by Antonina Zielinska
When Edward F. Clancy first presented his idea of bringing pilgrims from Holy Family-St. Thomas Aquinas parish, Park Slope, to World Youth Day he ran into many obstacles.
He had to convince the parish not only that it was possible to raise the funds for World Youth Day but also that it was worth the trouble. The price tag for each pilgrim joining the Brooklyn Diocese for World Youth Day 2013 in Brazil is $4,399.
“If you invest in youth to go to World Youth Day, the return is ten-fold,” Clancy said. “Especially with Catholic schools closing, we don’t have the same ability of passing religion down to the next generation. So we have to fight for it.”
After much persistence, Clancy was finally able to convince the parish to take a chance. Mary Ann Walsh, the parish youth minister, stepped up to the plate and motivated young people to not only want to go but to spend two years fundraising for the event.
“Mary Anne said we were going, so I said O.K.,” said 26-year-old pilgrim Matthew Faga.
The group surpassed a $2,000 goal for each pilgrim by $800. Each pilgrim will now only have to supplement the cost with $1,200 for the trip.
“At first when you have a huge quantity in front of you, it’s overwhelming. But when we had small victories with small goals every month, it became more real,” said 23-year-old pilgrim Citlalli Negrete, who dreamed of going to Brazil long before she knew World Youth Day would be there.
“I didn’t think we would make it, it was a lot,” said pilgrim Irvin Vidals, 19. “It was stressful. So far it’s been a difficult ride, but it’s been a great ride. I gained a lot of patience.”
Vidals also said he grew much closer to many people in the parish whom he had known for most of his life.
Pilgrim Jonathan Vidalis, 20, said World Youth Day Brazil has already brought about positive effects by bringing the group together in their preparation.
One of the ways, the group raised money is by organizing a visit from Santa last December. Pilgrim Jonathan Galizia, 21, donned a Santa costume for the event.
“When Santa Clause appeared, all the kids gasped,” said 18-year-old pilgrim Edith Rosales. “I liked the idea. I think we should keep doing it.”
Rosales said that this is hopefully only the first fruit of World Youth Day the parish will experience.
Pilgrim Rebecca Cora, 16, said she was always confident that the group would be successful in its fundraising.
“I left it up to God because He was going to provide the money. We just had to put in the work,” she said. Cora also said she trusted the parish community to support them.
“This church is alive, and we know the people,” said 16-year-old pilgrim Maria Negrete. “We knew what food to sell, and we knew how to keep a positive attitude.”
“I’m really happy that the people of the parish were very supportive,” Rosales said. “I know other parishes wanted to send youth but couldn’t because fundraising wasn’t really there. So, I’m really grateful to the people who supported us.”
Cora said she is most looking forward to being able to express her faith in a worldwide community. She said it’s hard to express her faith in her public school because it’s not something that is discussed, so this will be an incredible opportunity to grow in faith.
