Words from Fr Ed (From June 27th, 2010 Bulletin)

Masaka Miracle

Thanks to the concern of Diane Cooper and your generosity we were able to join Holy Rosary in providing for a latrine system for a school for the deaf in Uganda. Here is Sister Immaculate Rose’s letter to Diane when she found out:

Dear Diane.
When I opened the message I just observed a miracle done for me!!!!!
I do not know how I can really thank you! I only ask the good Lord to reward you abundantly. Today is a commemoration of Uganda martyrs at Namugongo shrine. I prayed for you. After Mass I open and find good news. Let me praise the Lord. I ask you kindly to convey my sincere gratitude to all [who have] done this wonders to me. - Sr. Immaculate Rose
 

The Daughters of Mary in Masaka, Uganda run a school for the deaf, among their many educational outreach missions. This school sits high on a hill, over-looking the motherhouse, giving the students a fabulous view of the surrounding countryside.  The sisters educate 130 deaf children, most of whom must live here as borders during the term. Among the numbers include 30 orphans. Up until the last week in April, sanitation facilities consisted only of pit latrines, which is typical in these developing parts of Africa (if there is sanitation at all). Unfortunately, heavy rains at that time caused the collapse of the latrines. The good thing was that most of the children were away on semester break. The challenging thing is that the sisters cannot resume school until the sanitation issue is remedied.  Between Holy Rosary and St. Stephens we were able to pay $6,000 U.S. to put in the 2 toilet facilities, one for boys and one for girls, which would consist of 5 stalls each. That is 12,000,000 Ugandan shillings, an amount nearly unfathomable for the Sisters.  They can now open the school again thanks to your generosity.

Tree Thinning
Being a lover of trees I hate to cut trees…unless they seriously need it. I was surprised when I first came here that the trees surrounding the back of the Church which caused the ant problem ($150,000) were left standing. It is apt to happen again. The same trees are shedding needles onto the roof which may cause problems with the roof as well as the gutters. A proposal to cut the worst offenders of these and other trees has reached me and I’ve walked the grounds approving what seems reasonable. Some are dying and others are a hazard. They will be replaced with more native landscape that also compliments our buildings. I’m also looking into improving our bird habitat to provide for the flickers which like nesting in the church roof. Please see another article in this bulletin for more detail.