Br. William Garvey Honored by La Salle University, Philippines: On February 15, 2006 at a cermony in the De La Salle community at La Salle University, representatives from La Salle University, Lipa city, Philippines presented Brother William Garvey with a distinguished Chair in Liberal Arts for his more than thirty years of service to education and religious formation in the Philippines. Brother William was among the pioneer Brothers at De La Salle - Lipa beginning in 1964. He taught in the high school and was later Director of Novices at the Lipa Novitiate. Brother William also served as executive secretary of the Institute for Spiritual Formation in Asia, located in Colombo, Sri Lanka.
Congratulations Brother Bill!
^{(www.fscbaltimore.org)}

Brother Superior General’s visit to the District of Madrid: Brother Superior first met the teachers, parents and representatives of the 1600 students of La Salle Specialised College. He was particularly pleased to meet the management team, who explained to him their curriculum, designed to help students with particular needs: for example, teaching Spanish to immigrants, revision schemes for those who have fallen behind, social help for students finding it hard to follow normal school schedules, in fact, time-tables adapted to the needs of individuals. All these schemes indicate how the college is attempting to adapt schooling to the personality and needs of each student.

That same evening in the college itself all the teams associated with the Lasallian Mission and all the Christian communities which are active in each of the De La Salle establishments of Madrid met the Superior and explained how they ensure Christian and Lasallian ideals in the various places where they work. The meeting ended with Holy Mass at which three teachers vowed their commitment as Lasallian Associates. In his homily Brother Alvaro pointed out the purpose of that commitment: we are at the service of children and underprivileged young people, and it is they who must be the centre of our attention.

The Superior’s itinerary during the next few days was as follows:

Visit to Sacred Heart College, where he observed the hard work being done by the social assistants. These assistants are not officially bound by Spanish legislation, but the Lasallian District of Madrid has hired them to help find solutions to the problems of our students. This is another indication of interest in the person of every student; which seems to be a major endeavour of the District. Brother Alvaro also visited the print workshop called Villena, where many of the students are trained and work.

Visit to La Salle Higher Education Centre, attached to the university of Madrid, where the main courses are teacher training and occupational therapy. This establishment is particularly important in linking the work of the various Lasallian Districts of Spain, (Arlep), because it is due to be the headquarters for the training of teachers in all the La Salle establishments of the Region. During his visit Brother Superior was presented with an honorary fellowship of the centre.

Meeting in St. Raphael’s College of all those involved in pastoral work in the District. These persons, some of whom are setting up a Lasallian Christian Community together, explained the work they are undertaking in announcing the Gospel message to the young. Brother Alvaro expressed his admiration for their work at a time when Spain is undergoing social change and when secularisation and indifference towards religion are rapidly spreading.

Meeting with the parents and teachers of the various colleges: Maravillas, St. Raphael, La Paloma, Talavera, Plasencia. In the last named college, which has just celebrated fifty years of existence, the students welcomed Brother Alvaro with Costa Rican songs and he unveiled a statue of St. John Baptist de La Salle, carved by a lady teacher. Finally he handed certificates of Benefactor to two friends of the college.
^{(Br. Juan Pablo Martin)}

A school for the poor in Cartagena, Colombia, site inauguration: On March 3, 2006, the "Brother Antonio Ramos" School, which used to operate on the site of the La Salle School in Cartagena, Colombia, opened its own site. Up until now, it was run in a tuition-driven school, which cared for its own students for a half-day, and then offered its resources the other half-day to persons with few resources so that they could receive a free education.

The new buildings of the "Brother Antonio Ramos" School were opened by the District of Bogota during a ceremony which included children and young people from Cartagena. Present were His Excellency, Jorge Enrique Jiménez, Archbishop of Bogota, Roxana Segovia Brid, City Secretary of Education, and several Brothers from the District. Brother Visitor Jorge Molina Valencia officially inaugurated the new buildings.

The "Brother Antonio Ramos" School has a student population of 960, all of whom are financially poor. Brother Jorge Fonseca is the Principal, Brother Javier de la Hoz is the academic dean, Brother Henry Martínez is the pastoral ministry coordinator and there are 28 other teachers. This work has produced several vocations for our Congregation, one of them being brother Henry Martínez himself.

La Salle School is a tuition-driven institution with 100 years of history and up until three years ago it belonged to the District of Central America and it was administered by Brothers from Spain.

Congratulations to the District of Bogota for their not letting go of the "Brother Antonio Ramos" School, and we thank the La Salle School for having founded and supported it for nearly 40 years on its campus.
^{(Br. Bernardo Montes Urrea)}

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