From January 28 to February 7, 2023, twenty-eight young members of our parishes in Santiago and Curicó, Chile, took part in a summer youth mission in Santa Bárbara, a mountain village outside of Los Ángeles in southern Chile. The mission was led by Friars Matteo MARTINELLI, Christian BORGHESI, Ramón ZAS GARCIA and Fabio MAZZINI, all members of the Provincial Delegation in Chile.

This was the first mission the young people could carry out since the pandemic. They chose to donate part of their vacation time to serving others. During the mission they carried out various activities, such as taking the mission door-to-door, hosting a children’s afternoon outing to the circus, constructing two wooden houses for two families in need, removing trash along the banks of the Biobío River, as part of an ecology morning, and making a pilgrimage to the nearby Shrine of Santa Teresita de Aguas Blancas.
The warm welcome from the shrine’s Pastor, Father Oscar GUTIÉRREZ ROMERO, and the parishioners who opened their doors to the missionary group, was much appreciated. Unfortunately, the natural beauty of the surroundings was greatly affected by the tremendous fires that recently swept through the area. All the same, it was a good experience because it promoted growth in Franciscan fraternal life and service to the most needy.
Once the young people returned to their home communities, they continued their mission by going door-to-door collecting goods and food items to be delivered to the families affected by the fires in the regions of Ñuble and Biobío, in southern Chile.

Friar Fabio MAZZINI