Annual Diocesan Mass for the Pioneer Total Abstinence Association
Pioneers from various parts of the Derry diocese recently gathered with family and friends in St Columb’s Church, in the city’s Waterside, for the annual Diocesan Mass for the Pioneer Total Abstinence Association. Fr Francis Bradley, the diocesan administrator, concelebrated the Mass with fellow Pioneers, Fr John Downey, spiritual director for the Derry PTAA, and Fr Peter O’Kane, director of the Diocesan Pastoral Centre. In his homily, Fr Bradley said: “By professing our faith and remaining faithful to our pledge as pioneers, we keep our minds clean and so we are able to respond to the needs of those overlooked in society’s rush for progress.”
At the end of the ceremony, Fr Bradley presented Charles McLaughlin, of the Waterside Pioneer Centre, with a gold medal for his 50 years membership of the PTAA.
