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Current News from our Locality.
The 40th Edition of the Christmas Pageant
23 December 2009
 Our village has a special connection with Christmas. This connection goes back to about seventy years. At first this village used to organise a dramatic musical production related to the Christmas Story, which annually attracted hundreds of Gozitans who came to enjoy this theatrical event. The elderly of this small village are still proud of their memories of this production as it gave the village of San Lawrenz its prominence during the Christmas activities in Gozo. Later, in the sixties, when this play ceased to take place, the village began to organise another activity more adapted to the changing times and thus the Christmas Pageant began, commencing from the main door of the Parish Centre and passing through the main streets of the village. We could call this Pageant an open bible as it tells the story of the salvation of man from the Garden of Eden to the Crib of Bethlehem. At first this Pageant was relatively small but the determination of those first organisers helped this event to grow, in its message and also in its spectacle. During the years many items were added for the improvement of this show, first and foremost to keep pace with the times and also to continue to interest those who take part in it and the spectators who come to see it on Christmas Eve. The number of actors increased, new costumes were made to enhance this Pageant, and a new script was made with the best wordings, music and voices. Also a large stage was erected for a small representation for each character. Something particular with all this is that almost the whole village participates or gives a helping hand to this Pageant. From weeks before many dedicate their time and energy so that on Christmas Eve the Pageant will give a grand spectacle and gives the true message of Christmas, that God sent his Son, through Mary, so that he could save us. This community invites everyone to join us for this Pageant on Thursday, Christmas Eve to view “What God has done for us”. The Pageant commences at 8.30pm at the Paris Centre.
The ministry of acolytate to 5 seminarians
11 December 2009
 Our parish was chosen as the place where, last Sunday, H.E. Bishop of Gozo could give a new ministry to five seminarians who are preparing themselves to receive the sacrament of priesthood when they complete their studies later on. With this ministry these seminarians are able to deliver the Eucharist to the elderly and sick in their homes and also to give communion to the Catholics in church. This kind of Ceremony takes place once a year in our diocese, and every year a different parish is chosen for the giving of this ministry Our church was crowded with people coming from all parts of Gozo, especially from those parishes that are the hometowns of these young seminarians, namely, Xewkija, the Cathedral, Ghajnsielem and Qala For us ‘Lawrenzjani’ this activity had an important significance as one of these seminarians, Trevor Sultana, is currently serving in our parish, replacing Fr Joseph. Trevor is at the moment leading the group of students and also the vocational and altar boys group. This site augurs these five seminarians, particularly Trevor, who is rapidly finding his place in our parish.
The Folk group organise their annual dinner
06 December 2009
 Yesterday, Saturday, the hall of our school, Dun Salv Portelli, was the venue of the annual dinner organised by the folk group for the members and friends of this group. This year a different group decided to organise this dinner in the village. Usually it was held in a restaurant in another locality. A good number of people attended for this dinner, which was animated with various activities such as bingo and games amongst those present. Something which was quite evident was the number of young members of this group dressed as Mother Christmas and the children singing Christmas Carols, with the older members of this energetic group taking the responsibility to teach the young ones these carols. In a nutshell, the atmosphere was very nice and it opened the Christmas season in our locality. This year the group was very busy in various activities in our village and also in other localities. The biggest activity for this group was the activity held in September to commemorate the fifth anniversary of the Folk Group. In the meantime today the activities in our village will continue to kindle the Christmas Spirit. In the main Square the Turkey Fair will once again be organised by the Festa Committee.
