Mangaluru, Sep 6: ICYM Cordel unit conducted Fancy Dress and Group Singing Competitions for the Parishioners.
The competitions began at 2:30 pm by evoking God’s blessings through a prayer song. Ancilla Rodrigues welcomed the gathering. Parish priest Fr Clifford Fernandes along with assistant parish priests Fr Ivan Corderio and Fr Paul D’Souza were present.
The judges for the competition were Sr Lavita, Fr Johnson and Joshal. There were around 100 participants. Prizes and trophies were distributed to the winners of each category. Memento was given to the judges as a token of gratitude.
The programme was compered by Melvita Treza. Ethan D’Souza proposed a vote of thanks.
Mangalore September 3: On the occasion of 150 years celebration of Holy Cross Church, “Teachers and Health Workers Programme”, a half a day of fun and learning Programme was organised on 03.09.2023. A total of 180 Teachers and Health Workers from the Parish participated in the programme. The resource persons for the programme were Dr. Rouchelle Tellis Rozario – Prof and Head – Clinical Microbiology and Infection Control (Yenepoya Medical College and Hospital) and Dr. Mona Mendonca – Assistant Professor, Dept. of History at St. Aloysius College, Managalore and a subject expert in soft skills, life skills, creative thinking, Professionalism, etc.
The first session was conducted by Dr. Rouchelle Tellis Rozario (, who threw light on how to manage stress at home and at work place with a poignant question on whether you are a stress giving or stress taking person or you are a balancing person. She also stressed on various ways of relieving stress. Along with stress management, she also stressed on the need of anger management. Her session was much loved by the participants since a lot of it was drawn from her own personal experiences.
The second session was given by Dr. Mona Mendonca who spoke on how to balance between work and family life along with time management, family management, etc. She stressed upon how everyone needs to give himself/herself a break from routine work. No one needs to be a superman or superwoman in order to please the others. She emphasized on the need of family time in this fast moving world, how we need to be authentic parents and thus we bring up beautiful children. We also need to learn to say no to our children and give them valid reasons for it and that will surely make much difference to their reasoning skills too. She stressed a lot on mental health and how important it is for a balanced lifestyle. Her session was much enjoyed by the participants since she drew a lot from her own personal and professional experience and made the participants light hearted with her session.
The Programme was attended and inaugurated by the Parish Priest, Rev. Fr. Clifford Fernandes, who in his inaugural address elucidated the important role of Teachers and Health Workers in today’s world and the huge responsibility that we have as Professionals. Rev. Fr. Ivan Cordeiro (Asst. Parish Priest), Rev. Fr. Paul D’Souza (Asst. Parish Priest), Mrs. Ruth Castelino – Vice President (Parish Pastoral Council), Mr. Anil D’Sa – Secretary (Parish Pastoral Council), Mr. Dolphy D’Souza – Co-Ordinator (21 Commissions), Mr. Henry D’Souza – Co-ordinator of the Programme, Gurkars, Ward Representatives, PPC Members and the Organising Team were present at the programme. Ms. Venetia D’Souza compered the programme and Mrs. Ruth Castelino proposed the vote of thanks.
The programme ended with a celebratory lunch and a plan to have more such useful programmes for the parishioners.
Mangaluru, Aug 22: In celebration of the 150th anniversary of the Holy Cross Church, a “Married Couples Program” aimed at couples in their first 15 years of marriage was organized on August 13. The event, lasting half a day, saw the participation of 44 young couples. The Missionary Families of Christ (MFC), led by Melwin Fernandes, oversaw the entire program.
The first session of the day was conducted by Dr Amith and Dr Teena D’Souza. Dr Amith delivered a talk on the role of a Christian husband, delving into the intricacies of his responsibilities as the family’s head. He emphasized the husband’s roles as a priest, pastor, and provider, drawing parallels to how Christ cares for the church. Similarly, a father’s role was likened to that of a priest tending to the spiritual needs of his family. Dr Teena discussed the roles of a Christian wife, highlighting her position as a supportive partner to her husband. She underscored the importance of following the path of faith to become wives and mothers who bring blessings, healing, and growth to their families.
In the second session, Jeswin and Lavisha Castelino explored the theme of ‘Building our homes for God.’ They elaborated on the responsibilities of Christian husbands and wives in creating an environment characterized by faith, service, love, peace, and order. Such an environment, they emphasized, enables families to experience God’s providence and blessings fully. The Castelinos emphasized that a Christian home should exemplify the practice of Christian values.
To keep the participants engaged, the music ministry of MFC taught several action hymns. Christopher Machado from MFC Mangalore introduced the speakers and facilitated an icebreaker activity to encourage active participation among the couples.
Concurrently with the couples’ program, a separate program for all the children of the attendees was organized. This was facilitated by the youth and singles of MFC, featuring various art and craft activities centered around Bible themes, along with instruction in action hymns.
The program was inaugurated by the parish priest, Fr Clifford Fernandes. In his opening speech, he emphasized the pivotal role of Christian couples in nurturing faith-filled families and their status as role models for the younger generation. Notable attendees included Ruth Castelino, vice president of the Parish Pastoral Council, Anil D’Sa, secretary of the Parish Pastoral Council, Dolphy D’Souza, coordinator of the 21 Commissions, Rohan Rego, coordinator of the Married Couples Program, along with Gurkars, ward representatives, PPC members, and the organizing team. Lora Pais served as the event’s emcee, and Anil D’Sa proposed a vote of thanks.
The program concluded with a festive lunch and the announcement of plans for a similar event catering to older married couples within the parish.
Mangaluru, Aug 13: On the occasion of 150 years celebration of Holy Cross Church, Kulshekar, “Yuva Cordel” – a half day Youth Programme was organised on August 6 for the youth of the parish. As many as 113 youth participated actively in the programme.
Chris Crasta from MFC spoke on ‘Drug Abuse and Youth’ while Noam gave his testimony on how he is a changed man and away from any kind of addiction today. Vandana D’Souza, lecturer at Roshni Nilaya, shared her knowledge on ‘Mental Health and Spirituality.’ The final talk for the day was by Corrine Rasquinha, founder, White Doves, who enthralled the youth with her singing and her captivating personal journey in the shadow of God. She invited youth to be pro-active and to make a difference to their own lives and then to others.
Mangaluru, Jul 23: After the 9.30 am Mass on Sunday, an impactful silent protest was organised by the parish pastoral council with the support of ICYM, YCS and the parishoners. The protest was aimed at expressing our solidarity with our suffering Tribal brethren in the Northeastern State of Manipur, who have been enduring inhuman atrocities in the region.
With a strong display of unity and compassion, the parishoners held placards conveying their messages of displeasure, concern and urgency. They primarily demanded that the Central and Manipur State Governments expedite the peace process and normalise the situation and assist the Tribals to live in peace without further delay. The silent protest and the large crowd, garnered significant attention from the general public and the media, raising awareness about the plight of the Manipur tribals. The protest emphasized the urgency and importance of addressing the grievances promptly and taking effective measures to ensure their safety, security, and well-being. The event sent a resounding message of unity, empathy, and social responsibility, calling upon the authorities to take immediate and concrete actions to alleviate the suffering of the tribal communities in Manipur.
