Ecuador – July 2024 - The National Meeting of the Salesian University Association (ASU) took place on the El Girón and South Quito campuses of the Salesian Polytechnic University (UPS) involving some 300 young people belonging to the delegations from Guayaquil, Cuenca and Quito. This event, which last took place in 2018, is significant for the integration, formation and consolidation of ASU's identity. The welcome ceremony was attended by Fr Juan Cárdenas, Rector of UPS, the vice-rectors of the three campuses, as well as professors, faculty directors and group leaders. During his speech, Fr Cardenas stressed that the University is not only a physical infrastructure, but is embodied in each of its students; the UPS is also these spaces of fraternity and commitment. One of the central aims of the meeting was to promote the integration of students participating in the ASU in the University, through various formation activities based on the theme of the Rector Major's Strenna 2024. From this document, a methodology was proposed with group workshops that encouraged reflection. One of the central activities was the exhibition of the five areas of the ASU: academic, socio-political, communication, cultural and sports. The animators and members of each area set up several stands where they shared the activities they carry out in each of the locations and invited more university students to join these proposals. The event also offered spaces for prayer and an encounter with God.

Lima, Peru – July 2024 - With the words "Thank you for making our Province a living presence of Don Bosco", Fr Juan Pablo Alcas, Provincial of the Salesians of Peru, thanked the young people, parishioners and members of the Salesian Family who gathered in the Basilica of Mary Help of Christians to celebrate the Feast of Thanksgiving 2024. It was a special day, full of joy and gratitude, where the Salesians who left a profound mark on Peruvian works, such as the Servant of God Fr Luis Bolla and Fr Ugo de Censi, were also remembered. Before the conclusion of the Eucharist, an artistic commemorative plaque was unveiled in the Basilica of Mary Help of Christians in Lima as a tribute to Bishop Octavio Ortiz Arrieta (Lima, 1878 - Chachapoyas, 1958). The plaque, which bears a medallion with the portrait of Bishop Ortiz Arrieta, was unveiled by Fr Alcas and Bishop Alberto Lorenzelli, SDB, Auxiliary Bishop of Santiago de Chile, to the applause of tco-workers. This plaque was made following the suggestion of the Postulator General of the Salesian Congregation, Fr Pierluigi Cameroni, expressed during his recent visit to Peru, to erect a memorial in memory of Bishop Ortiz Arrieta in all the Salesian houses where he worked and developed something significant. The celebration continued in the auditorium of the Breña Youth Centre where, in addition to members of the Salesian Family, the students of the Salesian schools in Lima and Callao were present. They offered the Provincial a pledge to be  "Don Bosco Today".

Cartago, Costa Rica - July 2024 – The Salesian Family, the children from the oratories and the young people in the Salesian Youth Movement in Costa Rica went on pilgrimage to the Basilica of Our Lady of the Angels on Saturday 13 July, as part of their annual visit to the Church of the Patroness of the Country. The pilgrims began their journey from the Plaza Mayor in the city of Carthage. Along the way they prayed the rosary and sang songs to Mary. Upon arrival in the Basilica square, an official photograph was taken and the visit to the historical spaces of the place was made. The event ended with the Eucharist, presided over by Fr Julio Navarro Mora, SDB, Provincial of the Salesians of Central America.