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Dear friends, I was able to visit the seminary in mid-June and was delighted to see in person the impact that your donations have had. The projects proposed late last year have been completed. There are new wardrobes in the dorms and rooms. There are new large desks and chairs in the rooms. There is a large new computer workstation area adjacent to the library. In fact, the contrast with the state of things a few years ago is really remarkable. I realized that the newest seminarians don’t have any experience of the half-finished building, the ‘library’ in storage rooms, the workstations in the dorm corridor, the broken desks and creaky chairs, or myriad other needs, large and small, that have been improved with your help since we began our fundraising. The donations from overseas seem to have inspired extra support from regional industries, too. This year a paving company has begun donating nice stones to fill the long driveway and parking areas. A team of workers is finishing cementing and painting the whole exterior, which was previously in a chronic state of not-quite-finished. And because of the steady trickle of extra funds the seminary has been able to hire several part time workers to help with ongoing maintenance and two groundskeepers to water, mow, and prune the large property. For the first time the fruit trees are flourishing in the orchard and the grass is always cut. The oldest dorm rooms, in the very first wing of the seminary, are also being repainted and repaired. The whole picture is now so much more cheering to the soul and more encouraging of focus on prayer and study. I am very pleased that Friends of Campos has been part of this improvement. Without our help much of it could not have happened, and certainly not so quickly.
Our goal for the coming months is to continue providing monthly support for food, healthcare, fuel and other regular expenses. We currently receive approximately $500 US a month in recurring donations. We would like to make that $1500 a month. Recurring donations are particularly useful for guaranteeing steady support. If you are an occasional donor, we urge you to consider a recurring donation instead. It is much appreciated! Please help us meet this small mid-year goal! Fun aside: you might enjoy the many colorful photos from Corpus Christi on the Instagram page of the Apostolic Administration. by Ona Kiser, President by Ona Kiser, President I had the honor of attending the reception of the cassock of a seminarian during my visit. Mr. Jurandir’s family arrived from around Brazil, too, as did some local family friends. The ceremony, celebrated by Dom Rifan, was followed by a cheerful dinner with Jurandir’s family and friends in the refectory. Following are a couple of pictures courtesy of the seminary photographer.   Mother Auxiliadora, of the congregation of the Immaculate Heart of Mary and Saint Michael Archangel, has sent us a video thanking our donors for their generous help in purchasing musical instruments and computers for the convent. They are very, very grateful, and keep the benefactors of Friends of Campos in their prayers. Salve Maria! Dear friends, This update will be largely photographic, as the seminary has sent me a slew of great photos from Holy Week, Easter and the recent ceremonies of reception of the Tonsure and Minor Orders. I have not been able to visit recently myself, though I hope to go in late May and several members of our board of directors have plans to visit in June and July. I look forward to bringing you more personal updates from those visits! Meanwhile, please enjoy the ‘virtual visit’ via these pictures: The reception of tonsure and minor orders took place on April 23 of this year: Some scenes from Holy Week: Maundy Thursday: Good Friday: The Easter Vigil: Easter: I also wanted to highlight a post over on New Liturgical Movement which features photos from the ordination to the diaconate of Mr. João Bosco and Mr. Juaci, which took place at the end of March. Take a look at their lovely photos here!
Wishing you all a blessed month of May! Ona Kiser President, Friends of Campos  Our first "virtual visit" to the seminary was informative and fun.
Join us next time! On March 5th donors to Friends of Campos were invited to a 'virtual visit' with a group of seminarians from Campos, via a Zoom call. The theme was Lent, and we had a lovely and lively conversation about the daily routine at the seminary, favorite Lenten devotions, favorite places for prayer, and typical exercises in fasting and charity. Other topics included the regional traditions of religious retreats for the laity during carnival; parish Passion plays for Holy Week; and processions in which Our Lord, carrying his Cross, encounters his Mother, Our Lady of Sorrows. Some favorite books for Lent were suggested: including Ven. Fulton Sheen's Life of Christ; The Passion of Jesus Christ by St. Alphonsus Ligouri; Meditations for Lent from St. Thomas Aquinas; and a locally available book of daily meditations for Lent organized by priests of the Apostolic Administration. We plan to do this again, with seasonal themes or themes suggested by our benefactors. Sacred music is one that has been asked for by a few people and we hope to organize later this year. Please feel free to send suggestions! We hope you'll join us next time! Not a donor? Donate here! Read more about our mission.  I was blessed to be able to attend the ordination and first solemn Mass of Father Fábio, who will spend this coming year serving the parish and rural chapels in Varre Saí, the remote mountain town in the interior of the diocese. It was a joyful occasion for his family, colleagues and the community.
