WHEN: Monday, 10/30 – Thursday, 11/2 2023

WHERE: Casa Franciscana, Guaymas, Mexico

HOW: Fly Into Hermosillo Airport (HMO), Sonora, Mexico, arriving the afternoon of 10/31. You will be met there and driven to Casa Franciscana in Guaymas.  Ministries would cover the flights for their respective participants. Room and meals will be provided by Franciscan Ministries. Passports are required.

Franciscan Ministries immersion experience will be focused on the people we encounter in Guaymas, the spirituality of this place, communal meals, and time for personal prayer and contemplation. We will be staying at the Friars’ Guest house in Guaymas and will have an opportunity to work alongside the people in ministry in Casa Franciscana. Participants must be able to traverse uneven surfaces and enter & exit from tall vans.

Casa Franciscana helps the marginalized people of Guaymas through its free medical & dental clinic, Mesón de Jesus (dining room), food packages for the home-bound, migrant shelter support and a youth center, and more. Casa Franciscana’s services are open to all, but primarily serve four of the poorest Guaymas neighborhoods.

To register or for more information, contact Laura Chun at lchun@friars.us.

Spend time on the Tohono O’odham Reservation in Southern Arizona learning about the culture, life and Franciscan ministry on this reservation, reflecting on Franciscan spirituality, making meals together, and getting to know people from other ministries. There may also be an opportunity to participate in the experience of leaving water on the border for those making the treacherous journey through Mexico to the USA.

Hosts: Fr. Ponchie Vasquez. Fr. John Gibbons, Br. David Paz and Br. Peter Boegel

Eligibility: Staff and board members with 1+ years of service. Limit: 10 people
If more than two individuals from a ministry are interested, the board (or ED, where there is no board) will be asked to choose which two will participate.

Ministry Cost: Travel to and from Tucson

Future Opportunity

All ministries will be closed from 8:30 – 12:30 so that staff, boards and friars can participate in a shared reflection, video and community activity based on care for creation. Please notify all departments and staff to keep the morning clear of commitments. Details will follow.

Spend time in San Francisco working directly with the poor, reflecting on Franciscan spirituality, and getting to know people from other ministries.

Hosts: Jose Ramirez, SAF Executive Director & Fr. Ray Boucher o.f.m., SAF board member

Eligibility: Staff and board members with 1+ years of service. Limit: 2 per ministry; 12 people in total. If more than two individuals from a ministry are interested, the board (or ED, where there is no board) will be asked to choose which two will participate.

Ministry Cost: Transportation to and from San Francisco area

Future Opportunity

An opportunity to gather with peers in other ministries to focus on our common mission and share experiences, challenges and successes.

Hosts: Mission San Luis Rey Retreat Center

Address: Mission San Luis Rey, 4050 Mission Avenue, Oceanside, CA 92057

Eligibility: Board Chairs and Executive Directors

Ministry Cost: Travel

Join your colleagues on a journey like no other. A pilgrimage is a sacred journey where your spirit is enlivened and moved as much as your legs. As you traverse the hills of Assisi and the streets of Rome, you will be steeped in the places and stories of our Franciscan family, and enjoy a deeper experience of being Franciscan.

These programs offer you an opportunity to deepen your personal relationship with God through visits to the major sanctuaries associated with SS. Francis and Clare of Assisi. Your life is enriched and transformed through participation in rituals, prayers, Eucharistic celebrations, historical visits and lectures. By journeying through their life stories, these two saints help us to “fix our gaze on God”.

You receive daily input from a professional staff including Fr. Joe Schwab, ED of Franciscan Renewal Center. You will pray, relax and associate with members from other ministries. This is a great opportunity to deepen your understanding of the Franciscan values that your ministry embodies. These values are tools for deepening your relationship with God, family, society and all creation.

Hosts: Fr. Joe Schwab o.f.m.

Eligibility: Board Members, Executive Directors, and Ministry Leaders’

Ministry Cost: approximately $5100 (airfare is additional)

Dates:  April 23 – May 6, 2023 (inclusive of travel)