Another large project for Solar Energy in our locality
30 November 2009
 After the two projects organised by the San Lawrenz Local Council with the cooperation of the residents, namely the energy saving light bulb project and the Solar Water Heater Project, now the Council intends to continue to invest in alternative energy. Recently the Local Council announced that it is working on another large contract to continue to encourage the San Lawrenz residents to adapt to a more environmental mentality and at the same time save on the cost of capital and recurrent expenditure, in other words, saving money on each electricity bill. The project, announced by the Council during a well-attended meeting held on Monday, 23rd November, concerns the installation of a solar photovoltaic apparatus, thus a lot of energy and money is saved and both the environment and the resident will benefit. Through this project less energy will be consumed with less damage to the environment and also savings on the electricity bill. Such a project, combined with the very good offers that the Local Council was able to obtain, could be of a utility to every family in San Lawrenz, be it a large or small family. For more information about this project a very informative meeting has already been held, and now the Council is gathering a list of those people who are interested to acquire this system with an exceptional offer. Present for last Monday’s meeting was an expert in this field who answered all questions and also gave an indication on how much one can save on the electricity bill and the period of time in which one could redeem the relatively small expense needed to purchase it. We took the comments of Mayor Noel Formosa about this initiative where he expressed his satisfaction that our residents, more than ever before, are conscious of the importance of similar projects and are collaborating with the Local Council towards an ecological locality. He said that he is happy to see our residents getting benefits from the council’s initiatives and augured that this project will be a success. He concluded by mentioning that discussions are still underway on this project to ensure the maximum of benefits for the environment and also for the residents.
A visit to Santa Luciija
27 November 2009
 The monthly outing, organised by the Local Council, has become an occasion for which our elderly await eagerly because, besides being an occasion to meet, this outing offers an alternative type of entertainment for them. This outing is always associated with a particular chapel that one finds scattered around the Gozitan countryside. This time, as the feast of St Lucy is close, it was decided that mass should take place in the chapel that is situated in the hamlet of Santa Lucija, a stone’s throw away from our village. At 8.30am the square was full of elderly waiting for their private to take them to the chapel and thus they could begin their day with mass. This was also a particular mass. After a few weeks absent from our church for health reasons, Mons Joseph Piscopo was once again on the scene, starting actually with this mass for the elderly in the chapel dedicated to St Lucy. The Rector, Fr Frank Sultana, who celebrated the Eucharist together with Mons Piscopo, welcomed the elderly. After mass the prayer hymn dedicated to St Lucy was recited and later our group, led by Councillor Luigia Grima made their way to Xlendi where they had a coffee and a chat. As usual, a bit of bingo could not be avoided. The outing came to an end after having midday lunch together.
A week of contemplating the Word of God
25 November 2009
 In old times these were known as the Heart of Jesus Spiritual Exercises and were held annually in October. More recently the parish decided to move them closer to advent to serve as preparation for the days of advent and afterwards to Christmas. Last Monday the parish commenced these sermons after the evening mass. A sizeable crowd of parishioners are attending every evening to continue to hear about the importance of the Word of God in our lives. Fr Roberto Gauci, who is delivering these exercises, is focusing his teaching from the Bible. On the first day he spoke about the figure of Abraham with his particularity, that of total faith in God. In the meantime, the Parish Priest is also attending for spiritual exercises that are being held for all the Parish Priests of Malta and Gozo. These exercises are being lead by a Cardinal who was also present for the conclusion of the Eucharist Congress which was held recently in Gozo. The Conclusion of this Congress was held last Sunday on the occasion of the Feast of Christ the King, in which activity our community also participated.
Other tenders for church’s restoration published
20 November 2009
 Following the publishing of the first tender of the church’s facade restoration projects, this week we are once more seeing the publicity of the second tender. This project is being financed 85% from public funds, of which 72.25% are EU funds and 12.75% are Malta Funds. The remaining 15% are Parish Funds. This will enable our locality to implement another project of utmost historical importance, that of the Parish Church. This project is being undertaken by the Parish together with the Local Council. This is the first project on our island that is being implemented in such way. The works requested in this second tender are the restoration of the church bells, the design, installation, commissioning and certification of a lightning protection system. The aims of these two tenders are to enhance the locality’s heritage and increase tourism in this western part of the island. When we interviewed the mayor and the Parish Priest they both remarked that we have to look at this project as a holistic one and as an annex to other projects that the council is embarking on to enrich the standard of living of the San Lawrenz’s residents and will also eventually improve the tourist product towards this part of Gozo. These tenders can be downloaded from this site www.sanlawrenz.gov.mt. The first tender must be submitted no later than noon of the 21st December 2009, and the second tender no later than noon of the 17th December 2009. Those who download these tenders are requested to notify the council’s secretary with their interest in submitting these tenders.
