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Sept 2,2007-Sept 9,2007 |
Marching for St. Pio’s Church
Walkathon raises $10,000 for new church
By Simona Giacobbi
Originally Published: 2007-06-10
A moment of togetherness amid prayers and hymns. An afternoon full of light from the sun and from St. Pio. Five kilometres that brought together those who worship this saint, in order to raise funds for a church in St. Pio’s name, the first in Canada. This was the Walkathon, a march that took place last Sunday.
“It was a beautiful afternoon,” commented Ben Virgilio, member of the fundraising committee that organized the Walkathon. “Weather was fine; it didn’t rain, and the sun shone our walk. By the end of the day we had raised $10,000. It’s a great step forward for the church that will be dedicated to St. Pio. Our march lasted about an hour and a half. We started from the North parking lot of Sunset Ridge, at Islington & Major Mackenzie. There were some 300 of us. After such a long walk, we ended up refilling our energies with pizza and hot dogs.”
The cornerstone of the new church will be laid in Kleinburg, around the intersection of Major Mackenzie Drive and Islington Avenue.
St. Padre Pio Knights of Columbus, leading the faithful, walked along Islington to Rutherford, then doubled back. The most generous donors were rewarded with a pair of tickets for the Phantom of the Opera, a pair for a Toronto FC game at the BMO Stadium, and a brand new bicycle.
The dream of a church named after St. Pio is turning to reality for thousands of devotees of the saint from Pietrelcina, whose real name was Francesco Forgione (1887-1968). The church is expected to become a place of pilgrimage. The Parish of St. Pio was officially formed five years ago, on June 16, 2002, on the day of Padre Pio’s canonization. Despite its young age, the parish has come a long way in so little time. While in 2002 the parish encompassed 150 families, today no fewer than 2,800 are registered with it.
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