We have collected here, to share them with all of you, the chronicles of the visit of M. Rosa Kang, Second Counselor in the General Government of the Concepcionistas Misioneras de la Enseñanza, to the communities of Montalbán, La Morán and Maracay, both in the Province from Caribbean.

We have collected here, to share them with all of you, the chronicles of the visit of M. Rosa Kang, second counselor in the General Government of the Concepcionistas Misioneras de la Enseñanza Congregation, to the communities of the Caribe Province, during the month of April 2019.
January 26, 2022

Visit of M. Rosa Kang to Ciudad Bolívar: “La Inmaculada y Carmen Salles” School

On Sunday, May 5, we traveled to Cuidad Bolivar, which is in the southeast of Venezuela, about 600 km from Caracas. We had difficulty making this trip due to the gasoline problem they have in Ciudad Bolívar, and for this reason, we had to think about the way to travel. Finally we went by car trusting in the hand of God asking for the protection of our Immaculate Mother and Mother Foundress. We had to suspend the trip to Morichalito due to the situation in the country.
We left Montalbán, Caracas, at 6 in the morning for Ciudad Bolívar, we crossed the city and the streets were empty. Leaving the city and along the highway there were many checkpoints guarded by armed soldiers who were checking the passengers. We passed more than fifteen checkpoints and three times they stopped us to check our suitcases because we were carrying large boxes with pots and kitchen utensils, in addition to the medicines that we had brought from Spain and many other things, but they did not take anything from us.
On the way we passed several towns, almost everything was closed. I was able to see factories and oil wells where gasoline is produced. According to M. Mariana's explanation, this area used to be very economically productive, but now it is very deteriorated. We also went through electrical substations from where electricity is distributed throughout the country, but now it is difficult to maintain. Just in case, on the way we filled up gas whenever we could anticipating the problem of gas shortage. I was struck by the cheap price of gasoline, because you can buy a soap with 8,000 bolivars, however, I paid less than 10 bolivars for gasoline regardless of the amount. Approaching Ciudad Bolívar I could see some gas stations totally closed.
We arrived in Ciudad Bolívar at lunchtime, our sisters from the community received us with great joy and affection, just like other communities we have passed through. Although we arrived in winter, I felt very hot. This community also had a water problem. The power also went out and it lasted like that for most of the day.
The next day we were very happy to receive our sister María Colina who came from Morichalito, a 10-hour bus ride, overnight. Since we couldn't go there ourselves, she came. She explained the situation to us. According to her explanation, the road was closed for 4 days due to lack of water, light and communication signal. And in this town they have had to wait up to two days to load the gasoline. She told us about her concern about the reduction in school hours in public schools.
This morning I visited the "La Inmaculada" school of Faith and Joy. Although it is a Fe y Alegría foundation school, it is a very conceptionist school. It is the first Fe y Alegría school in Ciudad Bolívar that our sisters started in 1980. Currently, we have 1,060 children from the last level of kindergarten to the third year of high school. Fe y Alegría is a Popular Education movement that was founded in Venezuela and that, with the support of religious congregations, has provided quality education in needy areas of Venezuela and today is found in many countries around the world.
I greeted the children and young people who presented a dance and a poem. After his affectionate presentation, I went through the classes with M. Mariana, M. Yajarira and the director Neila Colina. After lunch I met the children from the afternoon shift.
The next day we went to the “Carmen Sallés” school located in the ´Nazaret´ neighborhood, walking about 15 minutes from the “La Inmaculada” school. It is a preschool and primary school, 511 children study at the school. Two sisters work in this school and another sister teaches religion some days.
The school children prepared poems, dances and songs for us. They began by making a presentation of how the school was founded and we received a very affectionate greeting from Mother Carmen Sallés represented in a girl. Then we go through the classes. We also had a pleasant time with the teachers and ate together a delicious typical meal "Creole pavilion"
The history of this school is very precious. A mother who had her children in "La Inmaculada" lived in this area and she felt the need to care for the children of the neighborhood who did not study and do it as Carmen Sallés did. For that she asked our sisters for help. Our sisters came to help and teach catechism in a simple house in the neighborhood, and later the Province of the Caribbean saw the need to support the construction of a school in this neighborhood. This school grew due to the collaboration of many people and continues to grow thanks to many good people.
The school is in a very needy place. A great difficulty in this neighborhood and, therefore, in the school is the lack of water. In order to have water at the school, you have to ask the City Council several times to send cisterns. As it is a very needy place, some families with their children are absent to get food and go to the mines, to the fields and to fish. That affects children's attendance. Our sisters and teachers go to look for the children when they are absent from class. The teachers give a lot of importance to each of the children. The children are very loved by the sisters and by the teachers. With this affection, children are learning many human values ​​and, at the same time, developing their intelligence. You can capture the joy they have. All the children receive school food, the children bring a plastic pot and because they don't have a dining room, they take the food to their class and eat. Due to the country's economic situation, they cannot change the food menu, so since the beginning of the course, September of last year, they eat the same food “rice and beans (a kind of bean)”. The children in this school are very hungry.
On the 8th, in the morning after saying goodbye to our sisters from Ciudad Bolivar and taking María Colina to the bus terminal, we passed by the cathedral of this city and saw the beautiful landscape of the Orinoco River and the Angostura Bridge that crosses it. and we happily returned to the community of Montalbán.
This journey of knowledge to Venezuela has been a gift from the Risen Jesus for me. A continuous joy of meeting our risen Lord through the sisters, children, youth, teachers, members of the lay Conceptionist movement and some parents. I am very grateful to the Lord and to the Congregation. I have met many sisters and people who are giving their lives with joy in the educational mission. In the tour of the communities and schools there was no lack of details and I was able to experience the hospitality. The people continue to have a lot of hope and joy despite the very difficult situation in the country.
I am also very grateful to M. Provincial, Mariana Guinand, for her dedication and company throughout the trip. I join this people in prayer in their struggle for freedom, justice and peace.
January 26, 2022

