Gabriella House, a new building that will serve as a formation house for the Daughters of St. Paul of Nairobi, was made possible thanks to revenues from the book, Raggio di sole (Sunbeam), written by various persons who knew Sr. Gabriella Marcazzan.
The book is a collection of testimonies, essays and stories that recount the personal and apostolic life of this Pauline sister, who worked as a missionary in Japan and Taiwan–a sister who felt very fulfilled in her vocation and who dedicated her life to serving others. Sr. Gabriella died in March 2005 following a long battle with cancer. Sunbeam, the title of the book, is the name the Japanese FSPs gave to Sr. Gabriella when she arrived in their country.
The project to build a formation house for our young sisters of Africa and Pakistan dates back to 1995, the year in which the FSP East Africa Delegation received permission to purchase a plot of land near the Catholic University of Kenya and other Institutes of higher learning. And today that dream has come true. The whole FSP community of Nairobi gathered to say farewell and offer their best wishes to the 10 junior professed sisters making the move along with Sr. Yvonne, who will be in charge of the community. All the young sisters rejoice that Gabriella House is finally ready because it is very convenient to the schools where they are taking courses in philosophy, theology and spirituality.
The new house will also be a center of apostolic activity, since it will include a book center to serve the many students and religious institutes in the area. A large conference room attached to the book center will be used for meetings and cultural activities, especially the promotion of African women. Our whole East Africa Delegation fervently thanks the Lord and all the people whose generous support helped to make this dream come true.