The Scalabrini House Seminary will celebrate on April 26, 2014, at Casa Italiana its annual Fundraiser Banquet for the Scalabrinian Seminarians organized by local Scalabrinian priests in collaboration with the Scalabrini Fundraiser Committee. This year’s 16th anniversary celebration will consist of a traditional banquet to raise funds to support the Formation and Vocation Program for first year Scalabrini seminary students who study at the Villa Scalabrini Seminary in Sun Valley, California.
The Congregation of the Missionaries of Saint Charles Borromeo/Scalabrinians is a Catholic Religious congregation dedicated to serve migrants and refugees. The origin of the Scalabrinian Fathers lies in Italy in the years after 1870, when a unified Italian state came together out of city-states. The unification left a great deal of political unrest and economic dislocation, so that many Italians felt compelled to leave.
A priest by the name of Giovanni Battista Scalabrini (John Baptist Scalabrini) decided the church should and could help resettle its migrating members. In 1876, he was appointed Bishop of Piacenza, and he asked the Vatican to be allowed to form a Society of Italian Missionary Priests whose sole purpose was to help Italians leaving the country. The Pope approved the plan. John Baptist Scalabrini recruited for his new congregation dedicated priests and nuns determined to live their lives in foreign lands administering to people.
The Scalabrini Fathers have been opening seminaries around the globe with the goal of training priests in other countries to administer to their people in immigrant-accepting nations like the United States. They help the poorest migrants no matter where they are from or where they are going. Furthermore, they are trained to see themselves as Fellow Migrants Living Like Migrants. Today members of the Scalabrini Order work in 33 countries throughout the world.
In 1996, beloved Father Giovanni Bizzotto started the Scalabrini vocation ministries in Los Angeles. In 1998, the Scalabrini Seminary was established at the rectory of St. Peter’s Italian Church, and a year later the First Scalabrini Seminary House Banquet Fundraiser was organized under the guidance of Lead Chairman Committee Member Nick Costantini and other members. To date, approximately 80 students have completed their first year of seminary in Southern California with proceeds of approximately $750,000.
Key members in the Scalabrini Community of Los Angeles who are involved in the fundraiser are Fr. Leandro Fossa cs, Director of Vocations, Fr. Ramiro Sanchez Chan cs, Director of the Seminary, Fr. Raniero Alessandrini cs, Retired Emeritus, and Fr. Louis Piran cs, Pastor of St. Peter’s Italian Church. They have joined forces with the Scalabrini Fundraiser Committee in preparation for the April 26, 2014 banquet. “This is a true team effort, with so many generous and hard-working people involved. We are blessed to have such dedicated supporters”, remarked Fr. Ramiro Sanchez Chan.
The Scalabrini Fundraiser Committee members, lead by chairman Pat Costantini, have set some high goals for this year’s event. The committee is working very hard to surpass past years’ monetary proceeds so that more students can be enrolled to the seminary. “Even with the economic crisis, we have targeted an additional 10% improvement from last year”, commented Pat Costantini. “I’m confident we will achieve our goal, especially since we have such a wonderful group of hard-working members on the committee. We are all engaged and focused to help this noble cause.”
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