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Greetings from Lourdes!
While it's hard to believe that today was our last full day in Lourdes, we sure did make the most of it...
We headed right on over to the Rosary Basilica for our Closing Mass, celebrated by Archbishop Allen Vigneron, ChC, and Rev. Msgr. Robert Dempsey, ChM, as homilist. Immediately following Mass, many of us attended a beautiful outdoor Stations of the Cross, led by the Very Rev. Dave Caron, OP, ChM, and Fr. Joe Cavoto, OFM, ChM.
When we arrived back at our hotels, we enjoyed our last lunch together before taking part in the second set of Reflections for all pilgrims. Although we were sitting in the same rooms with mostly the same groups of pilgrims as Saturday, today’s Reflections felt different. We came to a deeper understanding of our faith, of our journey to Lourdes, and our short yet impactful time here. Following Reflections, we had the opportunity to meet with our chaplains for one last time in the hotel chapels for continued, but more personal, spiritual reflection time.
This afternoon, a number of Knights, Dames, Auxiliary, and Volunteers made their way down to the Sanctuary for their reservation at the Baths. At the same time, members of the Voiture Team, our trusty charioteers, brought the signature blue voitures back to the Sanctuary for the last time. These voitures are what quite literally carried our beloved Malades throughout their Pilgrimage to Lourdes. And some deemed it a "minor miracle" because every voiture was returned on time.
The Reception on the Hotel Méditerranée's Balcony was bittersweet; and, we enjoyed one last evening together dining and reminiscing about our experiences over the last week. After dinner, we started the dreadful task of packing and making sure our Lourdes water was safe and secure for the trip home, before heading back downstairs for the Closing Festivities.
This last signature event of the pilgrimage is always guaranteed to bring a tear to your eye. We listened to Tom Reedy, KMOb, and Missy Reedy, DM, Pilgrimage Co-Hosts, thank everyone for joining them on the first pilgrimage to Lourdes since 2019. We heard from Mark Barrett, M, Pat Tursi, CG, and Arash Babaoff, MD, on their perspective attending the pilgrimage. President Peter Kelly, MD, GCM, presented Chancellor's Awards to Tom and Missy Reedy, Tony Gagliardi, MD, KM, Patti Hickey, ANP – BC, DM, FJ McCarthy, KMOb, and Ken Craig, KM. President Peter Kelly and his wife Linda Kelly, DM, were announced as the 2024 Lourdes Pilgrimage Co-Hosts. The evening ended with the traditional singing of "God Bless America" as we celebrated the very successful, long-awaited 35th Annual Pilgrimage to Lourdes.
While many of us are seasoned Lourdes Pilgrimage veterans, we witnessed many others take in the beauty of Lourdes for the very first time. We watched our Malades and their Caregivers open up over the last week, creating lifelong bonds with their pods and fellow teammates. Our processions to and from the Sanctuary each day brought a sense of calm over us as we marched together in prayer. We felt at home, in a place so far from home, with fellow members and Our Lady of Lourdes by our side.
Please keep all of the pilgrims in your prayers as we make our way back home tomorrow. Despite our departure being delayed by several hours, we look forward to the extra hour or two of sleep, or the opportunity to reflect on this year's pilgrimage, before we head back home.
Until then...
Our Lady of Lourdes, Pray for Us!
Saint Bernadette, Pray for Us!
Click here to view the Lourdes 2023 section of our website, where we will be sharing these daily updates, Mass recordings, photo galleries, Cardinal Dolan's updates, and more. Pilgrims can share these updates with family and friends back home so that they, too, can experience the beauty of Lourdes.
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