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March 31, 2009 |
Fr. Lammert Otten SJ moved to Zambia in 2005 after retiring as professor of electrical engineering from Seattle University. Now, at age 76, he develops “appropriate technology” —technology that can be sustained by local people with local materials—for a small village there.
In an area where supplies are scarce and technology scarcer, Otten must get creative to come up with solutions for villagers. He built an LED light from a cardboard toilet paper roll and an inside-out potato chip bag; instead of batteries, he crafts solar panels for power.
Otten was recognized for his work on March 13 by the University of Missouri, which presented him with the Missouri Honor Award for Distinguished Service in Engineering. [Columbia Tribune]
For a full article on Otten’s work in Zambia, visit www.columbiatribune.com.
The Jesuit Refugee Service (JRS) worked with the semi-nomadic communities in eastern Chad to open a primary school for the area’s semi-nomadic children. The communities built the school and are responsible for paying teachers; JRS will provide teacher training, help establish parent-teacher associations to manage the schools, and distribute school supplies to students. [Jesuit Refugee Service]
Jesuit High in Sacramento named Brianna Latko its new principal. Latko will become the school’s first lay—and, of course, first woman—principal when she takes over for Fr. Edward Fasset SJ in July. Jesuit High is the last California Province high school to transition to a lay principal; nationally, two-thirds of Jesuit high schools have lay principals.
Latko has a master’s degree in education from Loyola University Chicago and is assistant principal for academic programs at St. Ignatius College Prep in Chicago. [Jesuit High Sacramento]
The main lawn at Fordham University’s Rose Hill campus began filling up at 1:45 AM on March 6. Five hours later, U2 performed an exclusive concert for Fordham students as part of a live Good Morning America broadcast from the campus.
By the time students, faculty, and staff were treated to a 5:00 AM breakfast in the student center, several hundred students stood in line to hear U2 play. The band performed six songs, four from their new album, and sat for an interview with the Good Morning America cast. [Fordham University]
(Photos by Joseph McLaughlin/Fordham University)
On March 12, after a campaign by the Jesuit Refugee Service/USA and other members of the Landmine Coalition, President Obama signed a law banning cluster bomb exports from the United States. The law brings the U.S. one step closer to outlawing landmines.
This March marked the 10th anniversary of the Mine Ban Treaty, signed by 156 countries. The U.S. is one of 39 countries, and the only NATO member, that has not yet signed the treaty, which bans the use of all mines, calls for the destruction of stockpiled and in-ground mines, and supports programs that assist victims of landmines. [JRS]
To read JRS’s full statement on the Mine Ban Treaty, visit www.jrs.net. You can also listen to an interview with a former JRS landmine campaigner on the JRS web site.
St. Xavier in Cincinnati marked the 150th anniversary of its church building by unveiling a new parish logo. Construction began on the current home of St. Xavier Parish, which has served Cincinnati since 1819, on March 25, 1859.
Elements of the original construction were incorporated into the logo, which reads, “Inward Reflection. Outward Action.” Overlapping floor tiles form an “X” and four arrows that signify the church’s emphasis on the internal St. Xavier community—“the people, the activities and ministries, and the physical space,” according to pastor Fr. Eric Knapp SJ—and the parish’s mission to go out and serve the greater community. [St. Xavier]
Captain Tim Valentine SJ, a chaplain in the U.S. military, was assigned to the Long Knife Brigade, which watches the border in Iraq. Valentine is the only Catholic priest serving as chaplain in the areas of Dhi Qar, Maysan, and Muthanna. He offers spiritual guidance and support for Catholic soldiers, and his bi-weekly Masses are in high demand. [CathNews USA]
The Jesuit Conference and the Catholic Campaign for Immigration Reform Justice announced the winner of their video competition Migration, My Home, My Story. Videos documented the migration reality in the entrant’s family or community and incorporated Catholic Social Teachings on migration. They were judged on creativity and technical quality as well as content.
The winning video, “The Right to be Free,” was submitted by Robert Navarro and Rosalinda Norona of Los Angeles. Navarro said the video was inspired by the sense of community at the annual East Los Angeles Christmas parade, where residents welcomed him into their homes to celebrate.
You can watch “The Right to be Free” below. The 2nd place video, made by staff members at Jesuit College Prep in Dallas, and the other finalist video can be viewed at http://justicef.startlogic.com/videocomp.html. [Jesuit Conference]
(Company’s Spring issue features a photo story on the Kino Border Initiative, a new binational ministry of the Jesuits of the California and Mexico provinces, the Missionary Sisters of the Eucharist, the dioceses of Tucson and Hermosillo, and the Jesuit Refugee Service/USA that serves deported Mexican immigrants at the U.S.-Mexico border. The story will soon be available on line at www.companymagazine.org. To subscribe to Company at no charge, e-mail your name and address to subscribe@companymagazine.org.)
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