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PAGE 2—The Southern Cross, November 14,1974
Retiree ‘One-man’ Missionary Team
BY RICHARD MCMUNN
ENCINITAS, Calif. (NC) - A retired
physician and member of St. John’s
parish here is a “one-man missionary
team,” said his pastor, Msgr. Michael J.
O’Connor.
(Continued from page 1)
created to combat the world hunger
problem;
Some “serious errors of
orientation” on the part of wealthy and
technologically advanced nations must
be corrected to lessen the gap between
the world’s “haves” and “have-nots;”
Developing nations must
re-emphasize agriculture which is
currently the “most underdeveloped of
the sectors of underdevelopment;”
- Wealthy nations must “break with a
consumption which is excessive.”
The Pope, seated before a tapestry of
the Resurrection, called for a “radical
revision of the underestimation by the
modem world of the importance of
agriculture.” He said that the food crisis
cannot be solved without the full
participation of agricultural workers.
These workers, he added, must be given
training, education and the loans they
need to farm.
Speaking of the “serious errors of
orientation” on the part of wealthy
lands, the Pope noted that fertilizer has
become scarce and more expensive.
The physician, Dr. D.A. Guida, has
made a full-time apostolate of relieving
the plight of nearly 300 impoverished
families in a remote desert village about
. 70 miles south of the Mexican border.
Msgr. O’Connor said Guida spends
“Is not this a case intimately bound
up with the fluctuations of a production
based more on the calculations of
profits to be gained than on satisfying
the needs of mankind?” the Pope asked.
Speaking on consumption in wealthy
nations, the Pope noted that the quality
of food is being menaced by the
“frenzied rush to create artificial
substitutes, capable of quicker
production.” He called or a “positive
will not to waste thoughtlessly” the
world’s goods.
The Pope said Jesus Christ gave an
“excellent lesson in thrift... for our
age, given as it is to wastefulness,” when
He ordered that the fragments of loaves
and fishes be collected after He fed
several thousand persons. That example,
the Pope said, “carries with it the
condemnation of a whole concept of
society wherein consumption tends to
become an end in itself, with contempt
for the needy, and to the detriment, in
the end, of those very people who
believed themselves to be its
beneficiaries, having become incapable
of perceiving that man is called to a
higher destiny.”
four or five days south of the border
every two weeks in addition to “the
time he spends collecting food, clothing
and shoes for the villagers.”
The 64-year-old physician, with the
appearance of a man 20 years younger,
has launched a construction project to
replace the villagers’ mud huts with
concrete block duplexes.
“The duplexes aren’t much by
American standards,” Guida said.
“Construction is very simple and each
unit has three rooms, each 12 feet
square. Six of the buildings are now
completed and 60 to 70 more must be
built to complete the project.”
Guided by Guida, who apprenticed
himself to a contractor friend to learn
how to construct the buildings, the
villagers do most of the work. “The
villagers are all willing workers,” he said,
“but they have absolutely no idea how
to do things and can do nothing unless
someone is there to show them how.”
Another project, now nearly
completed, is a water supply system.
Previously the village had no source of
water and the people carried what they
needed for drinking, cooking, cleaning
and bathing from a distant canal.
A source of fresh water was found, a
well was dug, a pump installed and pipe
layed to bring the water into the village.
For the first time the people can draw
fresh water from faucets in different
parts of the community.
As a result of the plumbing project,
the people also have a building equipped
with toilets and showers, also a first for
the village.
The credit for this work, according to
Guida, goes to Passionist Brother Kevin
O’Malley from Chicago and his corps of
Passionist Volunteers, a group of-
Catholic college students between the
ages of 18 and 25.
Brother Kevin came to me two years
ago and asked if there was some way
they could help,” Guida said. “It was
agreed that his group would come down
for two weeks in the summer and help
with the construction.
“He has been coming down every
summer since then and his people have
done much of the work on the water
system and have donated more than
$7,000 for the project.”
Describing the living conditions of
the villagers, Guida said, “The principal
diet of the people is beans and tortillas.
They do raise chickens, turkeys, some
pigs and goats for milk and meat for big
celebrations.
“The only source of income the
people have is picking cotton for three
weeks or a month once a year. And they
think it is really something if they can
earn $3 or $4 a day during this period.”
