Davao parish to hold organic market on October 4
DAVAO CITY (MindaNews / 16 Sep) – The Mother of Perpetual Help Parish under the Redemptorist Missionaries is set to hold an Organic Market on October 4, the feast day of St. Francis of Assisi, the patron Saint of Ecology.
The event, a culmination of the 2020 Seasons of Creation – a celebration proposed by Pope Francis in his 2015 encyclical letter “Laudato Si!” – will take place inside the Redemptorist compound along JP Laurel St., Bajada, this city, from 7 a.m. until 5:30 p.m. for both the churchgoers who will attend Sunday Masses and the general public.
The parish assured that basic health protocols would be strictly implemented and encouraged visitors to wear face masks and observe physical distancing during the activity.
The activity is undertaken by the Care for the Earth Ministry, chaired by Redemptorist seminarian Bro. Miguel Gaspe CSsR of the St. Alphonsus Theological and Mission Institute, and established by the parish “to deal with urgent ecological issues faced by both the parishioners and churchgoers including proper waste management, the need for urban gardening and promoting eco-friendly everyday practices.”
The visitors can expect a wide array of organically grown vegetables, ornamental plants, flowers, up-cycled handicrafts made, and heathy food processed herbal medicines, produced by the participants of the organic market from various parishes of the city, some of whom are Lunhaw awardees of the Interfacing Development Interventions for Sustainability, a co-sponsor of the activity.
Organizers said that prices of vegetables in the organic market are guaranteed cheaper compared to the ones sold in the supermarkets.
“Such a market allows them the possibility of being able to market their products and be engaged in income-generating projects, which are so necessary during this pandemic when livelihoods have been affected,” the organizers said in a press release.
“Proceeds of this activity will go to the projects of the parish Care for the Earth Ministry as the Base Ecclesial Communities will continue to hold ecological awareness seminars, be engaged in communal urban gardens and learn basic skills (e.g. in making compost and organic insecticides, recycling waste products into handicrafts, etc.). To benefit are also the lay staff of the parish and church who have also been affected by the economic woes under the pandemic,” it added.
For inquiries as to the details of this organic market, please contact the parish office: Land line, (082) 2240478; or mobile phone, 09183010579; or parish staff Lucy Losbanez at 0907-2581272. Also email the following: Miguel Gaspe CSsR at mr.gaspe@gmail.com, J-Louie Martines CSsR at datoon.martinez@gamil.com, Dennis Galan CSsR at dennis_gin32@yahoo.com and Lucy Losbanez at losbanez@yahoo.com. (Antonio L. Colina IV / MindaNews)