50 Years of LIFE in Bogotá!

50 years is a very l-o-n-g time! Take a moment to think back to 1962-63, and consider ALL that has happened since then, both in our world and in your own life—that will give you some perspective on what our local Bogota community has been celebrating all year long! The great adventure of the Rochester Franciscan Community’s presence and mission in Colombia began when five brave women (Sisters Baylon (Edith) Zamboni, Robaire Joswick, Mary Beth Modde, Consuelo Chávez, and Maeve Cashman) ventured off to Bogotá, with its new language and culture, to respond— in the name of all of us—to Pope John XXIII’s call to share our human and material resources with a disproportionately developed southern hemisphere – and the rest, as they say, is history— a history that deserves to be remembered and celebrated! And so, CELEBRATE we did, from the very opening of the Colegio Santa Francisca Romana school year, in August 2012, all the way to its conclusion in June 2013. The theme chosen to guide the year’s celebration was: “50 Years Educating Women Leaders Who Transform Society.” Each individual celebration highlighted a different aspect of this challenging theme. The Opening All-School Mass highlighted the reality of 50 Years – an incredibly long period of time for 4-to-18-year-olds to grasp. The year began with frequent conversation-starters, prefaced by, “Do you know what happened 50 years ago TODAY?” (This is the day the first Franciscan Sisters arrived – this is the day Santa Pacha first opened its doors, etc.) The School Handbook

featured new memory triggers each month, complete with then-and-now pictures. Different classes developed investigation projects and questionnaires which had students of all ages scouring the campus and doing countless interviews with teachers and staff to gather more concrete facts about our beginnings and the whole 50-year trajectory. The school newspaper, The Scoop, as well as the daily website, featured numerous articles sharing some tantalizing new detail about our unfolding story. It became a fun game to see who had the most “facts on file.”

The Feast of Saint Francis found us reflecting on the meaning of transformation, with a powerful dramatization of the transformation of Francis of Assisi, from his carefree party days, to his encounters with the poor and lepers, to his invitation to others to participate in the transformation both of themselves and the society of their day. This was a striking message with obvious applications to our own daily lives.

The holidays of Thanksgiving and the annual Christmas Novenas also gave us ample opportunity to give expression to the reality that it is more of a blessing to GIVE than to receive – a “significant learning” for any Pacha student.

The Anniversary Year found its focal point in February 2013, as special celebrations were held not only for the school community itself but for a broader audience of parents, alumnae, former staff and various publics, religious and lay, who have been directly connected with Santa Pacha’s history. This special time was additionally blessed by the presence of four Rochester Franciscans who came to be a part of the festivities: Sisters Marilyn Geiger (current Congregational Minister and President), Tierney Trueman (former Coordinator of the Franciscan Mission in Colombia), Theresa Hoffmann and Ann Redig (former teachers at both Santa Pacha and CASFA – the Colegio Anexo San Francisco de Asís).

On February 1st, a unique Anniversary Concert was held, featuring very gifted alumnae and staff, as well as the 100+ member High School Chorus. In addition, the occasion was marked by a glowing tribute to Santa Pacha in the name of the National Minister of Education, underscoring the invaluable contribution that Santa Pacha and its alumnae have made to the city of Bogotá, the country and the world. The evening concluded with a very elegant reception with drinks and hors d’oeuvres, plus the surprise gift of a large ‘coffee table style’ anniversary book, To Be a Light in the World, given to every family and guest present.

On February 8th, the Anniversary Eucharist was celebrated in a magnificent outdoor cathedral-type setting, with approximately 1500 persons present. Upon arrival, guests were led by our Senior class students through a walkway celebrating our patrons, Saints Francis and Clare of Assisi, Santa Francisca Romana, and, of course, Our Lady of Lourdes, on whose feast the Colegio opened its doors for the first time in 1963. Constanza Guzman, CSFR Rector Pro-Tem, gave a stirring welcome to the crowd. (This message was made all the more poignant by the fact that her beloved father had died less than 24 hours before this event). Eleven brother priests and bishops joined us in spirited concelebration; the High School Chorus outdid themselves when providing the liturgical music. The vast crowd was so attentive that you could have heard a pin drop. The newest version of the

school symbol, a zarza (burning bush) with 50 candles, was displayed; the entire milieu was decorated with hundreds of golden roses. It was a glorious site to behold! After the liturgy, there were several testimonials by various dignitaries, followed by a lively shower of confetti over the

entire crowd. The event concluded with Birthday cake for all! The next evening, on February 9th, the Alumnae Association, ASOPACHAS, held a unique event which drew over 400 Pacha graduates—some even came from the United States to attend! The group held a starlit FIRE ritual in which they rededicated themselves to the ideals of their original Zarza commitment to “burn brightly without burning out,” as they offered their own contribution to transforming the society. The evening went on for hours, with storytelling, picture exchanges, lively conversation and a delicious hors d’oeuvres buffet.

