On August 1, 2026, the Kolbe Center at Villa Belvedere in Carini, Sicily, Italy, opened its summer season with a full schedule of events taking place throughout the month at its large amphitheater.
There will be twelve evenings of music, film, and theater, featuring a series of performances through which the friars of the Center aim to create a welcoming space where people can build relationships, cultivate friendships, enjoy wholesome culture, and experience Franciscan joy.
The thousand-seat venue adjoins the Spirituality Center and the Shrine of St. Maximilian Kolbe. It stands on the friars’ property on the slopes of Mount Saraceno, at an elevation of 650 meters (2,133 feet), overlooking the vast Gulf of Carini. During the summer season, the population of the area rises to 150,000, including 45,000 residents of the city of Carini.
During the summer, the Kolbe Center opens its doors to this portion of the People of God, putting into practice the concept of a “Church that goes forth.” The area surrounding the Center has a strong tradition of summer hospitality and is further enhanced by many visitors from the city of Palermo. Thus, in this setting, the Center carries out the “pastoral ministry of leisure, tourism, and sports” promoted by the Italian Bishops’ Conference.
The evening events, organized by the Kolbe Center under the direction of Friar Guglielmo BARBASSO, are led by Artistic Director Peppuccio PECORARO and Consultant Friar Paolo FIASCONARO, with the collaboration of numerous volunteers from the Carinese Folklore Association APS.
The events draw thousands of spectators every summer. The events also give the friars an opportunity to share the charism of St. Maximilian Kolbe, the Franciscan martyr of nonviolence from Poland. The highlight of this summer season is the feast of St. Maximilian. This year, the celebration featured the Minister Provincial of the Italian Province of the Immaculate Conception (Sicily-Calabria), Friar Salvino PULIZZOTTO, who was joined by city officials and, for the first time, a large group of families originally from Poland who now live in the Carini area and its surroundings.
Friar Paolo FIASCONARO
