t eanc 0 YOI .. .'7. NO.6.
Frida~·. Februar~'
12.1993
FAI.I. RIVER, MASS.
FALL RIVER DIOCESAN NEWSPAPER FOR SOUTHEAST MASSACHUSETTS CAPE COD & THE ISLANDS Soul heaslern Massachusetts' La rgesl \\' eek I~: •
~ J J Per Y l'ar
On Africa trip
Pope calls for healing SO ROn, Uganda (CNS) During his 10th trip to Africa Feb. 3-10, Pope John Paul II called for healing of'ethnic and religious div~ isions, peace efforts and international cooperation, and compassion for the continent's many AIDS victims. In Uganda, on the second leg of the three-nation trip, he blessed AIDS sufferers, held separate meetings with the nation's Catholic and Anglican bishops, and prayed at a shrine to the Ugandan martyrs. The pope flew to Uganda Feb. 5 after two days in Benin, where he urged Christians, Muslims and followers of traditional African religions to show respect for each others' beliefs. In Cotonou, Benin, the pope met the chief of Benin's vodun cult, the ancient animist religion that was translated, after mixing with some Catholic practice, into Caribbean voodoo. Concluding the trip, the pope was to make a oneday stop in wartorn Sudan Feb. 10. ' At a youth gathering in Kampala, Uganda, Feb. 6, where the pope listened to young AIDS victims, the roar of the crowd of 30,000 turned quiet when a 13year-old girl told the pope she had been raped and now has the AIDS vIrus. Veronica Chansa, dressed in her blue and white school uniform, told the pope, "Holy Father, your little daughter Veronica stands here as a challenge to others" to follow "good behavior." "Chastity is the only safe and virtuous way to put an end to the tragic plague of AIDS," the pope told the young people. An estimated 1.5 million Ugandans have the human immunodeficiency virus that causes AIDS. The country has reported 35,000 full-blown cases of the disease, the largest number on the African continent. At St. Francis Hospital in Nsambya, on the outskirts of Kampala Feb. 7, the pope kissed 4-year-old Solomon on the cheek. The beaming little boy in a new white satin suit with gold cummerbund and bow tie has the human immunodeficiency virus which causes AIDS. Father Steve Collins, a Scottish member of the Missionaries of Africa, bought Solomon's new suit and made sure the pope blessed the little boy. During the hospital visit, the pope blessed dozens of sick people, many of whom have AIDS and most of whom have tested HIV positive. Others had advanced cases of Hansen's disease. The pope left a written message addressed to all the sick of Uganda. He said the challenge of AIDS must be faced by everyone with "much love and care for the vic-
tims, with much generosity to the orphans and with much commitment to a renewed way of Christian moral living." Father Collins runs, the AIDS Widow and Orphan Family support program with funding from the U.S. Agency for International Development's World Learning program. Solomon's mother, 32-year-old Immaculata, is the sales manager for the project's cottage industries. Immaculata, who did not want her last name used, said she was thrown ,out of her family's house after her husband died of AIDS in 1991; She said "behavior change" is the only way to stop the spread of the disease in Uganda. But "the women are more willing to change then the men," she said. "Here polygamy is taken as a sign of status," she said, adding that her husband had two other wives. More than 400 families, with an average of six children each, are involved with Father Collins' proJ·ect. In addition to helping the widows support themselves, the project has encouraged each one to set up a savings account in her children's name for after her death.