He said every family has a rosary, and
the people have a rosary service each
night. “They have a special devotion to
Mary and have dedicated the work being
done in the village to the Blessed Virgin.
“The village church is simple and has
only a large cross and two angels. We
would really like to get a pair of statues
four or five feet high of the Blessed
Virgin and the Sacred Heart for the
church.
“Once the statues have been donated,
the people plan to hold a parade and
Mass of thanksgiving to Mary for the
work that has been done for them.”
Each of the duplexes costs about
$850 to build, said Guida, who donates
$400 a month of his own money to
raising the villagers’ standard of living.
“I’m not all that religious,” Guida
said, “but I do feel that it is God’s will
that brought me to that village.”
“ONE-MAN MISSION TEAM” - Retired physician Dr. D.A. Guida
loads his van with supplies for a village 70 miles south of the
Mexico-California border. The “one-man missionary team,” as his pastor
calls him, collects food and clothing from his parish in Encinitas, Calif.,
and brings them to the village every two weeks. The 64-year-old doctor
has also launched a construction project to replace the community’s mud
huts with concrete block duplexes. (NC Photo by the Southern Cross)
Pope on Food Crisis—
Elderly Urged Not
to Retire from Life
BY BOB GILES
HOUSTON, Tex. (NC) - A social
worker specializing in helping the aged
has urged the 21 million elderly persons
in the United States not to retire from
life but to live meaningfully,
purposefully.
The social worker, Mrs. Vichy
Peralta, director of Adult and Aging
Services of the Philadelphia Department
of Public Welfare, said: “Life is a gift
from God and it’s a privilege to live.
Therefore, we must show our
appreciation to God by continuing to
give something of ourselves.”
She urged elderly persons “to show
AT BRUNSWICK
More than 180 members of St.
Francis Xavier Parish, Brunswick, ages 2
to past 62, participated in the 5-week
Religious Education Program during
October and November. Priests, Sisters
and laymen conducted study courses for
the various groups which met on
Sunday mornings and for the senior
high group which met at the Rectory on
Thursday evenings.
The pre-school program for children
2-5 years of age was centered on the
subject “A Sense of Me.” Children 2-3
years of age were taught by Sister
Francis and Mrs. Tony Rocha, with Mrs.
Walter T. O’Brien teaching the 4 year
old group. Children 5 years of age were
they care and it doesn’t take money to
live” by telephoning shut-ins, visiting
the sick or writing letters.
Mrs. Peralta, who was here to
conduct a workshop on aging at Holy
Rosary parish, said the elderly can also
avoid the nightmare of loneliness by
“getting involved in programs like
Project HEAD (Helping Elderly Adults
Direct), an interfaith self-help
organization for the aging which she
founded while she was director of the
Philadelphia archdiocesan Department
of Community Services on Aging.
Project HEAD, she said, aims to
involve the elderly in social,
taught by Mrs. John Silva.
Children in the elementary grades
were divided into two groups. Grades 1
through 3 comprised the First
Communion Preparation group, taught
by Miss Lillian Haggerty and Mrs. James
Layman. Grades 4 through 6 covered
the course “Unite” outlined in the new
Benziger Edition, taught by Sister
Suzanne and Mrs. Russell Vorce.
Students in the 7th, 8th and 9th
grades, under the direction of Mrs. Paul
Owens and Tony Rocha, covered a
course titled “Seek,” also outlined in
the new Benziger Edition.
educational, cultural, recreational, civic,
political and spiritual activities and to
provide for their health and welfare.
Mrs. Peralta urged the elderly “not to
be afraid of the young” and reminded
them that their wisdom and experience
are needed.
She also pleaded with the nation’s
young “to show the aged love and
respect and not to fear them.
Everywhere I go there seems to be a fear
of older people. I believe that fear is a
reflection of younger people’s growing
old - fear of being old and dying.”
The isolation, loneliness and
meaningless existence some elderly
Program
The high school students, grades 10,
11 and 12, completed a 5-week course
of instruction under the direction of
Father Tom Ryan and Jim Brennan.
The plan is to continue religious study
courses throughout the school year on
topics appropriate to this age group.
t
The adults were divided into two
groups: one conducted by Father Bob
Baker studied “Christian Family” and
the other conducted by Father Ryan
studied “Liturgy.”
