Help a Christian brother out!
A pal of mine is hoping to raise some money for missionary efforts in South America. Building chapels in remote areas and such. Stuff that matters. Please give generously!
I trust that the new year has begun well for everyone and that the grace and the peace of Christ our Lord whose humble and miraculous birth we recently celebrated will continue to permeate you lives throughout the year.
I write to make an appeal to your generosity. As many of you know, I have been blessed to participate in several different missionary experiences to third world countries and have returned each time with an increased enthusiasm to do more. This year I have again been presented with two such opportunities. On account of my previous experience at this mission, I have been asked by two groups, Christendom College and Paul VI High School, to help lead their respective trips to our diocesan mission in Bánica, Dominican Republic. To help defray the costs of these trips, I am trying to raise $1,000 that would be used for travel expenses and to fund our projects. I hope to collect $400 by the end of February for the first trip and another $600 by the end of May for the second.
The fruits of previous trips Bánica have been incredible. Besides the obvious material assistance provided, the more important harvest is certainly a spiritual one. Recently the pastor of the mission, Fr. Posey, sent a letter to Christendom College thanking them for their help in past and encouraging them to continue it in the future. Fr. Posey cited a number of improvements that he has seen take place in the four since years since Christendom College has been sending students to the Dominican Republic including greater sacramental participation and increased religious fervor, which he credits in part to the witness given by the students. From my own experience, I can likewise attest that the people we meet are always so excited that we are there, seemingly independent of whatever specific task we might be there to accomplish.
Nevertheless, the projects for both trips are important ones. Each group will be charged with building a small chapel in one of the outlying villages, or campos, of the parish. As the area around Bánica is very rural, the mission encompasses a very large geographical area with much of the population living in very remote areas. Consequently, it is impossible for the majority of the people to travel to the church for the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, other sacraments, and catechetical instruction. Thus, the priests travel to the various campos, some of which can only be reached by journeying several days on a mule, to visit their people. Of course, in these villages resources are meager, so many lack an adequate space, sheltered from the rain and the intense sun, where Holy Mass can be celebrated and in which instruction can be given. This is where we come in. From start to finish, we will supply all the materials and manpower to construct a simple, yet much needed chapel in one of these villages. Your donation and our work will provide a suitable home wherein Our Lord can come to meet his people in the celebration of the sacraments and the preaching of the Word of God.
As I have alluded to, the benefits of these experiences are immense, and this letter could go on ad infinitum if I attempted to articulate them all. Any contribution you are able to make will be tremendously appreciated and by means of it you will be assisting in a very significant way a large number of people whose faith is very large but whose resources are not. With each trip I make, I become more impressed by how people whose circumstances are so disparate can yet be so united by the common faith they share, truly illuminating the Church as the one Body of Christ which she is.
Contributions are tax-deductible and can be made out either to myself or to Christendom College. Please send them to the address below and thank you so much again for your generosity. Do not hesitate to contact me should you have further questions, and please forward this to anyone who might be willing to help.
In Christo per Mariam,
Daniel Heenan
2027 South Glebe Road
Arlington, VA 22204
703-685-1187
