Dear Brothers and Sisters of Our Lady of Mount Carmel,
Our parish has been in existence since 1878. It has been served by Carmelite priests the entire time. The Carmelites who serve here are all members of the Province of the Most Pure Heart of Mary, with headquarters in Illinois.
That same Province, commonly referred to as PCM, the Latin initials for Pure Heart of Mary, has served in Peru since 1949 and in the Pueblo Joven of José Galvez since 1976.
As a life-long Carmelite, I have been hearing about the missions in Peru all my life. I have never felt the call to serve there, but I have tried to be supportive of the mission to Peru in a variety of ways.
Therefore, when I came to OLMC in 2015 and read the parish roster, I was thrilled to read that so many of our members were doctors–seventy nine, to be precise. It struck me that we might have the people power to do a medical mission somewhere. Many church congregations do this as part of their social ministry commitment.
We have been talking about this for more than two years. We have recruited a team of thirty volunteers, most of them medical professionals. And, we have been blessed by the amazing competence of our chairperson, Rosemary Russell, and the logistical genius of Vincent Ty.
After two scouting trips, and much paperwork in preparation, we are going to do it – medical mission to Peru, flying out of JFK on September 28 and returning on October 7.
This has been a parish-wide project from the very beginning. You contributed to the Living Stones campaign to underwrite this mission. You supported the International Night dinner in 2017. Adults and students alike have donated medications and toiletries all through the spring.
Yes, thirty of us are making the trip, but our entire parish family has backed it and prayed us forward. Praise and thanks to God and the people of Our Lady of Mount Carmel for this blessed opportunity.
Sincerely yours in Christ and Our Lady of Mount Carmel,
fr. Dan