Aussie hospitality at its best – WYD pilgrims in HomeStay
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Canadian pilgrims: Ariel and Kayla
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Welcome BBQ at OLQP Greystanes
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World Youth Day (WYD) in Sydney has given Australian Catholics the opportunity to actively demonstrate their Christian hospitality. Up to 40,000 pilgrims are being billeted as part of the HomeStay program.
With up to 225,000 registered pilgrims in Sydney for WYD08, including 125,000 international visitors; the HomeStay program is helping to relieve some of the pressure from school and parish accommodation sites.
The Our Lady Queen of Peace parish, Greystanes has over 190 pilgrims being accommodated in homes throughout the parish; most of these are from Denmark and Dubai.
Sue Atkinson, a Greystanes parishioner and staff member of the Catholic Education Office Parramatta, has three pilgrims from Canada staying with her. Sue says that as a mother she felt it was important to offer the pilgrims a place to stay.
‘If I had a child going to another country for World Youth Day, I would want to know they had somewhere safe to go and that someone would be looking after them,’ said Sue.
The Greystanes parish officially welcomed the pilgrims staying in homes and school sites in the area on Monday 14 July, with a BBQ in the parish grounds. Parish priest, Fr Gerry Iverson, says he was overwhelmed by the generosity of parishioners who donated food for the event.
‘I think we have enough soup to feed the same large number of pilgrims for the next month! Everyone was extremely generous,’ said Fr Gerry.
Fr Gerry has been thoroughly impressed by the young pilgrims he has met, saying it is wonderful to have such vibrant young people visit the parish.
‘The pilgrims here are all very joyful and full of excitement; it is lovely to have them here. The kind of enthusiasm they have is sure to be contagious,’ Fr Gerry said.
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