On April 30, five second-year novices will profess first vows in the Society of Mary.

Bro. Augustus Surin, district superior, will receive the vows at the Marianist Novitiate at Nirmal Deep. Congratulations and fraternal best wishes to these brothers:

With the adoption of the new Formation Guide in India, these men will move directly to the scholasticate in Bangalore and will begin studies in the UD program under the direction of Bro. Tom Oldenski.

Please pray for these members of our brotherhood.

After more than 25 years of service to the Archdiocese of Hartford and the wider Church, the Pastoral Department for Small Christian Communities has been closed. The reasons are varied and included in the official announcement. Bro. Robert Moriarty has served as the department's director for many years.  

The pastorally helpful and important publication, Quest, will cease with the current issue. The Archdiocese of Hartford and so many others owe a huge debt of gratitude to Bob.

Bob will oversee the closing of the house in Hartford and will begin a sabbatical later this year. Thanks, Bob, for your good service.

Because of reduced numbers, illnesses and other factors, the Marycliff and Vianney communities in Missouri, and the Pohaku community in Honolulu, will close at the end of this community year.

In a letter to Fr. Martin Solma earlier this month, Superior General Fr. Manuel J. Cortés ratified this decision of the Provincial Council, with the unanimous consent of the members of the General Council.

In consultation with the members involved, the following personnel placements have been confirmed.

Member	From	To	In
Bro. Gary Morris	Pohaku	Marianist Hall	Honolulu
Fr. Tim Kenney	Vianney	Salve	St. Louis
Bro. Jim Droste	Marycliff	Marianist Residence	San Antonio
Bro. Joe Markel	Marycliff	Maryland Avenue	St. Louis
Fr. José Ramirez	Marycliff	Maryland Avenue	St. Louis
Bro. Irwin Wachtel	Marycliff	Central Catholic	San Antonio

Also, because of our new young adult ministry at Holy Rosary in San Antonio, these brothers will move during the summer:

Member	From	To	In
Bro. Rich Schrader	Holy Rosary	Maryland Avenue	St. Louis
Bro. Michael Galvin	Holy Rosary	Marianist Residence	San Antonio
Fr. Sean Downing	Casa Maria	Woodlawn	San Antonio
Bro. Rich Thompson	Holy Rosary	Woodlawn	San Antonio
Fr. John Thompson	Mexico	Holy Rosary	San Antonio
Bro. Charlie Johnson	Novitiate	Holy Rosary	San Antonio
Bro. Mark Motz	Stonemill/Kiefaber	Holy Rosary	San Antonio
Fr. Cris Janson	Holy Rosary	Woodlawn	San Antonio

Fr. Cris will have Woodlawn as his "home community" while on sabbatical.

In other personnel assignments:

Member	From	To	In
Bro. Peter Kiama	DeSales Crossings	Hale Malia	Honolulu
Bro. Brandon Alana	Hale Malia	Stonemill/Kiefaber	Dayton
Bro. Jerry Bommer	Marianist Hall	Marianist Residence	San Antonio
Bro. Tom Redmond	Cupertino	Novitiate	Dayton
Bro. Jack Somerville	Novitiate	Cupertino	Cupertino
Bro. Ed Longbottom	Marianist Residence	Cupertino	Cupertino

Bro. Peter will minister at Saint Louis School; Bro. Brandon will be on sabbatical and then join the campus ministry team at UD. Bro. Jack moves to the Cupertino Community at the end of this month and begins ministry as the community's director on July 1. Bro. Ed will be assisting Bro. Jack in Cupertino.              
              
May these moves strengthen us and help us grow as individuals and communities.

Scores of Marianist educators and administrators are among the 8,000 attendees at the National Catholic Educational Association's convention in St. Louis, which wraps up today.

	Convention volunteer T-shirt

Some Marianist highlights:

• Fr. Ralph Siefert, president of Chaminade College Prep in St. Louis, received the 2017 Lead. Learn. Proclaim. award from NCEA Tuesday evening.

• Nearly 80 professionals from our sponsored schools, as well as St. Louis-area SMs, attended a Marianist Educators Gathering at Chaminade last night. It was a delightful evening of fellowship and networking. Look for photos in the May issue of FamilyOnline.

• Convention volunteers are attired in T-shirts with a bold Marianist logo and slogan, which reads, "Disciples of Mary. Innovators in Education." The Province sponsored the t-shirts as a way of contributing to the event. We are grateful to Todd Guidry, principal of Chaminade (St. Louis) middle school and a member of the convention planning committee, for helping coordinate this opportunity.

In honor of International Mother Earth Day tomorrow, we invite you to join in a universal prayer written by Sr. Leanne Jablonski, director of the Marianist Environmental Education Center.

It was recently featured in the Catholic Social Justice Reflection Guide from Network.