Tularosa, NM
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The following report comes to us from team leader Kayla with our team in Tularosa, New Mexico:
Members from the SPSE team from Las Cruces joined us this past Saturday for our first team event. We had a table at the St. Francis de Paula parish fiesta…the 158th one they’ve had! First, a bit of background on the parish. St. Francis de Paula Church in Tularosa was founded by Hispanic settlers who, after fleeing floods and enduring Apache raids, established the community in 1862 and built the church as both a place of worship and refuge. In 1868, amid local conflict, townspeople prayed before an image of St. Francis de Paula and made a solemn promise…an event that inspired the parish’s annual fiesta. The first Mass was celebrated in 1869. For over 150 years, the church has remained central to Tularosa’s spiritual and community life.
Back to the fiesta…it all starts with a group rosary on Friday, and then Saturday is the main event with a horseshoe tournament, Mass, dancers, and then fiesta time! We had several beautiful interactions with people. One man in particular took a team member’s number and is planning to join us for Mass next week. Another couple was in great need of listening and prayer and received that from our group. They took a great deal of info pamphlets and we hope to see them again soon.
Praised be Jesus Christ!