Santa Maria del Mexicano de Colon, QRO. I.A.P.

APDO. Postal No. 13, C.P. 76270

Colon, Queretaro, Mexico

To dial phone direct from U.S. 011 52 429 20245

Direct FAX from U.S. 011 52 429 20046

Mexico: LADA (91-429) 20248

DEAR FRIENDS AND BENEFACTORS:

August/September 2002

A SHARED THOUGHT:

Revealed to all of us in a sad and dramatic manner these past months, yes years also, is the truth that a very small percentage of our Catholic Church is dysfunctional in the area of the clergy. Horrific accusations, allegations and anti-Church publicity have spread throughout the world. By no means am I going to defend these priests and religious. I only wish to share, in case you are unaware, that this group of "child abusers" totals roughly 0.5% of the 46,000 priests in the U.S., that is only 300-400. The vast majority of the 46,000 "gems" of the church, sacrifice a high percentage of their entire lives in a loving and pure manner, working endlessly, serving every type of person that is in desperation and in dire need of help. Everyone of us are in need of prayer also. Hopefully this will make us more profound men and women of prayer, which is the very best solution to any crisis of faith and temptation etc.

I would like to share a letter with you written by Carlo Carretto. For each one of us who is a member of the Catholic Church, if you haven't heard of him, do yourself a favor and read a couple of his books. In one of his works, "I Sought and Found", he directs a letter to the Catholic Church. It is as follows:

• "How much I must criticize you, my Church, and yet how much I must love you. You have made me suffer more than anyone and yet I owe more to you than anyone else. I should like to see you destroyed and yet I need your presence. You have given much scandal and yet you alone have made me understand what is holiness. Never in this world have I seen anything more compromised, more false, yet never have I touched anything more pure, more generous or more beautiful! Countless times I have felt like slamming the door in your face, and yet every night, I have prayed that I might die in your loving arms! No, I cannot be free of you, for I am one with you, even if not completely you. Then too, where would I go? To build another church? But I could not build one without the same defects. And again, if I were to build another church, it would be my church and not Christ's Church. No, I am old enough, I know better!"

To me, this is so powerful and profound that I am sure it was by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit.

NEW VOLUNTEERS

God has blessed us with two new volunteers who are working with our program. Vanessa Van Horn comes from Sparks, Nevada and is fulfilling the role of "mother" to some 40 young primary children. I agreed that she could come and stay until December. We now must determine which year is the December. All of the girls are hoping it will be in 2003. Clyde Beaty is also an old friend and former volunteer. As usual, he is working well in teaching the boys English.

SCHOOL YEAR

Our first day of school was August 19^th. I can honestly that it seems like we have been in a minor skirmish, something similar to a Bush/Saddam Hussein confrontation. You wouldn't believe it! We are wondering if some of these children are descendants of the terrorists. "But we will overcome" sang Martin Luther King Jr. We also will!

EX-ALUMNI VISITS

It is always a joy to see many of our ex-alumni stopping in to visit during their vacation time. Also, many remain in contact by phone. Reports indicate that those who have left Santa Maria del Colon have had a complete transformation of their lives. Praise God!

TO SURVIVE IN LIFE, ONE MUST DREAM

You might think that I am existing with a minor-major mental problem. I will not debate that. The saying goes, "Let people remain in doubt by keeping your mouth shut. Once you open your mouth, all doubt is removed". But this is a dream. I talked this over with the Lord Jesus. We have a piece of property in town that I bought cheaply for security of the program. I asked the Lord what I should do with it. What he revealed was a bit mysterious at first. Finally, a building appeared saying "St. Philomena - HIV AIDS Clinic For Children Under 8 Years of Age". I replied,"Lord stop joking with me, I have enough problems. You never sent me a priest helper, then you took away Sister Teresa after 17 years and now a clinic."I will agree on one condition. "You take care of all of the money problems. Nothing will come from our existing program (we don't have anything anyway). So my brother, Ray Norman, will be writing to Liz Taylor, John Elton,,Michael Jackson and some of the Mafia telling them about this "dream".The Lord finally told me that he really loved me, and for that reason, he would be calling on me. I replied, "Lord, don't love me so much!"

FOUNDATION FOR SANTA MARIA

Due to our growing needs, I have solicited the help of one of our missionaries, Rick Jones, in helping us to raise funds and recruit volunteer missionaries for 1+ year commitments. As you may know from my previous letters, Rick and his family volunteered at Santa Maria for a year from July 2000 to July 2001. Rick has started the Santa Maria Foundation, a charity whose purpose is to support our work at the mission. Enclosed are brochures about the Foundation. Please share them with your friends. The Foundation offers the opportunity for Planned Giving, the ability to donate through wills, IRAs, stock, retirement plans, etc. Visit the website at www.santamariafoundation.org

NOTE FROM FR. JOHN HENLEY

I am feeling better, thanks to your love, prayers, and the beautiful children who visit me frequently. They and the elderly keep my spirits higher than normal. I visited a doctor the other day, he said I have at least 20 more years of life - I hope not!

Love and prayer from all of us and many, many sincere thanks for your love and friendship. We love you dearly.