A series of new study courses is being
planned and will begin on the first
Sunday in Advent.
Religious Education
persons experience, she said, have two
causes: some old people retire from life
and society puts them in a shell.
“Everything is for youth,” she said.
“It’s a youth-oriented society and the
aged are pushed out of the mainstream
of life. They should not be pushed out
of society.”
Mrs. Peralta said that her interest in
the aged began in 1962, when she
represented the Philippines, her native
country, at an international conference
of social workers in Washington, D.C.
“One social worker asked me about
the aged in my country,” she recalled,
“and I told him that in the Philippines
the old were loved and respected until
they reached their graves.” But the
American social worker charged that the
Philippines were underdeveloped and
had only one nursing home.
“It was true,” Mrs. Peralta said, but
she added that she visited several
nursing, homes in Washington and
“found them to be beautiful, but the
people were like objects, not human
beings. Then I tried to look at what the
churches were doing for the aged. I
found out that they were building
nursing homes” but did not have
programs involving the elderly in
activities.
After her return to directing a
Jesuit-sponsored social work center in
Manila, “I continued to think that the
American churches were wasting
resources on nursing homes,” she said.
Four years later, Mrs. Peralta, her
husband and three sons, emigrated to
the United States and she studied
geriatrics at Lankanau Hospital in
Philadelphia and Fordham University in
New York.
She worked with Catholic and
Quaker organizations helping the aged
before beginning her present job with
the city of Philadelphia.
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A
CENTENARY CELEBRATION. Bishop Raymond
W. Lessard (1.) concelebrated the 100th anniversary
Mass of Sacred Heart Parish, Milledgeville (Nov. 3)
with Archbishop Thomas A. Donnellan of Atlanta (c.)
and Rev. Jos. Ware (r.), former pastor. In background
is Rev. Vincent Mulvin, Master of Ceremonies. The
Milledgeville parish is on the border separating the
Atlanta and Savannah Sees.
CCW Workshop Held in Macon
BY MRS. R.W. HURLEY
Much practical help was given to
leaders of the five Council of Catholic
Women (CCW) affiliates in the Macon
Deanery on Saturday, November 2
when a workshop on the Commissions
was presented under the auspices of the
Macon Deanery CCW.
Twenty women attended the
workshop which lasted from 10AM to
2PM and was held in St. Joseph’s
Center. Coming from Savannah to lead
the session were Mrs. Eugene Smith,
diocesan chairman for Organization
Services Commission and immediate
past president of the Savannah Deanery
CCW, and Mrs. John J. Burns, Jr.,
Savannah Deanery chairman for
Organization Services.
Mrs. Burns opened the informative
part of the workshop with an
explanation of the structure of the CCW
and of our diocese with its seven
deaneries. Mrs. Smith then began a
discussion of the five commissions:
Church Communities, Family Affairs,
Community Affairs, International
Affairs and Organization Services. An
overview of each commission was
followed with very practical suggestions
of programs that would fall within its
area of interest.
Church Communities includes, she
said, programs such as nursery, Tiny
Tots Sunday School, assisting with CCD
program, urging women’s participation
in the Liturgy, altar work, charismatic
renewal, scripture classes, adult
education and ecumenism.
The work of Family Affairs was
illustrated with a display of materials
urging such programs as helping with
the Campaign for Human Development,
vacinnation against rubella, educational
programs on child abuse and neglect,
drug education programs, programs for
the elderly, Right-to-Life and Birthright.
The Community Affairs Commission
cooperates with the Social Apostolate
to promote such things as the Clothing
Bank, Food Bank, adopting needy
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families for Christmas, helping the
underprivileged and the elderly to locate
agencies to serve them and adding
services not available, work in political
parties.
International Affairs sponsors the
annual Bishop’s Clothing Drive and s
other Catholic Relief services, the
support of a Korean orphan, programs
involving international students and
various aids to missioners.
Organizations Services concentrates
on training activities, membership
drives, publicity, good programs and
warm hospitality at meetings, and
legislative programs.
Mrs. Smith closed her presentation
with a review of parliamentary
procedure.
Presiding at the workshop was Mrs.
Robert Slocum. Also speaking to the
group during the day were Fr. Michael
Delea, moderator, and Sister Elizabeth
Lynam, Social Apostolate coordinator
for the Macon parishes.
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