DeColores! My name is Candy Newman and I was privileged to be the Rectora of Cursillo #138, the Extravagant Love weekend.

Wow! What a weekend full of His Extravagant Love. The presence of the Lord was felt from Thursday on.

We were blessed to have 33 Pilgrims who came open to see what God had for them. The team and the Pilgrims bonded together quickly which helped the weekend flow as the team and community was praying it would. I believe this was due in part to the way we received and welcomed the Pilgrims on Thursday evening.

I first witnessed this new drop off and registration procedure on the #137 Sanctuary weekend. For those of you who are not aware, this is how it works. The sponsors stay in their cars and drop off the Pilgrims at the new Program Center. The Pilgrims are immediately met by one of the team members and walked to the registration desk. Once registered, the Pilgrim enters the Rollo Room where the rest of the team is mingling and conversing with the Pilgrims.

Meanwhile, the sponsors drive the luggage over to the cabins where set up meets them, tags the luggage, and takes it to the Pilgrim’s assigned bunk. The Pilgrims are later taken to their cabin/bunks by their Cha Chas. No one was left standing around with no one to talk to. The Pilgrims truly seemed to relax right from the beginning.

Our Abba Father continued to work throughout the weekend, breaking down barriers, healing His children, and using us, His hands and feet on this earth to share His extravagant love as only He can.

We were soooooooo blessed by the presence of Fr. Bryan O’Carroll, Fr. Chase Ackerman, (his first weekend on team I might add, but you would have never known) and our sweet Deacon Ros Hall. What an amazing team of clergy God called to this weekend. I will be forever grateful.

The Music was also outstanding. Of course Scott Gardner always does a topnotch job. But put him together with Michael Turcotte, Michael Tunnell, and Ellen Lightner and they are unstoppable. Scott even shared some the songs he’s written. We want a CD Scott. I recommend every weekend have a drummer and a flute player.

I cannot say enough about the Set-up chairs, Kristina Hodge and David Schutte. None of us had to worry about a thing. With their leadership and direction the set up team to include our fun loving Cha Chas went about their business as if it were second nature. They did not miss a beat.

And our precious prayer warriors, they showed extravagant love beyond measure as our Servant Chair, Susan O’Carroll and Fr. Bryan walked through several close losses leading up to and during the weekend. Their prayers were felt in mighty ways as Susan continued to share her outstanding leadership skills.

Also precious to me was the bellringer, Marcia Allison. She kept us moving with grace and ease….not sure how you did it Marcia.

The Family workers provided guidance but did not lead the tables and it was obvious that each family bonded. I was told one family set up a group chat room on the Monday after the weekend so they could keep in touch. Ah, music to my ears! You, the community played a big part in the success of the weekend as well.

The serenade was packed. The palanca bags were packed too. I’m not sure I’ve ever seen so much palanca in one bag. You all ROCK!

I am most grateful for the Pilgrims who came with open hearts and minds. I believe they were filled with His extravagant love, nourished with His word, and witnesses to God’s leaders in action. They were on fire for Christ’s work when they left and I am excited to see how God will call them to lead His church.

In His Extravagant Love,
Candy

DeColores! My name is Nancy Kinney and I was called by our Lord to serve as the Rectora for Cursillo #140 in October.

What an awesome blessing this is and an overwhelming responsibility. No fear though because there is a huge Cursillo community that will help and support me, the team and the new Pilgrims to come! The most important support is prayer. Prayers for guidance, wisdom, protection from evil outside influences and anything else that will try to derail this weekend before and during its duration. Every weekend is in the Lord’s hands and He will reveal that plan to me and the team as the plans are progressing.

The Leadership is in place and now we will be looking for many Cursillistas to apply to work on the team with us. Please pray about this and check with your families and calendars for the available time and commitment it takes.

We will have our first team meeting Saturday Sept. 15^th and the second team meeting Saturday October 6^th.

Now would be a good time to block off those days in your calendars because we know how busy our lives are and how quickly new events get added to already full schedules. We can’t all work on a team but we can always pray. When the Prayer Vigil gets published in the future by the Servant Chair please choose a time slot or two for fervent prayers of protection! Not only is working on a team a time to serve but maybe you will experience something you missed on your weekend.

Now is also a good time to pray and talk to your parish priest about someone who you think might be interested and willing to attend a Cursillo weekend. Remember to do this before you invite your friend to fill out an application! Timing is everything so a no today doesn’t necessarily mean no forever. Don’t forget that popular and so true statement to “Make a friend, be a friend and bring a friend to Christ!” Sponsoring is an awesome experience but it is also a  commitment. Look into all that is required before you make that decision.

Of course, palanca is always needed; green $ palanca, soda, water, candy, salty snacks, pillow palanca and written notes to the Pilgrims. So many ways to help and contribute to the weekend. There will be notices by the Set-Up Co-chairs later on as the weekend approaches.

Again please put Cursillo #140 on your daily prayer list and your church’s prayer list too! Pray for your possible involvement in this weekend and for all the team and Pilgrims that the Lord will call. This is a blessed calling but I can’t do it alone by any stretch of the imagination. Thank you for all your prayers and support!

Sincerely,

Nancy Kinney

6325 Ridge Top Dr, New Port Richey FL 34655

Njkinney347@gmail.com

727-458-4138

 

 

From Anna Ashworth, Secretariat Communications Chair

In case you haven’t noticed, our Cursilloswfla.org website got a make-over in 2017.  Russell Tuff, our Webmaster, used his skills to make some modifications to the website to make it more user friendly.

