Highlights

SWORDS TO PLOUGHSHARES: A CALL TO PEACE
Auditions for St Mary’s 2010 orchestral and choral concert “Swords To Ploughshares: A Call To Peace” will begin next Saturday 13 March from 10am to 4pm at the Music Studio. Directions to the music studio will be available during the audition period. Please visit http://concert.stmary.sg to register and select an audition time slot or email This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it for more information.

TRAFFIC & CARPARKING PROCEDURES
Due to our ever increasing population at St Mary’s and the growing number of cars at masses, we ask all drivers for your fullest cooperation with our procedures and with our warden volunteers.

Cars are only able to exit immediately after mass times, and no announcements will be made at masses for moving of cars. If you are intending to stay after mass into another mass time, please consider parking in an HDB carpark unless you wish to leave only after the next mass time.

BASEMENT 1 (Carpark Entrance level) is available for double parking during mass times on the designated red lots only, after all the white lots are filled. Please do not park outside of designated lots and please display your mobile number on the dashboard if you are double or triple-parked.

BASEMENT 2 (Canteen level) is available for triple parking during masses after all white and red lots are filled, beginning 15 minutes before the start of Sunday 9am and 10.45am masses, as well as at all other major mass times. Please do not enter the ramp going down to Basement 2 after 8.45am or after 10.30am unless you are intending to park.

Double & triple-parked cars should be moved immediately after mass ends.

Please note the No Right Turn sign at the bottom of the hill into Avenue 2. Cars that attempt to turn right after Sunday morning masses and after masses with heavy traffic volume are actually causing a congestion behind them. Every few minutes counts, and all the minutes add up. Please be considerate.

THE WORK OF OUR FRIARS IN HAITI AFTER THE EARTHQUAKE
The three Fraternities of Port-au-Prince are places that welcome the Haitians. Saint Alexandre, for example, right in down town, is a point of reference for many sick people cared for by Br. Victor, a psychologist from Chile who is also a Medical Doctor. The Church was converted into a hospital pavilion with medicine and many patients. Br. Omar, a Salvadorian, in his small convent pitched many tents for homeless children to provide them with a place to eat and sleep. Br. Colombano, on the other hand, continues making his rounds in the “cloister” of poverty, that is, the market place, which has become a place of misery. Yet, this cloister, this market place is where many buy and sell without water or electricity.

Everybody calls out to Br. Victor and he, with a smile, gives to each as he can. The fraternity of Croix-les-missions is the only house of three that suffered damage. The Church lost its façade while the convent also suffered considerable damage. The Friars sleep out in the open in the little square between the Friary and the Church. Br. Jean Louis is the infirmarian, who passes the whole day caring for the sick crowded around there. Br. Dempsey, who is the President of the Haitian Foundation, Guardian, and Pastor hustles back and forth re-organizing Parish life. Lastly, Br. Antonio is, likewise, taken up with a thousand necessary logistics. The third fraternity located on a flat surface was untouched by the earthquake; it’s a secure house even if the Friars choose to sleep out in the open in the small red tents. This fraternity has 11 youth in initial formation who, together with the Haitian Br. Miguel are busy assisting the victims of the earthquake. Br. Walter is the driver taking people here and there as he did with us. The people of Haiti, who are resilient in suffering, rely on the Friars, who, in turn, love their people for whom they organized loads of food transported from Santo Domingo to the Convent of Lilavois. The money collected up to now is for emergency use only, such as food and medicine. As to the rebuilding, Divine Providence will see to it in time.