(ANS – Salzburg) – The Salesians of Don Bosco in the Guardian Angels Province of Austria have communicated with deep sorrow the passing of their confrere Bishop Alois Kothgasser, Bishop Emeritus of Salzburg. The Salesian prelate died last Thursday, 22 February 2024, in his apartment in the Salzburg seminary, in the presence of his closest family members, the seminarians he had accompanied as pastor, and the Metropolitan Archbishop of Salzburg, Archbishop Franz Lackner, OFM, who expressed his deep sadness at the death of Bishop Kothgasser, but also his great gratitude for the "model of meekness" of this "human-centred bishop".

(ANS - Madrid) - Piero Fabris, the Executive Director of Don Bosco Tech Europe, had the honour of representing the Salesian Congregation as a keynote speaker at the Spanish National Congress "La Iglesia en la Educacion", promoted by the Spanish Episcopal Conference On 24 February 2024, at the Madrid Trade Fair Institute (IFEMA).

(ANS – Livorno) – At the proposal of the Mayor of Livorno, Luca Salvetti, Salesian Fr Gigi Zoppi will climb the steps of the Civic Palace in the city on 19 March 2024 to receive the honour of the City of Livorno, reserved for people, groups, associations that have contributed to giving impetus and vitality to the city through their personal virtue and dedication, with concrete works in the field of civics, social, culture, sciences, work, school, sport.

(ANS – Freetown) – Youth at Don Bosco Fambul in Freetown, one of Sierra Leone’s leading child-welfare organizations, have a new chapel thanks to donor funding from Salesian Missions, the U.S. development arm of the Salesians of Don Bosco. Don Bosco Fambul provides a range of programs to support youth who are living on the streets, girls who have faced sexual abuse, young women who have been forced into prostitution and youth in trouble with the law.

(ANS – Abidjan) – In the humble suburb on the outskirts of Koumassi, near the Capital of Ivory Coast, Abidjan, a group of 236 young women began their professional training at the Marie Dominique Center of the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians, thus opening a path towards a better future.