Comboni Lay Missionaries

Second CLM community in Kenya: a dream come true!

LMC Chelopoy

Sunday the 16 November 2025, what a historic day! It’s the beginning of a new adventure for us CLM here in Kenya, as on this day we opened a second community in Chelopoy, West Pokot!

We are so grateful to all those who made it happen: our “ancestor” (as we fondly call him), fr. Maciek Zielinski, the MCCJ provincial of Kenya, fr. Andrew Wanjohi, the CLM of Kenya and all the CLM!

The members of the new community are: Mercy Lodikai (from Kenya), Giulia Lampo (from Italy) and Iza Tobiasiewicz (from Poland). Round of applause, please!!! These three pioneers are ready to start serving in the area of Chelopoy, and will probably join the community of Kitelakapel in the Life Skills project, expanding it to the schools in their area, while also collaborating with the local dispensary, run by the Franciscan sisters of St. Joseph – Asumbi. They will also engage in pastoral activities, of course. For now, the plan is for them to take their time to settle in and get to know the place and the people, create bonds of friendship and get to know their culture, their situation, their needs.

On their very first day, as we celebrated the opening of the community and the works of renovation in the house they’ll be using, they were received with great warmth and joy by the local people. We, the community of Kitelakapel, accompanied them, and we were blessed by the presence of our dear fr. Maciek, our equally dear MCCJ provincial, fr. Andrew, the parish priest (fr. Philip Andruga) and Comboni sisters of Amakuriat (the parish to which the new community belongs), and even two representatives of the CLM of Uganda, the very coordinator Beatrice Akite, and treasurer, Asege Teddy, accompanied by two Italian volunteers and a local member of Kalya peace village, Uganda.

The Mass was lively and participated, so well animated by the local people, who gave us all some gifts and made us feel at home from the very beginning. The provincial then proceeded to blessing the house and then we all had something to eat. It was a simple but lovely moment of celebration.

As usual, starting a new community in a new place is not something easy. It requires a lot of patience, humility and ability to adjust. However, our friends are not alone! They have the Franciscan sisters as caring neighbours, local families and church members as their new friends and new extended family, and the fathers and sisters from Amakuriat as a strong source of emotional and practical support. Not to forget us, the community of Kitelakapel, who are also so happy to have them as our “neighbours” in West Pokot! Together we will walk on this journey, grow, support each other, and do wonderful things! And of course, all this is possible only with the broader support of all CLM, the whole Comboni family and all those who believe in us!

So, thank you all! Keep being with us in prayer, and stay tuned!

Linda Micheletti, CLM Kitelakapel, Kenya

Hope, respect, solidarity, and let’s get to work…

LMC Costa Rica

Today, November 12, 2025, as part of the Comboni Family Forum on Integral Ecology 2025, we had an intense day, beginning with a community prayer at the Sagrada Familia Social Center in Belem, Brazil, where, after placing ourselves in God’s hands, we gathered in small groups and went to different locations where the COP30 International Conference on Climate Change is taking place.

An interesting reflection took place at the Church Symposium at COP30, where church leaders from various continents, authorities, and representatives of traditional peoples gathered for a dialogue on paths to ecological conservation.

At the same time, conferences were held at other locations, such as the Federal University of Pará, the blue zone, and the Pará River, where a boat trip took place.

Among the topics of conversation and denunciation at this summit were: the defense of the most needy peoples, an end to violence, peace, solidarity, and care for our common home, climate justice, the sovereignty of peoples, integral solidarity, and above all, such important issues as the protection of natural resources and saying no to mining and polluting practices.

The first day ended with the opening of COP30 at the University and the presentation of important figures, including the Rector, and artistic performances. At the same time, there was a march for the martyrs, which ended with Holy Mass in the Cathedral of Our Lady of Nazareth, concluding a day full of reflection, commitment, and hope for a more just, sustainable, and supportive world, respecting all those who do not just talk about ecology but live it in their daily lives….

Maritza Rodríguez Pacheco

CLM Costa Rica