The “Don Bosco Network” organises exchange events, working groups and two general assemblies throughout the year. Whilst most of these global meetings take place via video-conference, once a year all its members gather in one place: this year, the St Francis de Sales Province of France-Belgium South (FRB) was chosen as the venue to welcome everyone to the heart of the “I Becchi” holiday village in Samoëns, which belongs to the AEC-Vacances Salesian association.

The event was attended by representatives from Salesian Missions (United States), Via Don Bosco (Belgium), Misiones Salesianas (Spain), Don Bosco Mondo (Germany), VIS – Volontariato Internazionale per lo Sviluppo (Italy), Don Bosco Jugendhilfe Weltweit (Switzerland), Bosconet (India), Savio (Slovakia), Don Bosco Aid (Ireland), Don Bosco Mission (Austria), Foundation Don Bosco (France), Don Bosco Foundation (Malta), Salezjański Ośrodek Misyjny (Poland) and Salesian Missions – Australia.

Projects and missionary outreach

These independent NGOs thus act as a link between themselves and the Congregation of the Salesians of Don Bosco, in particular with the Missions Sector, represented at the meeting by Fr Eric Mairura. All these organisations work closely with the local Salesian authorities, from whom they receive funding for their projects. How? In each Salesian circumscription, a ‘Planning and Development Office’ and a structure for Mission Animation are responsible for developing and ensuring the sustainability – particularly the financial sustainability – of Don Bosco’s educational mission at a local level.

Furthermore, in order to ensure transparency and ethical standards in the use of donations collected by these NGOs, the Don Bosco Network has developed tools such as a ‘database’ of supported projects, as well as guides and manuals on the sound management of a supported project, from the initial stages through to the post-project phase…

Learning

At the meeting in Samoëns, members had invited representatives from the “Don Bosco Tech” programmes (Africa, India, ASEAN, Europe), which develop and promote quality formation through learning in their respective areas of focus. These large-scale organisations operate in the spirit of St John Bosco – who sought to provide every young person with formation and a trade to foster their dignity and holistic development – and their programmes are in many cases funded through support from these NGOs and major industrial groups.

Emergency aid

The Don Bosco Network is also able to mobilise substantial resources at very short notice for its emergency programmes: earthquakes, tsunamis, wars… The large sums raised in this way pass through the Congregation’s central offices in Rome, which thus ensures the proper and ethical use of the donations.

Finally, during the meeting in Samoëns, all those present had the opportunity to be re-energised in the truest Salesian spirit, at the foot of the Savoie mountains of St Francis de Sales, and in the company of numerous local Salesians, including the Provincial of FRB, Fr Xavier Ernst, and the Provincial Economer, Br Sébastien Robert, SDB.

Source: Don Bosco Aujourd’hui