Calabrian Management Meeting and Formation Held in Cagayan de Oro City

Cagayan de Oro City – The Calabrian Family in the Philippines gathered in Fr. Luigi Pedrollo Formation House, Brgy. Lumbia, Cagayan de Oro City for a two-day formation and meeting. Representatives from the Calabrian communities throughout the Philippines came to participate in this event.

Dr. Alessandro Galvani, the current president of UMMI (Unione Medico Missionaria Italiana), facilitated the said gathering. On the first day, he elaborated the theme: “The Renewal of Organizations Born of a Charism in the Light of Justice, Peace, and Integrity of Creation (JPIC) Values and in a Perspective of Hope.” Through a series of video presentations and elaborate talks, he highlighted that a management that is in accordance with JPIC values should give importance to planning and collegiality. This means, according to him, that “as a Calabrian Family, listening and dialogue, research and reflection, sharing and communication are indispensable tools through which we can truly live out our charismatic identity in the world.”

On the second day, he spoke more elaborately on the importance of sustainability in our activities. Sustainability is not mainly about material things nor of income. But it is more of consistency with our values. The Calabrian Family exists for a mission – that is, the heart of its identity. Thus, they should live out the values consistent with their mission or else their presence is a failure.

Mother Lucia Bressan, PSDP, the Mother General of the PSDP Sisters, and Br. Giuseppe Brunelli, PSDP also graced the gathering with their presence. In his short message, Br. Brunelli shared his experience of working as General Administrator of the congregation for how many years. He pointed out how Divine Providence works despite numerous difficulties and struggles. On the other hand, Mother Lucia shared 5 C’s which somehow summed up the values that the two-day gathering aimed at speaking about: Competencies, Compassion, Charism, Collaboration and Calabrian Family.

UMMI is an institution founded in 1933 which aimed at caring for the integral development of the human person. In the early days of the prophetic mission of St. John Calabria in Italy, this organization was one of his first collaborators. Renewing their partnership with the Congregation, UMMI is now recognized as one of the branches of the Calabrian Family.

This two-day gathering is a testament of the unbreakable bond of unity and charity among members of the Calabrian Family in the Philippines. Despite language barriers, they were able to journey hand-in-hand and listen more closely to each other with respect and understanding. They know that as one Calabrian Family, there is still more to be done, but having each other, the burden becomes lighter and easier. They have each other’s back to find support and God will always be with them in every step of the way.