FARM OF HOPE — From left, Sister Claire Novecosky, OSU, Sister Clariss, OLM, and Liz and Nestor Trach spend some time with one of the men who lives at Farm of Hope, a detox centre in Brazil.

A PARTILHA

By Nestor Trach

Trip to Brazil parish a dream realized

For the month of February, my wife Liz and I had the opportunity to spend time in Brazil. The hope of some day visiting the Diocesan Mission Team in Maceio became reality.

About 40 years ago when the early Abbacy Mission Team left for Brazil, we established a close connection between the team and St. Dominic School in Humboldt, Sask. where I was principal. The students held fundraising events to support the work of Claire Novecosky, OSU, and on each visit home, Sister Claire would visit the school to spend time with the staff and students, and share stories of Brazil. A close friendship developed which has continued over the years. On her visits to Humboldt, Sister Claire has continued to stop in to provide updates on the work of the mission team and alway extends an invitation to visit them in Maceio.

Our daughter Bev, from her elementary school days onward and through her contact with the sisters, was also interested in the work of the mission team. A little over six year ago, Bev joined the Scarboro Lay Mission team with the request that she be able to serve in Brazil. Those stories of Sister Claire and others made a great impression on her and she now serves as a Scarboro lay missionary in Fortaleza, a city of 3.2 million, just two degrees below the equator on the Atlantic coast. Fortaleza is about a 17-hour bus ride from Maceio.

We planned a visit with Bev in February and Sister Claire extended the invitation to come to Maceio. How could we refuse? After spending the first week in Fortaleza, taking in Carnival and celebrating Ash Wednesday in Bev’s parish, we set off to Maceio joined by Bev as well as Sister Clariss, OLM, an old friend of Sister Claire’s. We spent part of the week with Sister Claire, Sister Louise Hinz and the three young women in formation with the Ursulines.

We took in many sites including Benedictine Father Sylvester Vredegoor’s grave and accident site as well as the school that has been named in his honour. We drove to Uniao dos Palmares and visited the parish where Rev. Emile April, our pastor at St. Augustine Parish in Humboldt, spent many years. We were treated royally by his former parishioners. It was evident that in addition to Emile April and Rev. Les Paquin who now is a pastor in the Saskatoon diocese, names like Revs. Don MacGillivray, Sylvester Vredegoor and Sister Maria Doepker will long be honoured and remembered for their work among the Brazilian people. That same respect is shown for the sisters today.

The highlight of our short visit was our day spent at the Farm of Hope, which is a detox centre for young men age 18 and older who are addicted to drugs or alcohol or both. The one-year program involves a commitment to stay, pray and work the land and run the farm which includes cooking, baking, housecleaning, gardening and looking after the animals. An important part of the treatment is the time spent in prayer. Sister Claire is one of the founding group members and continues to be involved in the operation as a volunteer.

We had an opportunity to spend about two hours with three young men who shared their stories with us with the help of three translators, Sister Claire, Sister Clariss and Bev. We were intrigued by their stories of crime, dysfunctional families and living on the streets until they came to the Farm of Hope. One young man was a week away from graduation and grateful for the opportunity to turn his life around and return home to see his son again.

We are grateful to the missionaries who work to improve the lives of those most in need, and grateful as well for the time we spent with the missionary team, especially to Sisters Claire and Louise who made our visit a memorable experience and a dream realized.

Articles about the work of the Saskatoon Diocesan Brazil Mission Team appear under the heading A Partilha, the Brazilian word for sharing. Trach is a retired teacher and school administrator who lives in Humboldt, Sask.