austraLasia
1518
ITM's 'Santa
Teresinha de Quelicai': Angola connection - and many
others
DILI: 5th March 2006 -- The
Parish of Laga is Baucau Diocese' largest parish - large in Catholic population
and almost impossibly large in terms of getting around. It is divided into
three sub-districts. One of those subdistricts, Quelicai, is an hour's
drive from the Laga parish centre on the coast. Baguia, another
sub-district, is two hours drive. They are all look to Bacau not only in
ecclesiastical terms, but most others as well, since Bacau is East Timor's
agricultural Centre. Salesian names like Fatumaca, Venilale, two name just
two, are better known to our readers, but are also part of this general
region.
News only trickles out slowly from East Timor,
though recent correspondence from there promises that we have an actual
'correspondent' now who will send news once a month. The first item of
news concerns the opening of the Lar de Santa Teresinha Orphanage in Quelicai on
18th March this year. The story has an interesting link to
Angola!
Since East Timor's Independence in 2002, renewed
ties with Portugal have brought some benefits to the nation. It so happened that
a senior figure in Portugal's Ministry for Labour and Solidarity, a certain Mrs
Lucilia Figueira, knew the Salesians and their approach well from her time in
Angola. She brought her broad smile and her political clout to Quelicai,
and in the space of a mere year, a half million dollar project on behalf of 60
orphans was realised.
18th March brought some major
figures to Quelicai for the Opening: The Minister for Labour and Solidarity from
Portugal and his East Timorese counterpart, the Portuguese Ambassador to East
Timor, Bishop Basilio of Baucau, the Regional EAO
superior, Fr Klement, the Provincial, Fr Calleja, and of course all of
Quelicai. This included a well-loved and longstanding missionary in East
Timor, Fr Joao de Deus who now has close pastoral connection with
Quelicai. He had known the old orphanage there, built in 1979 and long
since deteriorated to unusable state.
The new orphanage is
actually six blocks to accomodate the orphans aged 10-13 years, a study hall,
dining room, infirmary and recreation area. It is
now possibly the best orphanage in the nation. The
'opening' involved a little more - later there was the blessing of a new
residence and the laying of the foundation stone for the new Quelicai chapel,
which they hope to finish building in 2007.
One small
additional note - the opening of the Quelicai Santa Teresinha Orphanage featured
as the first news item for the newly opened Bacau 'Fini Lorosae' Diocesan
Radio.
__________________________
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