Bogotá, Colombia. In the past couple of months, more than half a million peoples’ homes have been flooded due to heavy rains, and in Bogotá alone, more than 45,000 people have been displaced. Thanks to the collaboration of the Colombian community of Chicago, IL, we were able to reach out to some of the people affected by the flooding.
For the last nine years in Chicago, IL, the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart have coordinated the celebration of the Novena de Aguiñaldos, an Advent tradition popular in Colombia.1 Fr. Joseph Jablonski, MSC, who spent over 20 years as a missionary in Colombia and goes back for a visit every year, has been there each night, leading several of the prayers.
For the past two years, participants in the Novena have shown solidarity with the people affected by heavy rains and flooding in Colombia, and this year they were able to help more families.2 Using the donations collected at the Novena, Fr. Joseph purchase basic food supplies such as rice, beans, dried milk, and cooking oil. The Missionaries of the Sacred Heart community in Bogotá lent Fr. Joseph their pick-up truck to transport the food, and Fr. Lucho Segura, MSC, the local superior and Ernesto Caecido, an MSC theology student, also helped load up the truck for its multiple trips.
When distributing emergency assistance, it is important to work closely with people who know the area and the residents well, so that the food can be distributed in a safe, effective and orderly fashion. So Father Joseph sought the help of his friend Fernando Londoño and Fernando’s wife, Luz Myriam Lopez, who direct a local foundation, the Fundación Proyecto Empresarial, to help distribute food to 34 poor families in Cazuca, one of the poorest neighborhoods on the outskirts of Bogotá. He also collaborated with the Pastoral Social Cáritas office of the Diocese of Soacha. The timing was perfect. The offices of Pastoral Social Cáritas had just reopened after being closed for Christmas, and social workers had planned to visit flood victims in Soacha, but didn’t have anything yet to bring them. Thanks to the generosity of the Colombia community in Chicago and the efforts of the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart and their friends, Pastoral Social Cáritas workers were able to distribute food to over 100 families in Soacha.
The novena takes place from December 15 through December 23 and is held in a different location each night. People gather to pray, sing and eat together.
Both November/December 2010 and 2011 have seen extremely heavy rains and flooding in Colombia. In December 2010 participants in the Novena de Aguinaldo in Chicago, IL decided to raise funds to assist flood victims in the Bogotá are and Fr. Joseph Jablonski, MSC used these funds to distribute emergency supplies to 50 families affected by the flooding in Mosquera (a suburb of Bogotá) on January 22, 2011.
Bogotá, Colombia. In the past couple of months, more than half a million peoples’ homes have been flooded due to heavy rains, and in Bogotá alone, more than 45,000 people have been displaced. Thanks to the collaboration of the Colombian community of Chicago, IL, we were able to reach out to some of the people affected by the flooding.
For the past two years, participants in the Novena have shown solidarity with the people affected by heavy rains and flooding in Colombia, and this year they were able to help more families.