Saipan Simbang Gabi Group former chairman and this year’s event coordinator Eddie Caranzo said they have finalized the activities during a meeting on Wednesday.
Despite the economic crunch, he said they expect to see more Catholic faithful joining the Mass that starts at 4 a.m.
This year, he said, will be the 33rd Simbang Gabi on island since their group started observing this Filipino tradition in 1977.
Originally, the Mass at dawn was celebrated at Mt. Carmel Cathedral only, but eventually other churches also participated, he added.
In previous years, light breakfast was served after each Mass. This year, food will be served on Dec. 19 only.
The annual event is also a fundraising for the “Adopt-A-School-Project in the Philippines.
The Saipan Simbang Gabi Group, incorporated as a non-profit corporation in Aug. 2009, operates as an independent CNMI non-profit group. It has already helped several schools in depressed areas in the Philippines.
This year, Caranzo said, their group’s objective is to raise $6,000 to implement school projects in Labnig, Albay on the northern island of Luzon; in Borongan, Eastern Samar, part of the central islands of the Visayas; and Lagunglong, Misamis Oriental, on the southern island of Mindanao.
Caranzo said they already have secured commitments from different individuals and business establishments in the CNMI.
Their group, he added, coordinates with the Philippine Overseas Labor Office on Saipan in identifying the beneficiaries of their fund drives.
“Our nine coordinators will again humbly ask for the community’s undying generosity and unselfish support for our noble objectives,” Mar Pacson, Simbang Gabi chairman, said.
Pacson said the donations will be used for different projects that will “impact the lives of our needy brothers and sisters in Christ.”
This year’s coordinators are the United Filipino Organization and the Philippine Consulate General on Dec. 16; Mar Pacson and Lions Club, Dec. 17; Rommel and Raquel Mostales, Dec. 18; Vir and Alice Abueme, Dec. 19; Eddie and Helen Caranzo, Dec. 20; Celia Pagapular and Charlene Valle, Dec. 21; Malou Mendoza and Linda Torres, Dec. 22; Maribel Loste and Nory Pamintuan, Dec. 23; and Nenette Delos Santos and Rene Atienza, Dec. 24.
Olive Yana, UFO president, encourages community members to continue supporting the Simbang Gabi event.
According to Paul Madriaga, “Christmas is just around the corner and Simbang Gabi is about to start. I would like to appeal to all of you to share your blessings by donating some cash and sponsor one Simbang Gabi Mass from Dec 16 to 24. Sponsors/donors will be mentioned before the Mass begins.”
On the last Mass of the Simbang Gabi, which is Christmas Eve, all coordinators will participate in the offertory, Caranzo said.
