Hometown Faces...

I arrived into Rome on Wednesday early evening and spent Thursday adjusting to the time zone change, unpacking, reading mail, etc. That evening I grabbed a bus heading to Hotel Diana where pilgrims from my home parish of St. Paul the Apostle were enjoying three days in Rome before heading off to Assisi, Florence, etc. It was a great joy to see familiar faces from home, including the pastor, Fr. Marconi, who serves not only my home parish but two other parishes in Northeast Arkansas. A good number of the 38 pilgrims had also taken a pilgrimage to Notre Dame for my ordination to the priesthood.

I joined the group for dinner and then we all hopped on a bus to enjoy a night tour of Rome. Our first stop was at the Trevi Fountain which is just a block or two from my residence. I felt honored to introduce Mrs. Sorg to the great joy of gelato, as seen in the above photo!

I am especially happy for Mr. and Mrs. Henry Dust who this year celebrate their 50th Anniversary of Marriage. They were able to renew their vows in a chapel in St. Peter's Basilica. They are our neighbors back home and are wonderful people of great faith, decency, and generosity. The Dusts are to my left and right. The other couple pictured are the Harpers who organized the 50+ who traveled to my ordination.

Buon viaggio.