January 26, 2022

January 26, 2022

January 26, 2022

Visit of M. Rosa Kang to the community of San Mateo

On the afternoon of April 28, after having a rest day with the sisters in Los Teques, we went to San Mateo located about 100 km from Caracas. It is a historic town for Venezuelans because Simón Bolívar, the liberator of Venezuela, was born in this town. When we got to the community there was no electricity, when there is no electricity there is no water either. The sisters brought me water in the bucket, but I'm getting used to it now because I had already experienced it in Caracas. The climate of San Mateo is hot but at night there was a breeze, this favored sleeping.

The next day the Educational Community met to welcome me; children, young people, teachers, workers and mothers of families. It is a school with approximately 680 students, from preschool to the third year of high school. They made a presentation with a lot of detail, very diverse and welcoming. They started with the Word; They dramatized, performed songs, poems and dances. They also presented the story of the Virgin of Bethlehem that appeared in this town and the history of the College. They reminded us that the first conceptionists arrived in Venezuela in La Floresta in Caracas in 1957, and they wanted to open a school in El Paraiso in the same city. The Archbishop of Caracas, Monsignor Arias Blanco, informed them that before authorizing this they had to open a college in the interior of the country. This is how our San Mateo school was born. After the event, I went through the classes and shared with the students concerns and curiosities about my culture. I also had a meeting with the teachers. The generosity of the families was very noticeable with the sharing of tropical fruits with which we later made a fruit juice (tizana), with which we toasted at the end of the meeting with the teachers.

That same day in the afternoon we took a walk around the town, here too there is a lot of hunger and a need for food and medicine. We were accompanied by a lady who runs the "open sky" education project. She knew the situation of the town very well. Our high school students have activities with the most needy children in the neighborhood once a week. Many of our children are also hungry. Although we do not have a dining room, our sisters carried out projects to provide food to children and young people in greatest need. I was able to meet a fourth grade boy who walks for two hours with his two little brothers and they eat at school. I was struck by the great interest that the child has in studying. The community is very alive like other communities in Venezuela, I am very impressed by the commitment of life of our sisters. During the visit I was able to enjoy the delicious breakfasts and dinners prepared by M. Asunción, who is 94 years old.

Visit of M. Rosa Kang to Terrazas

On the 2nd I went to Terrazas with M. Mariana, on this visit I am always accompanied by her with great dedication and in great detail. When I arrived at the school, the director of the school, the teachers, the representatives of the parents and the representatives of the students were waiting for me at the gate. In the inner courtyard, the children from the kindergarten were waiting for us to welcome me, beginning with the liturgy for the children of the Concepcionist Missionary Movement. The children then came out to present many poems. After the small greetings to the primary school children, then with the older ones from high school, they prepared dances and songs. Parent representatives accompanied me to the most significant places in the school. We also had a meeting with the teachers and I shared a presentation on the province of Asia. I was able to capture that the children, young people, teachers and representatives have a great affection for the Concepcionista school.
January 26, 2022

January 26, 2022

Visit of M. Rosa Kang to the community of Maracay

On Wednesday, May 1, we received M. Rosa along with M. Mariana who came from our community of San Mateo. They were supposed to arrive in the afternoon on Monday, April 30, but due to the numerous demonstrations throughout the country, Maracay also had many streets closed and it was considered that the most convenient thing would be to leave San Mateo on Wednesday morning.

