Carmen and Bernard Hocevar of France traveled to Switzerland to join Swiss Marianists for their World Day of Prayer. They visited the places where St Nicolas de Fl�e lived. St. Nicolas was a hermit who brought peace to Switzerland by his inspired words. Roland Carrupt is the Swiss MLC Responsible. As you can see, October in Switzerland looks a lot like winter to many of us.
 
   


Meanwhile, Marianists in France              At the same time, lay Marianists of the
celebrated the WDP at Sainte-Croix         Philippine Community in Davao City
chapel in Forbach,France.                    celebrate after their own WDP service.
 
          



South Korean Marianists welcomed representatives from Japan to join them in their World Day of Prayer on the grounds where a new Marianist Center will be built. Marianists bought this land five months ago and the plan is to build a church and religious house on it. Over 400 Marianists joined the celebration. They had Mass, prayer, and of course a great party.

INDIA: (News from they eyes of travelers)
On their way home from the 5th IM in Nairobi, the Korean delegation (Kim Eun Hee, Lee Jin Bong, and Fr. Dominic Park) visited Bangalore and Ranchi in India. Their purpose was to encourage and donate to  the two Korean Sisters, Juliana Hong and Golumba Yu, who have worked for the poor in the slums of Ranchi since 2007. They work together with Sr. Franka from Italy and Sr. Teresa from Spain. They take care of the children and provide them with  lunch. Their love and service really impressed the Koreans.
The Marianists in India also manage the REDS project (Ragpickers Education & Developements Scheme). There are 11 care centers in Ranchi and 11 centers in Bangalore. REDS serves people who are dependent on ragpicking. The main focus of REDS is basic education - developing literacy skills, cleanliness, health care, and encouraging parent involvement. We were surprised at the good organizing and devotion of the REDS staff.
The Koreans also visited at Deepahalli Religious House and SM center in Bangalore. where they had the opportunity to meet many good Marianists and learn more about the Indian culture. As Lee Jin Bong relates, "These experiences freshen up my spirit in these terribly hot days!"

THE PHILIPPINES
Floods:
Most of us have read of the recent Tropical Storm Ketsana and Typhoon Ondoy that flooded the Philippines, especially around Manila. Robert Gomez of the Davao City MLC reports that, "This is a lesson for us Filipinos to value the role of trees in our environment. The more we cut trees, the greater the chance of flash floods. Another thing this will teach us is to be aware of  proper waste management. The flash floods here were partly caused by trash that was dumped into the canals by insensitive Filipinos so that the water could not move through the water passages. In short, this is a GREAT LESSON.

Special Education materials needed:
Robert Gomez is also a special education teacher in Davao City. Robert writes, "I am creating a program to help special children learn basic academics realizing that they learn differently from traditional educational methods. I am hopeful that somebody outside our country can help. I need training or even just books about special education. I read on the internet how good western programs of special education are.The MLC in Davao City is planning to establish a center/school that could help parents and their children with special needs. We pray that it will materialize and that other MLCs can help. Contact Robert at: berx_82@yahoo.com.ph

The following articles are found in the October issue of
Via Latina 22, the newsletter for the General Administration of the Society of Mary:

• Professions and Ordination
• Intl. Meeting of Marianist Lay Communities- Nairobi
  

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