While our U.S. guests were present, there were several other significant community events, including a morning’s visit to CASFA, the primary “social work” of Santa Pacha (which gave Sisters Marilyn, Ann and Theresa the opportunity to see the recently-finished construction and unification of this school for approximately 350 PreKinder-through-Senior students from a disadvantaged sector of the city). The local Baraj Community (13 Sisters, Cojourners and committed laity) also held an anniversary gathering out at Willkapampa (the community’s eco-spirituality project 45 minutes outside of Bogotá), during which Sister Carolina shared a PowerPoint presentation tracing the presence and ministries of ALL the Sisters and Cojourners who have been a part of our 50-year history in Colombia. It was a striking way to taste of how many have contributed their life and gifts to this meaningful enterprise!

On March 1st, to highlight the central aspect of the ‘Leadership of Service’ demonstrated by our longstanding commitment to the Colegio Anexo San Francisco de Asís (CASFA), we held our third Solidarity Banquet. This was a joint effort between our two schools to share an evening of entertainment as a fundraiser to benefit CASFA. Students and teachers from both schools prepared presentations of lively music and dancing, while CASFA students served the “banquet” of a glass of wine and a Tau-shaped cookie to our benefactors present. The evening demonstrated the value of both the arts and a spirit of collaboration between both schools, netting over $12,770 USD as a contribution to CASFA’s precarious operating budget.

The Anniversary year’s activities continued with a lively celebration of the patronal feast of Santa Francisca Romana. The day began with a “flash mob” experience, with participation from the entire school community (from preschool students to kitchen staff; primary students to administrative personnel, gardeners and maintenance workers; high school students to faculty, and even the Principal!) being led in an aerobics-style mass movement to feel the meaning of being “ONE.” The entire community then gathered for Eucharist, which highlighted our long

history and heritage in the formation of women leaders. Sisters Valerie Usher, Carolina Pardo and Marg Kiefer gave living testimony to this reality in their shared homily, which invited all those present to connect with their Santa Pacha “roots” and continue in this formative process for the good of a much broader context. The event concluded with a “UNITY” photo of all 1200+ persons present! One of the most popular events of the year was the Artistic Festival, a 3-night extravaganza in the style of a musical, held April 24-26th. Each night featured an entirely different cast of actors and dancers, accompanied by the High School Chorus and six different instrumental groups – imagine! This year’s show was an adaptation of “Alice in Wonderland” and “Alice Through the Looking Glass,” with a very well-developed theme about the importance of dreaming. Each night’s show concluded with the presentation of a giant-sized 50th Anniversary Cake as the entire cast celebrated the fact that 50 years ago, five North American Franciscan Sisters had a dream about what they could offer to the future through their education and formation of young women who could be ‘Leaders of Service’ for the betterment of Colombia and the world. It was a very touching conclusion to a spectacular show, with many moved to tears as witness to the results of what it means to DREAM! As if all of these celebrations weren’t quite enough, June 1st found us celebrating a gala organized by the collaborative efforts of our Parents’ Association, the Parents’ Council and the Student Council as their way of saying a big “Thank You!” to the school community for its 50 years of outstanding contributions to help transform society. The objective of the evening, in addition to offering a wonderful concert, was to raise money to offer the school some much-needed funds to improve the lighting and sound resources of the Coliseo (a multi-purpose center that is the only building on campus large enough to accommodate the entire school community). The evening featured several musical acts prepared by members of our Alumnae, followed by an amazingly eclectic concert performed by a local group of professionals, known as Cosa Nostra.

In addition to the many social events of the year, the Pastoral Team created special Anniversary retreat experiences, both for the faculty and administration, as well as the general services teams, which provided the opportunity for the entire staff to reflect upon their own experience in being a part of Santa Pacha’s history and development. Judging by the depth and quality of sharing that took place in both events, it was clear that the entire staff not only has a strong sense of “ownership” of the school’s Mission, but is also deeply grateful for their chance to be a part of it all! To bring this unique year of celebration to a close, the last day’s All-School Mass brought the year full circle by emphasizing Santa Pacha’s ongoing contribution to creating a more just and peaceful society. As part of the liturgy, the Assembly experienced a silent procession of our entire work staff of 60+ from the various departments of cafeteria, cleaning, maintenance, gardening and security who were joined by representatives of the Faculty, Administration, Student Council, CRISOL (a Catholic leadership group of senior high students) and Parents who entered— and literally surrounded the student body and adults present—and then joined hands while proclaiming in one voice, “We are all key parts of the same Community!” It was a very graphic and moving way to, once again, experience that we are all in this together as we attempt to become leaders capable of transforming our society, creating a better future for the generations to follow us. THANK YOU for the constancy of your interest and support of this graced Mission! We count on your continued prayers as we “make the path by walking” into the ever-evolving future of this communal endeavor.