In the morning he was sharing with the community and they went out for a while to tour part of our city, then, after lunch they went to the opposition rally that had been concentrated on Paseo las Delicias for the second day, they were there for two hours approximately, then they went to the Eucharist in the parish church of Base Aragua la Resurrección del Señor, and while we were at mass we ran out of electricity, which made the celebration speed up a bit, then, given that the sisters were going to return home on foot, Father David Trujillo very kindly offered to take them home, and they took the long way to avoid the closed streets and avenues where, at seven at night, there were still a good number of of protesters. We had dinner at home by candlelight, after dinner we met in the community room to share our impressions with M. Rosa, since she wanted to hear from the sisters what concerns or proposals she might have. to do to the General Government so that it would support them. The ideas were oriented towards mission and formation.

After this first part of the sharing, M. Rosa gave us a brief description with slides of how the province of Asia is made up. On Thursday 02 was the official reception of m. Rosa on behalf of all our students, teaching and administrative staff as well as the community of parents and representatives, the Carmen Sallés Works Committee and the Secular Concepcionist Movement. She was escorted to the stage by two girls dressed in the typical costume of Venezuela and Asian countries. Once on stage, she was accompanied by the director and the deputy director of the school, teachers Danys Amaya and Maite Sandoval respectively. Sisters Mariana Guinand, Provincial Superior of the Caribbean, and Cristina Rodríguez, superior of Maracay, were also with her at all times. The first to speak was Professor Danys, giving a warm welcome to M. Rosa, then Professor Maite took the floor, who also acted as moderator of the space and proceeded to explain a presentation made especially for M. Rosa on the most important aspects of the city of Maracay, its historical and tourist places and its history. M. Rosa was very grateful for the detail and stressed that of all things the most important thing for her is being able to share directly with people. After the words of welcome from the primary and high school children together with the teachers in charge of representing the staff and the delivery of a simple gift to the mothers for their visit, a small cultural presentation by the high school youth began. and a dance by the children of 3rd grade. It should be noted that the meeting that was originally intended to be done in two moments at the end was held in a single presentation on the stage of the covered court, since due to recent events and rumors of suspension of classes the enrollment is on the 02nd May was quite low, but numerous enough to make M. Rosa feel the human warmth of these Aragonese lands.

Once the acts with the children were over, M. Rosa went to the offices to greet the administrative staff and also to meet with the representatives of the Carmen Sallés Works Committee and the Secular Concepcionist Movement who had prepared a simple but succulent breakfast for her. They were all very happy to be able to share even for a short space with their mother. She then went through the classrooms greeting the children and in some she even gave them a micro class in Korean on the blackboard. In one of the fifth grade classrooms, a girl of Chinese descent wanted to greet her in her native language, which is Mandarin, for which M. Rosa was very grateful. By noon the mothers were back in the community to pray the Angelus and take the exam at the end of the morning and share the farewell lunch hoping that in the future, when circumstances are less adverse and in an atmosphere of freedom we can once again receive the visit of M. Rosa to our country. We took the obligatory photos for the memory both in the chapel and in the front of the house. We said goodbye to M. Rosa and M. Mariana after lunch, wishing them a happy return trip to Caracas.

January 26, 2022

“He has risen from the dead and will go ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see it”.
Meeting with children, young people and teachers from the “La Concepción” school in Montalbán.

On April 22, 2019 confirming the empty tomb I leave for Galilee, in my case it was Venezuela, trusting as the angel had said "you will see it there". I arrived in my Galilee at night on the same day. MM was waiting for me at the airport. Mariana and María, and in the Montalbán community the sisters of the community.