The Parish commences its preparations for Advent
16 November 2009
 Yesterday in ‘Stella Maris House’ in Zebbug, home of the monks of the Society of St Paul, the retreat in preparation for advent for the members of our parish was held. Advent is the liturgical period that leads to Christmas but more than that, as emphasized yesterday, it is a period which invites the roman catholic for a spiritual conversion while anticipating the final arrival of Christ. This retreat was lead by Fr Martin Cilia who explained in a very practical way how the catholic should live his life in constant expectation of Christ. This expectation helps one to live his life in a more tranquil way, within himself and with others. Many were those members of the parish who attended and who participated in this retirement. On this occasion, the Parish Priest gave an account of the pastoral life of our parish and also invited those present to give their reaction to what is going on in the ministry. The priest stressed that his interest and his project for the parish is to continue to lead the community to Christ. He said he would not be content unless more parishioners feel as full members of this community. Present for this retreat were the Parochial Vicar Fr Charles and Mons Guzepp Piscopo.
The National Council of Women visits our locality
07 November 2009
 Yesterday, a delegation composed of several members of the National Council of Women paid a visit to our Local Council and met the Mayor to discuss the work being performed by the San Lawrenz Local Council in the field of alternative energy. Also present for this meeting was Councillor Luigia Grima, the only female member in our Local Council. During this meeting, those present asked about the work that is being carried out by our Local Council and also inquired about the involvement of our residents. Both the mayor and Ms Grima expressed the Council's commitment to first and foremost educate our residents to be more open to this new style which is being adapted in our locality, and also about the right incentives offered by the Council including the distribution of a lamp bulb in each residence and also recently with the strong incentive of a subsidy on the purchase of a Solar Water Heater. A discussion was also held about the initiatives taken by our Local Council to help women feel more part of society, such as the Child Care Center, and the establishment of the Ta’ Cangura Folk Group. At the end of the meeting these visitors had the opportunity to visit the House of the Elderly Complex, which is currently in discussions to start operating in the shortest possible time.
Rev Joseph ...Monsignor
01 November 2009
 This morning the 10.30am Mass in our village, chaired by HE Bishop Mario Grech, together with the Parish priest, the Vicar and Fr Joseph was also attended by our guests. Surprisingly to everyone, at the end of the Mass, Mgr Salv Debrincat, Chancellor of the Curia read a decree by Pope Benedict XVI in which he appointed Fr Joseph Piscopo his monsignor. A huge applause greeted this announcement, expressing the joy of our community for this wonderful news by which the great work of Fr Joseph, both as the hospital parish priest and also in our parish and village was acknowledged. Fr Joseph has been serving our parish and the diocese as a priest for the past 51 years, besides serving as priest in the hospital, a service to which he was dedicated wholeheartedly. The village of San Lawrenz and the parish are very close to his heart and he has worked very hard to advance the progress of his birthplace, including the Dwejra Fair, the feast, the stage and various other activities. That was why this news was well received by each ‘Lawrenzjan’, because everyone believes that Fr Joseph’s work, even now with the limitations of his health, should be appreciated. When we contacted the Parish priest, Ignatius Borg, he expressed his satisfaction to know that a priest, son of the locality of San Lawrenz, was given this honour. He further said that this honour is an honour for the Christian priesthood and makes a lot of sense during this Year of the Priesthood. In the meantime even the Local Council in a statement congratulated Fr Joseph for this honour and expressed its gratitude for the work done by him towards the village.
An Optimal Show
01 November 2009
 Yesterday the two days of activities organized by our Local Council to celebrate the European Year of creativity and innovation came to an end. During these two days our European visitors were hosted in our locality to discuss this subject. As was expected yesterday, in the main square, the festival ‘d-link’ was held in our locality, which festival attracted hundreds of Gozitans, Maltese and even foreigners who were among us. In this festival, the participation of Ruth Sammut Casingena and the duo Chasing Pandora both created an atmosphere of entertainment to all those who attended. We spoke to some who attended this evening and all of them had words of praise not only for the organization but also for the innovative way that this festival was organized. Meanwhile, the group of guests who are amongst us also attended this concert, and we could see the happiness reflecting on their face. Today this group, coming from Colle Umberto, Marciana Marina and La Ballme de Sillingy, participated in Sunday Mass and later were invited for an official lunch in the parish hall, for which the Council also invited all those who gave a helping hand towards the success of this activity together with the parish priest Ignatius Borg and the Vicar Fr Charles Sultana. Later on the group from Colle Umberto returned back to Italy, leaving amongst us the French group and the one from the island of Elba.
