COMMUNITY
tvc.dsj.org | June 6, 2017
5
Our Lady of Refuge’s Celebration of Our Lady of Fatima
By Sally C. Samaniego
Fatima Event Coordinator
On the occasion of the 100-year an-
niversar y of the apparition of Our Lady
of Fatima, Our Lady of Refuge (OLR)
parish had a very unique two-day cel-
ebration on May 12 and 13.
The celebration started with a Ro-
sary procession with the fl oat of Our
Lady of Fatima on Friday evening at
6:30 p.m. Following the procession
was a multicultural Mass in three
languages – English, Spanish and Viet-
namese. Exposition and Adoration of
the Blessed Sacrament was scheduled
for 21 hours starting at 8 p.m. Friday
and ending at 5 p.m. the following day.
Diff erent parish groups and individu-
als came and prayed before the Blessed
Sacrament throughout the night. There
was also a candlelight living Rosary at
10 p.m. at night. It was such a beautiful
sight having the Rosary recited in four
languages with candlelight.
Saturday started with a mini-retreat
for the three language groups at 8:30
a.m. It commenced with opening
prayer, followed by a movie about the
apparitions of Our Lady of Fatima to the
Musical performance by the Vietnamese choir.
three children in the town of Fatima,
Portugal for six months starting on May
13, 1917. This was followed by a talk by
the retreat directors – Monsignor Fran-
cisco Rios for the English group, Father
Dat Luong for the Vietnamese group
and Lupita Vital, Director of Hispanic
Apostolate for the Diocese of San Jose
for the Spanish group.
The afternoon was devoted to chil-
dren’s activities such as making rosa-
ries, a movie and Adoration before the
Blessed Sacrament.
At 7 p.m. there was another Rosary
procession with the fl oat of Our Lady
of Fatima. During the procession, three
large rosary balloons were released
into the air. People were in awe as they
looked up the sky and saw all three
rosary balloons fl oating.
The celebration culminated with
musical performances by the diff erent
choirs, capped by a play about the ap-
parition of Our Lady of Fatima.
It truly was a magical celebration,
with the whole community coming
together as one family. Parishioners
commented that the whole experi-
ence brought spiritual nourishment
and increased devotion to our Blessed
Mother. Rosary pledges were made by
parishioners and totaled 112,000 Rosa-
ries for one year.
The parish acknowledges Father Dat
Luong, parochial vicar of OLR for his
care and leadership. Since he arrived at
the parish on July 1, 2016, it had been
his goal to bring this spiritual experi-
ence to Our Lady of Refuge parish. It
was totally supported by Monsignor
Francisco Rios, who arrived from his
6-month sabbatical in the middle of
April. We also thank Sister Catherine
Dang, Sister Andrea Mendoza and
Anabella Estrada, pastoral associate,
for their important roles in making this
celebration hugely successful.
Rest in Peace, Reverend Raymond George Kenny
November 13, 1935 – May 26, 2017
Father Ray Kenny died on May 26,
2017 at the Los Gatos Meadows after
living with Progressive Supranuclear
Palsy for the last several years.
A retired priest and pastor in the
Catholic Diocese of San Jose, Ray
was the son of Bartholomew Leo and
Helen Freethy Kenny. Raised in San
Francisco and Oakland, he graduated
from Our Lady of Lourdes School in
Oakland, Saint Ignatius High School
in San Francisco. and the University
of San Francisco before entering Saint
Patrick’s Seminary in Menlo Park. He
was ordained a priest on March 30, 1963.
Father Kenny served at the following
parishes: Saint Sebastian in Kentfi eld,
Saint John Vianney in San Jose, Saint
Martin of Tours in San Jose, Saint Mar-
tin in Sunnyvale, Immaculate Heart
of Mary Belmont and Saint Justin in
Santa Clara. In 1981, he was appointed
as Pastor of Saint Thomas of Canterbury
Parish in San Jose; from 1990 until 2002,
he was Pastor of Santa Teresa Parish in
San Jose. After a sabbatical he returned
to serve at Saint Martin of Tours, from
which he retired in 2006.
Known for his warmth, integrity,
compassion, care and respect for people,
gentle presence, collaboration with col-
leagues, love of nature and hiking, jazz,
travel, Native American Culture, art, and
basketball, he was a “people’s priest.”
Preceded in death by his parents,
his sister, Patricia Kenny, SNJM, and
brother, Bertram Kenny, he is survived
by his niece Patricia Fabian (Manuel)
of Fresno, generations of grand nieces
and nephews, numerous cousins and
countless friends. He will be deeply
missed by all.
A funeral Mass was celebrated on
June 5 at Saint Martin of Tours Parish.
In lieu of fl owers donations may be
made to the Sisters of the Holy Names,
P.O. Box 907, Los Gatos, CA 95030 or
Catholic Charities, 2625 Zanker Road,
San Jose, CA 95134.
Special gratitude to the staff of the
Los Gatos Meadows for their compas-
sionate care for Ray the last several years.
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