SEPTEMBER MASS PLANNED TO HONOR FATHER ALOYSIUS SCHWARTZ
For Immediate Release
July 12, 2017, Annapolis, Md. – World Villages for Children and the Sisters of Mary will host a commemorative Mass to honor their founder, Venerable Monsignor Aloysius Schwartz (1930-1992). The Mass will be held on Saturday, September 16 at 5 p.m. and will be officiated by Cardinal Donald Wuerl at St. Andrew Apostle Catholic Church in Silver Spring, Maryland.
The event will celebrate a triple anniversary: Monsignor Schwartz’s 87th birthday, the 60th anniversary of his ordination and the 25th year of his passing.
The Sisters of Mary will be in attendance, as well as some student musicians from the charity’s Villages for Girls in Chalco, Mexico and Tegucigalpa, Honduras. The students will share their musical talents during the Mass and at several concert events to be held over the weekend.
More affectionately called “Father Al” by those whose lives he touched, Monsignor Aloysius Schwartz was a champion of the poor and the father to nearly 200,000 children in the Villages for Children he established beginning in the 1950’s. Father Al’s lifesaving works continue under the leadership of the Sisters of Mary, and thanks to the benefactors of World Villages for Children.
“The September Mass is a wonderful opportunity to celebrate the life of Father Al. Several graduates from our schools will also be joining us – a few of whom now live in the US or Canada, while some others will travel from overseas for this special occasion,” commented Maryline O’Shea, Chief Operating Officer of World Villages for Children.
To learn more about the Mass, and to RSVP, please visit: worldvillages.org/Mass
About Msgr. Schwartz
Washington D.C.-born Aloysius Schwartz was ordained a diocesan priest in St. Martin’s Church, Washington, D.C. Shortly after, he was assigned to Busan, South Korea, where he started his missionary work.
Recognizing he needed help to lead and grow his charitable mission, Fr. Al founded the religious congregation of The Sisters of Mary to serve the poorest of the poor in 1964. He also started the nonprofit organization to support his vision financially, known today as World Villages for Children.
Monsignor Aloysius Schwartz is currently under consideration for Beatification and Canonization by the Vatican’s Congregation for the Causes of Saints. As part of this process, he was declared a “Servant of God” in 2004 and on January 22, 2015, Pope Francis signed a decree confirming he lived a life of heroic virtue and declared him “Venerable.”
Monsignor Schwartz is the first person ever from the Archdiocese of Washington, D.C. to be elevated to the rank of Venerable by the Holy See.
About World Villages for Children
World Villages for Children is a nonprofit organization supporting the Sisters of Mary in helping children break free from extreme poverty in the Philippines, South Korea, Mexico, Guatemala, Brazil and Honduras.
There are fourteen Villages for Children today that allow more than 20,000 poor children annually to receive a quality education and vocational training at no charge to their families. Upon graduation, students gain employment quickly and help transform the lives of their families and communities.
To date, more than 150,000 graduates have received the chance to break the cycle of poverty.
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