The International Conference for Creativity and Innovation comes to an end
30 October 2009
 A few hours ago the International Conference on the theme "From tradition to Innovation" came to an end. This conference, held at the Kempinski Hotel San Lawrenz, welcomed Italian, French and Maltese participants who, in a truly European spirit, discussed the matter of Innovation and Creativity on the occasion of the year being devoted to European Creativity and Innovation. This conference, which was conducted in a very good and professional manner by PBS journalist Keith Demicoli, brought around one table many Europeans who have a very good experience of Creativity and Innovation. Among these speakers were Mr John Magro, Mr Joe Muscat, Ms Bernardette Gerada and other speakers from Italy and France. Our Mayor Noel Formosa, Parliamentary Secretary for Public Consultation the Hon Chris Said, the Euro Parliamentary Member Professor Edward Scicluna and Ġovanna Debono Minister for Gozo also addressed this Conference. The Mayor and representatives of the communities of Colle Umberto, Marciana Marina and La Ballme de Sillingy also spoke about the role that their communities are taking towards creativity and innovation. Now the programme continues for the guests visiting us with tours in Gozo, including Ggantija, Ramla and several other places of interest. Tomorrow this project reaches its peak with the concert of Ruth Sammut Casingena and Chasing Pandora, which is expected to be very good. We hope to continue with further work by the Council and the Twinning Committee
The Conference and Festival are being advertised on a European site.
29 October 2009
 A European site which contains information about all the activities related to the year of innovation is giving importance to a conference which will be held tomorrow as well as ‘d-link’ Festival which will take place on Saturday 31 October at our Main Square. In this site the two activities are being given importance as two activities that our country is hosting as part of this European Year for Creativity and Innovation. One could find information and details on tomorrow’s conference and the Festival on this site. This European site is a site that advertises all the activities being organized on the occasion of the European Year of Creativity and Innovation. To enter on this site one should go on this address http://create2009.europa.eu/calendar_of_events/events_archive/events_singleview/news/d-link.html In the meantime, the activities in connection with our guests from abroad who are visiting us for this occasion are underway. As already announced the group from Colle Umberto have arrived yesterday while today the rest of the participants, namely the group from France and from the Island of Elba will arrive during the day. The Parliamentary Secretariat for Public Consultation is also supporting this activity that will be taking place in our village. This secretariat is also responsible for Local Councils. The Council had also applied for funds some months ago under the scheme for cultural activities organized by the Local Councils.
The first group of participants who will be taking part in the International Conference and ‘d-link’ activity will be arriving today.
28 October 2009
 This evening the group from Colle Umberto, which is the largest group to participate in the International Conference, will be arriving at Malta International Airport. Then tomorrow in the early afternoon the group from La Balme de Sillingy will arrive, followed by the group from Marciana Marina in the Island of Elba who will be arriving at about 8pm. The latter is a locality with which our locality is having contacts with the aim of signing a twinning agreement later on to complement the existing twinning with Colle Umberto. When asked about the activity, which is being organised by our locality, Mayor Noel Formosa said that preparations have now been finalised and this evening the programme that has been planned several weeks in advance will commence. He said that similar activities require a lot of work but thanks to several volunteers, especially the dedicated Twinning Committee, this activity could leave many benefits, as had previous activities. He augured that this activity would be another activity from which the village and Gozo will benefit. "The purpose of this conference is that apart from its social and educational aspect, Gozo we be able to help attract more quality tourism to Gozo." He went on to say that this activity will leave the €75,000 for the Gozitan economy. We heartily hope that this event goes well and continues to raise the profile of the village.
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