Memphis – USA - UPDATE: BROTHER JOHN JOHNSTON - Health Update: Brother John Johnston completed three weeks of radiation to the left femur in early February and resumed chemotherapy. He is currently in his sixth week of the 48 hour treatment, administered twice a month. He is now walking with minimal pain and difficulty.

Yesterday, March 12, Brother John received encouraging results from a CT scan of the abdominal and pelvic areas. The scan did not reveal any abnormalities in these areas.

Brother John does suffer from side effects from his aggressive chemotherapy. The most inconvenient are drowsiness, fatigue, and abdominal discomfort. Nevertheless, he is hoping to become more active in the coming months and dreams of participating in the opening week of the General Chapter, a non-chemo week.

He continues to be grateful for the loving concern and prayers manifested by Lasallians throughout the world.

MADURAI – INDIA - DELEGATION OF INDIA – FORMEES’ GET – TOGETHER: It was for the first time the Delegation of India organized a programme for all the candidates from different stages of our formation houses. Junior novices from Lasalle Kadalisai, Nagai and Mangalagiri and the aspirants from Miguel Arul Thentral Madurai arrived in Boys’ Town on the 13th January 2007.

There were 41 candidates from different formation stage who aspire to embrace Lasallian Brotherhood. In the evening after the inauguration, the candidates were divided into four groups. Ice breaking was done. A motivational talk was given by the Director of Boys’ Town.

On 14 January 2007, a common prayer service was organized by Brothers in the formation houses. The programme was arranged for enlightenment. Brother Christopher enlightened the candidates on Brotherhood. Brothers Ignaci, Victor, Sekar, John Britto and Postulant Edison shared their vocation stories and there was an interaction between the candidates and the Brothers and Postulant.

In the afternoon Juniors and aspirants shared their life and programmes and their learning. It was an experiential sharing. In the evening a game was organized for the formees. Liturgy of the Eucharist was celebrated and it was very well organized by the Aspirants. The cultural show was organized. Each formation house brought their own programme and enlightened each other. This talentia was an exuberant.

On 15 January, 2007, Pongal (a celebration of Harvest for Tamils) was celebrated. A thanksgiving Mass was organized by the aspirants and formees joined the Boys’ Town boys and the people around Boys’ town campus. It was a good experience for everybody. Brother Arockia Doss presented a session on Lasallian Virtues. Brother Ignaci shared his life and experience. The candidates were given sumptuous dinner and they left for their places after lunch.
^{(Brothers Doss & Felix)}

HOMESTEAD - USA – NEW OFFICIAL DIRECTOR OF THE CENTER: The Board of Directors of the “Centro Educativo St. John Baptist de La Salle” of HOMESTEAD, FLORIDA-USA, has decided in this month of February, 2007 to officially name Ms. Maggie Sweeney as Official Director of the Center.

Ms. Maggie is a former student of the Brothers of Minnesota having graduated from their De La Salle High School in 1999. In 2004, she received her university degree with studies in Justice and Peace from St. Thomas University.

She worked as a volunteer in the Americorps National Civilian Community Corps for the 2000-2201 year and with several community organizations during the following years. She spent a month as a volunteer in Honduras. She also traveled to Spain, Mexico, Cuba, and Morocco and studied for one semester in the Dominican Republic. After graduating she went to Oakland, California to work for the 2004-2005 school year as a tutor in the Lasallian Center for Educational Opportunities (LEO Center). Later still she was a teacher at the San Miguel Middle School, Minneapolis, Minnesota where she taught English, Spanish and physical education in the 2005-2006 school year.

She will be with us until December of 2007 and will prepare the continued presence of the Lasallian Volunteers of the USA in our Center. At the present time we also have with us for several months Ms. Adriana García, a De La Salle volunteer from Mexico who shares with Maggie all the classes.
^{(José Manuel Dorado)}

HENLEY BEACH – AUSTRALIA - OUTREACH EDUCATION PROGRAMME: Rina Onzi and Zahir Said (pictured) are two very proud students having recently graduated from Year 12 at St Michael’s College. Rina and Zahir are the first students to have completed Year 12 through St Michael’s Outreach Education Programme for new arrivals.

Rina left Sudan in 2001 with her mother and brothers after her father disappeared. The family moved first to Egypt before the United Nations arranged for them to come to Australia. Rina has spent the past two years at St Michael’s College. Her ambition has always been to become a nurse, and she is currently exploring pathways into Nursing.

Zahir has spent the past three years at St Michaels College, having come from Baxter Detention Centre. Zahir was living in Afghanistan with his parents under the Taliban regime. Zahir’s father, afraid that his son’s life would be at great risk from the Taliban, arranged for a smuggler to take his son to Pakistan, then Indonesia where he was put on a boat which eventually arrived in Australia. He was eleven years old when he left Afghanistan. Zahir, a personable and engaging young man, has worked hard to overcome so many difficulties, and has now gained a placement at TAFE to study Business Marketing.

St Michael’s College, through their Outreach Education Programme, continue to educate and support a number of students who, through political turmoil, have been displaced from their country of origin.
^{(Mrs Jillian Huntley, Coordinator of Student Services )}

SANTO DOMINGO - DOMINICAN REPUBLIC - PROCESS OF CONSTRUCTION OF A NEW DISTRICT: The process of the construction of the new District to be made up of the actual District of Mexico South and the Delegation of the Antilles is entering the final stages.
A reunion of the expanded councils of the two Entities, at the end of the past month of October in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, marked the beginning of this last stage. This joint council brought together 26 Brothers, 13 from each one of the Entitites.

Encouraged by the excellent spirit of fraternity and association we took chief decisions necessary to move forward to the Constitutional Chapter of the new District for December 2007.

A Preparatory Commission will guide the process along by means of study committees and an intermediate assembly in the month of July 2007 which will integrate both the consultations carried out by Brothers and Lay Partners as well as the orientations of the 44th General Chapter in a Working Document with orientations and propositions for the constitutive Chapter.
^{(Brother Adalberto Aranda)}

SPAIN–PORTUGAL - SECOND WEEK OF THE FORMATION OF THE PERSONS IN CHARGE OF THE PASTORAL MINISTRY: During this past week there took place the second week of the Formation of the persons in charge of the Pastoral Ministry for all the districts of Spain and Portugal. We were more than 90 persons, including the animators who for the two weeks (one in November and the other in February) have formed and shared experiences on the theme of pastoral animation in a Lasallian Center.

The themes that were developed have been the following:

• To educate is to evangelize (seriously)
• Workshop of prayers and celebrations
• Those who will benefit from the Pastoral Ministry
• Agents of the Pastoral Ministry
• Getting along in an inter-religious society
• Workshop for an inter-confessional celebration.
• Leadership in the work of evangelization
• Organizing evangelization
• A workshop of Eucharists
• Educating for interiority and transcendence.
• How to create Christian Community.
• Lasallian spirituality.
• The Pastoral Ministry of Vocations
• A workshop of celebrations
• New languages for evangelization.
• Quality and Evangelization.
• Workshop of pastoral successes (done by the same participants)
• Re-structuring the ARLEP
• Challenges for the future.

These have been two weeks of intense work but serene and productive as well. Each participant will receive a DVD with the materials and the memory of all the modules and workshops, as well as a clip of a video with 7 minutes of the most interesting moments of our encounters. Ask for it; it will surely be of interest to you.
^{(Brother Paco Chiva)}

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