too sick to work or they die, the' program gives the oldest child vocational training and prepares him or her to head the family. The women "are a ray of hope in this tragedy of AIDS," Father Collins said. "They keep on working and loving their children" although "they know they are going to die within five years." . Healing Divisions The divisions between Ugandan Anglicans and Catholics, reflected even in the country's political parties, was the focus of the pope's Feb. 7 meeting with Anglican bishops at the Anglican shrine to the Ugandan martyrs at Nakiyanja. The pope began the meeting with 10 minutes of prayer before a statue of the 13 Catholics and nine Anglicans who were burned alive there in 1886. Dying together, the Anglican and Catholic martyrs show Ugandans the power of the faith they share, the pope said. After the meeting the pope went to the Catholic shrine to the martyrs at Namugongo, less than a ml'le away. From the altar on a platform extending into an artificial lake, the pope said, "Christ's light shone bright in the great fire which consumed St. Charles Lwanga and his
OowlinR phlltn
ADMIRAL ROBERTA HAZARD
Highest ranking military woman has area roots By Pat McGowan Once a student at t he former Sacred Hearts Academy grammar S school in Fall River, wh en U.. Navy Rear Admiral Roberta Hazard retired last September at age . . 58, she was the highest rankmg . woman in any military service 10
she f was I' A two-star I h admiral, b Iteral y . a eart heat away t rom t promotIOn h h 'to " tree-star. s a fus w h en a pd"YSlclan b s warnmg h h t 0tha eart con ItlOn roug d .. h ... . t t er 't0 th e eClsJOn'blt ath' It" JUs wasn t t' h e responsl e t 109 0 con mue er 32 -year career. So on a steaming hot Washing-
•~W~h;e;n~th~e~c~h~i~W~r~e.n.~.m~o.ili.e.r.s.a.re~~~~~.T.u.r.n.t.o.p.a.g.e~13~~~~~ili.e.w~0.r1.d.·~~~~~~~~~llwnd~she~ood~attentionin Leutze Park at the Washington Third-graders help get vale~tines together ~e~in ';~~ ~orl;_gc;~e~f~ ~h:~ ST. JOSEPH, Minn. (CNS) Most suitors pop the question to their beloveds while on bended knee under the moonlight or during a romantic dinner with violin music playing in the background. Phil Polipnick is not most suitors. He was standing in broad daylight in ankle-deep snow sur.rounded by third-graders when he proposed marriage to Jacque Kuechle in December. When Ms. Kuechle looked out the window of her empty thirdgrade classroom at St. Joseph Lab School that day. she saw her students and those from Joan Beste's third-grade class holding up 12by-18-inch placards. each bearing a hot pink letter. spelling out "Will you marry me. Ms. Kuechlc'?" Polipnick held the question mark. Benedictine Sister Lcora Juettner. principal. then offered the flabbergasted teacher her choice of two hot-pink placards. one reading "yes." the other "no." "I must have read the words three times before they registered." said Ms. Kuechle. "When it finally did register. I backed away. put my hands on my face and said. 'Oh my God ...• The elaborate scenario leading to the proposal started when Sister Juettnerealled Ms. Kuechle out of
her classroom for a telephone call from her mother. This was not out of the ordinary. the teacher said. because her mother often calls asking her to run errands. But while Ms. Kueehle's mother was stalling her daughter. the third-graders were being hustled out of the school and handed the placards they had previously ha'ndlettered. Ms. Beste introduced Polipnick to the children. then added. "He
Who was Valentine? ROME (CNS) - Couples using Valentine's Day for extra huddling and cuddling owe their sharing of candies and kisses to a saint and some medieval bird watchers. Actually, it maybe two saints. History is unclear as to whether Feb. 14 is the martyrdom anniversary of one or two early Christians called Valentine. , According to the double Valentine theory, one was a priest in Rome and the other a bishop' of Term, a city 60 miles from Turn to Page II
wonders if you could help him ask Ms. Kuechle a question," "S he did n;t e\'en have to tell them what the question was." said Polipnick. "Kids arc smart as a whip in that way," "We kept waiting and waiting for her to come to the window." said Polipnick. "I suppose it was five minutes but it seemed like lOa,"
Meanwhile. inside. Ms. Kuechle told her mother that she had to get back to her class, When she returned. she found the room empty and a note on the door directing her to look out the window. So what was her answer'? "There was no 'Can we take some time to think about'?" card." she said. "So I grabbed the 'yes' card and slapped it smack up against the window." Below, the kids were screaming and yelling, "She said yes!" as Ms. K uechle, tears in her eyes, ran downstairs to hug and ki'ss Polipnick. "My favorite part was when I saw her crying." said Polipnick. "You know, before you propose you can be pretty confident. but \'Ou still ha\'e to sec and hear her ~nswer before you're 100 percent certain."
See photo Page II.
concluded with the command, "Haul down Admiral Hazard's flag." But at its beginning, commenting on the "beastly hot" weather and demonstrating the concern for personnel that was a hallmark of her career, the admiral ordered the honor guard behind her to stand at ease and, if they wished, to move to a shady area. That they did not wish was probably in recognition of the fact that she too was sta nding in full sunshine. During the retirement ceremony, there was tribute after tribute to "our Bobbie," with one speaker quoting, "with gender-neutral pronouns," a description by 18thcentury naval hero John Paul Jones of the ideal naval officer and declaring that Admiral Hazard was the "absolute epitome" of such an officer. When she joined the Navy in 1960, women formed only 2 percent of its personnel; when she left, they amounted to 11.5 percent and their number included commanders of three ships, an aircraft carrier and many shore installations. Her Beginnings Admiral Hazard went to the Navy from an initially rewarding career as a high school history teacher following her magna cum Turn to Page II
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