Department for the Missions, basing himself on a study of collected data, presented an overview of the province mission offices. This situation, of overall significance for Salesian mission solidarity, now involves 27 Province-based Mission offices to which one can add the five directly dependent on the Rector Major.
The presentation of the conclusions of the NGO meeting, held in October 2010 in Rome, and the preparation of the seminar for those responsible for Development Offices (PDO) scheduled for next November in Hyderabad, allowed a broader knowledge of the various projects, initiatives and ways that the Congregation is working on the mission front.
The second day, beginning with updates on the reconstruction and revival of Haiti, saw the directors involved in a search for common criteria to be adopted in future emergencies. The importance of greater engagement and coordination in terms of information and communication and the need to create an emergency fund were amongst the elements that emerged. Fr Rafalko presented information on where the Rector Major`s Solidarity fund has been directed over the past three half yearly sessions.
The Madrid meeting marked a further step in the process of collaboration between the major Mission offices, the Department for the Missions and other organisations involved in mission solidarity.
Published 31/05/2011
