Memphis – USA - Br. John Johnston - Health Update 1/9/07: Brother John has had further testing for the left leg pain he has experienced. The cancerous tumor in the left thigh is causing the pain.

He successfully underwent a surgical rod placement to stabilize the left femur on 1/5/07. He will begin radiation therapy to the left thigh on Monday 1/8/07 and should be completed 1/29/07. Br. John will not be receiving chemotherapy during this time, but will resume his chemotherapy schedule after the completion of radiation.

We are thankful that the rod placement was a treatment option, as this will prevent a bone fracture and make walking much safer. The radiation therapy will help control the pain.

Br. John has already begun Physical Therapy and is walking with his walker, just one day after surgery.

Your continued prayers are appreciated and a true source of strength to Br. John. Thank you!
^{(Br. Francis Carr – Provincial – Midwest District)}

Villingendorf - Germany - THE VENERABLE BROTHER GREGORIO BÜHL: The 110th anniversary of the birth of Venerable Brother Gregorio Bühl and the 33rd anniversary of his death motivated his supporters from Torre del Greco (Naples – where he died on December 11, 1973) and from Villingendorf (Germany – where he was born in 1896) to commemorate him with a full liturgical ceremony. At the celebration at Torre del Greco, which took place on Sunday, December 10, in addition to the Postulator General of the Institute, Brother Rodolfo Meoli, many Brothers from the nearby communities participated as did a large number of the faithful, even some who had known him during his life.

The celebration in Villingendorf took place over two days, Saturday and Sunday, December 16 and 17, in the Church of Saint Gallus and in other places that were dear to the memory of our Venerable Brother. On the occasion of the centennial of his birth, local authorities had already dedicated a street, placed a commemorative plaque over the baptismal font of his parish church, and they named the main hall of the parish after him. It is in this hall where social, recreational, and pastoral activities are held for the inhabitants of the small town.

Besides the Postulator of the Cause Brother Rodolfo Meoli, who came here directly from Rome, the celebration in Villingendorf was also attended by relatives of Brother Gregorio Rosa and Albert Bühl, Eugen Link and Madam, Mons. Nikolaus Burger and the RR. Frs Peter Pajor and Alfons Miller, the mayor of the city Dr. Karl-Heinz Bucher, the former mayor Dr. Herbert Hermle with his wife and the Pastoralreferent Klaus Bangert. From Rottweil arrived Mrs. Giacinta and Mr.Raul Lepre and Dr. Wolf-Rüdiger Michel, President of the Province.
^{(Br. Rodolfo Meoli - Postulator General)}

INDIA - Young Lasallians Gathering: More than 55 youngsters from different institutions of the Delegation of India participated in the recent 2nd Central Level Young Lasallians Gathering. This time the topic was about personality development. Mr. Lourdu Samy was the resource person. Our dear Bro. Doss, President of the Delegation, Bro. Jeyaseelan, who is one of the pioneers in the Delegation’s new mission in Paupua New Guinea, opened the gathering.

This event lasted two days. On the final day, the youngsters honored the PNG mission going Brothers: Xavier, Jeyaseelan, and Antony Samy. It was memorable day for all.
^{(Reported by Bro. Jeyakumar, the Young Lasallians Movement Coordinator of the Indian Delegation)}

ROME - ITALY - NEW LINKS: Please view our new Justice, Peace and the Integrity of Creation WEB Page which contains links to relevant WEB sites

To recommend additional links to our page, send them to stuohy@lasalle.org.
^{(Br. Stephen Tuohy - SECOLI)}

Rome - Italy - The Lasallian Family and Young Lasallians: Jeb Myers, a thirty-year old former Lasallian Volunteer in the USA, now lives and works with his young family of four at De La Salle Blackfeet School in Browning, Montana. Jeb and his wife Charlene met when they were Volunteers at San Miguel School in Camden, New Jersey; and they both helped to found De La Salle Blackfeet School, one of the “San Miguel Schools of the USA,” for Native Americans. One of the founding members of the International Council of Young Lasallians, Jeb was appointed by Brother Superior to be a delegate at the recent International Assembly held in Rome. In response to our invitation, he shares here his reflections on his experience as a delegate both to the International Symposium of Young Lasallians (July 2006) and to the International Assembly (October/November 2006).

Jeb writes: “After having had the good fortune of attending both the Young Lasallians Symposium and the International Assembly for Mission and Association of 2006, I have found that not only is the Lasallian Family alive and well, it is also a family in rebirth. The wonderful people who attended the Young Lasallians Symposium were full of knowledge, love, energy, and zeal … The International Assembly for Mission and Association brought together another group of inspired Lasallians from throughout the world.”

While many Young Lasallians “are very committed to promoting the Lasallian charism throughout their lives,” he continues, “many currently feel formation opportunities, association opportunities, and structures are not in place to serve their needs as Lasallians.”

He felt that “the discussions” at the International Assembly “were healthy because not everyone was in agreement, but there were many opportunities for each to express her or his opinion”; and he concludes by saying that these experiences helped him to realize that “association will happen in a variety of … forms” and that “structures may change slightly or dramatically. Like the steps of a baby, many times our Lasallian Family will be successful, while other times our stumbles will cause pain. However, as Lasallians, we know our efforts will produce the long term desired success for the people we serve. God is good to us all.”

For the complete text of Jeb’s reflection, please click here.
^{(Reported by Br. Bill Mann)}

BUENOS AIRES – Argentina – UMAEL: The UMAEL President met the Associations of Lasallian Former Students of Buenos Aires, held a meeting with the Directive Council of the La Salle Former Students Association (Centro), gave a talk on "The International Dimension of the Lasallian Former Students Worldwide”, had a working breakfast with the Board of Directors of the School, and visited its outbuildings. This Association is a UMAEL member since 2003, year in which they celebrated the 100th anniversary of its foundation.

The President visited also the Former Students Association of La Salle San José Flores. There, he took part to a working dinner and met with the Director of Primary Education, Luis M. Benavides. Each year, the Lasallian Family of San José de Flores organizes what they call “VIAJE MISIONERO A LA FRONTERA” (Missionary Journey to the Border), aimed to help a series of extremely poor schools situated between the borders of Chile, Argentina, and Bolivia; they take them food, school equipment, games, but in particular, they take them LOVE.

They are already at their 28th Journey. This Association has struggled hard to preserve the identity and permanence of La Salle within the School, after several years of negotiation with the Buenos Aires Archbishopric. www.umael-lasalle.org
^{(News - UMAEL NEWS nº 12)}

Tamaulipas – Mexico – 50 years of existence: The José de Escandón Colegio of Ciudad Victoria, Tamaulipas, Mexico, is celebrating the 50th anniversary of its founding during the 2006 - 2007 academic year.

We are proud to publicize this fact so that all Lasallian communities throughout the world are aware of the wonderful outcomes that have come about in the world because of our Founder, Saint John Baptist de La Salle. Also, last year we celebrated the centennial of the Brothers in Mexico.

Landover – USA - LVP New Web Site: The Lasallian Volunteer Program of the US/Toronto Region launches a new Website at www.LasallianVolunteers.org

Highlights of the website include:Former Volunteer Network pages,Featured Volunteer & Site of month, Online donations, Resources for prospective Volunteers, Alums and friends of the Program
^{(David J. Kasievich - Director of Lasallian Volunteers)}

If you have news notes that you would like us to consider publishing, please email us:lasallew@lasalle.org