At a glance, here are some of the changes that have been made:

•           It is mobile phone friendly.
•           With one click, the site translates from English into Spanish or Creole.
•           The site is easy to navigate.
•           The latest news from Constant Contact and the newsletter are archived by month.

Here is a more in-depth look:

Once you access www.cursilloswfla.org, you arrive at the “Home” page.  In the upper right-hand corner, you will see the following tabs:  Home, What is Cursillo, Applications, Events, and News/Blog.  The following is a description of what you will find on each page.

Home Page

Underneath some pictures, on the left side of the page, there is a brief introduction to Cursillo.  Following that article is information about pilgrim applications along with a link to the pilgrim application.  The latest news articles are found next.

On the right side of the page (underneath the pictures), there is the option of changing the language to Spanish or Haitian Creole.  There is also a place to add your email address to the list to receive the quarterly newsletter (if you are not already receiving it).  Underneath the newsletter request, there are links to recent Cursillo news posts and also archived articles to read.  These articles are listed below the newsletter request.

 What is Cursillo?

When your cursor hovers over the “What is Cursillo?” tab, the following selections will appear:

What is Cursillo?

Secretariat

Parish

Opportunities to serve

Music

Frequently asked questions about Cursillo

Palanca

Donations

Here is what you find when you click on the selections:

What is Cursillo? – a greater explanation of what Cursillo is, what happens after the weekend, what is expected of participants, and who can attend a weekend.

Secretariat – a list of the Secretariat members, their positions, and their contact information is provided here.

Parish Reps – The Episcopal churches in SW Florida are separated into deaneries, and the Cursillo Parish Reps for each church are listed along with their contact information.  Occasionally, there will be a church without a current Parish Rep, so this page is helpful if you want to find another Cursillo community at a near-by church.

Opportunities to Serve – The Servant Community Leaders are listed here along with their contact information.  Also, there is a link to an application if you would like to serve on the Secretariat or as a Servant Leader.  At the bottom of this page, openings are listed along with guidelines for applying.

 Music – this page invites musicians to join the Cursillo musicians in playing at Ultreyas, weekends, and other Cursillo events.  Contact information is provided for those interested in joining the musicians.  There is also information about the songbooks.

Frequently Asked Questions about Cursillo – Answers to frequently asked questions

Palanca – explanation of different kinds of Palanca, why it is needed, and where to send monetary contributions

Donations -more specific information for monetary donations

Applications

Under the “Applications” tab, you will find the following selections:

Applications

Pilgrim Application

Team Application

Sponsoring a candidate

Paying for the weekend

Applications – this page explains the process of applying for a weekend and the need for a sponsor.  A link to the pilgrim application is provided.

Pilgrim Application – links to both the English and Spanish Pilgrim Applications are provided here.

Team Application – information about the next weekend is available here along with the team application that is specific to that weekend.  Because the address of where to send the team application will vary with each weekend, the address of the lay rector is provided here as well.

Sponsoring a Candidate – this page gives information about how to sponsor a pilgrim, and there is a checklist provided for the sponsor to fulfill

Paying for the Weekend – specific instructions are given for pilgrims and team members about paying for the weekend and where to send the payment.

 Events

The “Events” tab will take you to the page with upcoming events listed according to month, with the event that will be happening the soonest at the top of the page.  Scroll down the page to find events that are scheduled into the future.  You can also search for past and future events at the top (left) of the page under the word “Archives” by either putting in the name of the event or by looking at the calendar and choosing the month.

News/Blog

The “News/Blog” tab takes you to a page that has information about the upcoming weekend, requests for the upcoming weekend, the latest news from the Secretariat or newsletter, and pictures from Ultreyas.

Have pictures you would like to see on the website?  Have Ultreyas you would like announced?  Email Anna Ashworth @ agashworth@aol.com. 

 

Wow! The year is almost gone and so has another Hispanic Cursillo weekend. Cursillo #136 (4th in Spanish) was a huge success. The superb team God called to serve did their job with fervor, commitment, humility and faith. The pilgrims were overjoyed and they got it. It showed!

At the serenade, there was a storm, power loss, but what was not lost was the surprising looks on the pilgrims’ faces nor the joy and singing of the members of the Cursillo community. The pilgrims knew that in spite of the evil one trying to ruin it, the Holy Spirit didn’t allow it.
Cursillo #139 (5th in Spanish) is soon approaching (May 17-20, 2018). Edwin Mata is the Rector. Excitement is already building for the team and pilgrims!

De la Cátedra del Cursillo Hispano

¡Wow! El año casi se ha ido y también lo ha hecho otro fin de semana de Cursillo hispano. El Cursillo # 136 (4to en español) fue un gran éxito. El excelente equipo al que Dios llamó a servir hizo su trabajo con fervor, compromiso, humildad y fe. Los peregrinos se llenaron de alegría y lo entendieron. ¡Asi lo Mostraron!
En la serenata, hubo una tormenta, pérdida de luz, pero lo que no se perdió fueron las miradas sorprendentes en los rostros de los peregrinos ni la alegría y el canto de los miembros de la comunidad de cursillos. Los peregrinos sabían que a pesar de que el malvado intentaba arruinarlo, el Espíritu Santo no lo permitió
El Cursillo # 139 (5to en español) pronto se aproxima (del 17 al 20 de mayo de 2018). Edwin Mata es el Rector. ¡La emoción ya está creciendo para el equipo y los peregrinos!