During the 23rd and 24th I had several meetings with the children of preschool, primary school, high school and school teachers at different times. The children prepared the welcome presenting their country with the natural symbols; the national tree that is the araguaney, the national flower that is the orchid and the national bird, the turpial... there was no shortage of poetry, songs and dances.
The teachers welcomed and then presented a review of the history of the school and the Conceptionist education offered to students. Currently, Colegio La Concepción serves an enrollment of 835 students and has an educational-administrative staff, in addition to workers of 65 people. Given the difficult reality that Venezuela is experiencing, a political, social and economic crisis of great impact, many families have emigrated to other countries seeking better living conditions. For this reason, for a few years the enrollment has been decreasing. Three years ago, the Venezuelan government changed the school curriculum by eliminating humanities subjects. For this reason, students only have the option of graduating with a Bachelor of Science and not in Humanities as before. They commented on their concern that the quality of education is declining. This in turn becomes a challenge. Later, I gave a presentation on the Congregation in the Province of Asia. They were attentive and interested in learning about this conceptionist presence so new to them. The meeting ended with a sign of hope, a student who played the national instrument with great delicacy. He really made the llanera harp sing and speak with his interpretation.
Due to the rain, the meeting with the high school students could not be held as planned, but there was a representation of each grade and section. They began by sharing a prayer around the Risen One in which they related this experience of faith to the situation in the country. Young people are well aware of the complex and painful reality that Venezuela is experiencing. But they want to continue “Forward always forward with the confidence that God will provide, as Santa Carmen Sallés used to say. They themselves say "As long as there are young people to educate and values ​​to pass on, difficulties don't count." That is why they appreciate the education they receive and the effort that is made to continue opting for a quality comprehensive education.
From these specific encounters, I went through the classes, it was a very pleasant moment and I shared about the Asian culture that interested the children a lot, who asked me to write and speak in Korean.
Our teachers, young people and children of Montalbán live with a lot of hope and joy despite a very difficult situation. And there was no lack of affectionate welcome that identified his personality. I have found the Risen Jesus Christ in their gestures and faces.
January 26, 2022

January 26, 2022

Meetings with the children and teachers of Morán on the 25th and 26th

"La Morán" is a neighborhood of Caracas, which is located about 5 kms. of Montalban. 480 steps up from the avenue is the Carmen Sallés Initial Education Center. When Venezuelans say "neighborhood" they refer to places where needy families live. The neighborhoods, in Caracas, are usually in the mountains. The little houses cover the mountain from the bottom to the top and, between one and the other, they have almost no space. They are very attached. The roads in this neighborhood are stairs, people go up and down loaded, carrying everything in their hands and on their shoulders. The stairs are very narrow, informal and in some places very steep. It is a meeting place, of coexistence. People going up and down meet and greet each other, wonder and share their lives.
Our sisters Mariana Guinand and Yria Rodríguez, being postulants, began to visit the neighborhood and teach catechism to the children in 1991 for a project to "learn Marian devotion in the community." Steps were taken until the Carmen Sallés Multihome was consolidated, accompanied by M. María Colina and a group of caring mothers. Subsequently, the current “Carmen Sallés” Initial Education Center and the religious community that lives in the neighborhood were consolidated. Currently, we serve about 250 children from one year to five years. They are the children of the neighbourhood. This educational center is a place of entrepreneurship in the neighborhood. Many people and projects have been promoted to improve people's living conditions through different public and private institutions. On my tour of the neighborhood, I was able to notice the great affection and gratitude they have for the father of M. Mariana (current Provincial of the Caribbean) and Mother Trinidad who worked together with the people of the neighborhood to achieve a more dignified life.
When I went up to the school, practically crawling some very steep places, the children of “Carmen Salles” were waiting for us in the Church (the School Chapel is the neighborhood Church). They prepared many songs and dances for me, no details were lacking. During this visit I was able to capture the anguish that is happening in Venezuela, reflected in the faces of the children. Later I had the opportunity to greet a group of young people and adults from the neighborhood who are doing an entrepreneurship workshop.
The dining room works in this center; every day they give breakfast and lunch to the children, teachers and their children. The day I arrived I could see the concern because there was only food left for a day's worth of food. The director of the school, our sister Marlene, was very concerned about the situation. However, once again, the providence of God was present, the former students of our other schools had just made a donation that made it possible to buy food for a few weeks.
The next day I had a meeting with the teachers and other employees of the center.
There is also a lack of water here, as in other places in Caracas. If they are lucky, the water arrives on Thursday, Friday and a few hours on Saturday. But there has been no lack of light during my stay.
Our sisters live among the people with an austere life but with great joy and very dedicated to the mission. It was an encounter with the Risen Jesus.

January 26, 2022