As the first hint of fall cools the air, school children returned to their classes this month.
Franciscans are right in the thick of it all, providing an education presence that goes back centuries.
At two upstate New York Franciscan universities, Siena, near Albany, and St. Bonaventure, in Olean, students are preparing for careers in varied fields, including business and teaching. Those who attend Franciscan schools are provided an added education dimension.
Active campus ministries bring students together in prayer. Theology classes, often taught by Franciscans, offer unique insights into liberal arts education. Students are immersed in service projects, that extend from assisting the poor both in upstate New York and in urban centers such as New York City and Philadelphia.
Siena and St. Bonaventure are large institutions. But Franciscans also educate the poorest of students in the smallest of schools.
Fr. Ponchie Vasquez, OFM, is pastor for the Tohona O’odham Nation, straddling the Mexican border in the Diocese of Tucson, Arizona. Fr. Ponchie’s congregation is located in one of the poorest regions of the nation. But Franciscan education is making a comeback. Fr. Ponchie led efforts to re-establish a mission school, San Xavier de Bac, beginning this year with 16 students from kindergarten through second-grade (see article in this newsletter). Education will focus on tribal culture and Christian values, with plans for the school to expand through the eighth-grade.
From the very young to those ready to embark on careers, Franciscans are immersed in education, seeing it as a ministry devoted to spreading the Gospel and serving God’s poor.
You can continue to be part of that education ministry by creating a lasting legacy of care by remembering the Franciscan Friars of the Province of Our Lady of Guadalupe in your will or trust. It’s a great way to remember those pursuing their studies this autumn.
Planned Giving to the Franciscans allows you to make a charitable contribution as part of your overall financial and estate planning. You can do this in a variety of ways, including bequests, charitable trusts, life insurance policies and retirement accounts.
To learn more about how you can help the Franciscan Friars help our poor and marginalized sisters and brothers with your legacy gift, contact Brian Smail, OFM, via email at bsmail@friars.us or by calling 646-473-0265, ext. 303.