We are very grateful for the generous support from our donors offered during our Advent fundraiser. We have received a little more than half of what we aimed for, which is a huge help, and we sent the accumulated donations to Brazil last week. However the additional funds are still hoped for, as this will help pay for the computers, as well as the increased food bill at the seminary - the incoming class this year is 17 seminarians, the largest in a while! Please help as you can, and share this need with friends or colleagues who might be able to chip in. Do please keep all the faithful, clergy and seminarians of the Apostolic Administration in your prayers! Wishing you all a blessed 2022, especially in the face of so many adversities. If you don’t already receive our occasional email updates, please do sign up here. Click here for our donations page. - Ona DEAR FRIENDS, CHRISTMAS IS COMING and we are launching our second fundraiser of 2021. In these trying times, in this impoverished region, your help is invaluable. Please help us reach our Christmas goal of $20,000 USD! Your contributions make a big difference for the people of this unique traditional Catholic diocese. Donate today! And please share this post with friends and family! Here are our Advent 2021 projects:
For more project details, visit the projects section of this website.
Please keep us in your prayers! The seminarians and sisters pray for their benefactors, and a monthly Mass is offered at the seminary in thanks for the supporters of Friends of Campos. Particular prayer requests are always welcome. Click here to send yours.
The rector of the seminary has informed us that 30 Masses for the suffering souls in Purgatory will be celebrated in November. The rector invites anyone to submit lists of souls to include.
Please use the form below to send in the names of any souls you would like to receive the benefit of these Holy Masses.
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Please send us your name and email below to subscribe. by Ona Kiser, President We are delighted to see that the projects we sought to help fund earlier this year are coming along well! After my recent visit to the seminary, I am happy to report: 1) Our supplemental donations for food and other necessities helped immensely during the period in which parish donations dwindled to a trickle. As people have begun to return to normal routines the donations of food have climbed up again, and the pantry is now well supplied with rice, beans, oil, eggs and other staples. Meat and chicken are less reliable, and pharmacy items continue to be costly, so we will continue to send some supplementary funding when we can, to help keep the seminarians in good health. 2) The library continues to grow, with hundreds of new books purchased. It can be hard to find texts in Portuguese, so they kept a sharp eye out for online offerings. They now have, for instance, the complete works of Saint Augustine, which is 50 volumes and cost BR$9000.00 (about US$1800). It is hard to find in Portuguese and was suddenly available, so they bought it immediately despite the high cost. They were also able to buy the complete works of Saint Jerome. 3) The big project of purchasing wardrobes for all the dormitory rooms is now paid for and underway. All the work is being done to order by local small businesses. 4) The sisters in Bom Jesus are very grateful for our donations that have helped with costly pharmacy items in particular. We will continue to send a portion to them whenever your donations make it possible. 5) The sisters’ music program remains unfunded at this time. We may re-address that in our fall campaign. Many, many thanks for your ongoing support of this unique traditional community! May God repay you! (by Ona Kiser, President) I am not always able to be in Campos for ordinations, but was blessed on my recent visit to assist at the ordinations to the subdiaconate of two wonderful young men, João Bosco and Juaci, which took place on the feast of St. Augustine. May they be holy priests! Below are a few photos from the event taken by the seminarians in charge of media. Please keep them in your prayers! You can see more frequent photos of events from the seminary on their instagram: https://www.instagram.com/seminarioic/ |
Friends of Campos, Inc.Friends of Campos, Inc. is a US-based not-for-profit (501c3) which supports the social and educational projects of the Personal Apostolic Administration of Saint John Mary Vianney, most of which are located around the diocese of Campos dos Goytacazes in the state of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Archives
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FRIENDS OF CAMPOS, INC. is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization.
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