Prior to the feast-day liturgy, Fr. Floribert Bulo Dhelo, SCJ, Sr. Ramona Pandan, MCM and Sr. Grecely Tangcogo, MCM (pictured above), gave a presentation about Dehonian ministry on the reservations in South Dakota. Lower Brule, SD, is the birthplace of the Dehonian presence in the United States and just as when Fr. Matthias Fohrman, SCJ, first celebrated Mass there over 100 years ago, it continues to be one of the most economically challenged areas of the country. Job opportunities are minimal, “and so is the people’s sense of hope,” said Fr. Floribert. “Despair and the lack of hope are some of our greatest challenges on the reservations.”
For members of the Lower Brule Pastoral Team, theirs is a ministry of presence, of being with people and building trust. It means living Fr. Dehon’s call to “Get out of the sacristies and go to the people!”
“We try to give hope,” said Sr. Grecely. “They say ‘Sister, we need you here, Father, we need you here.’ And with that, we know that we are where we should be. We love these people and I love this mission. It is challenging, but it is where I should be.”
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