Day 1: Arrival to Galilee

by Steve Ray on April 12, 2011




Everything went well today. The group arrived, half on Delta and half on El Al. Most of the pilgrims are from the Phoenix diocese with Fr. Rob Clemons, famous for doing the TV Mass every week. Joe Reynolds, my videographer for Footprints of God is also here doing a video for the Catholic TV station in Phoenix Arizona.

All arrived safely with only one suitcase lost. We have a great group of people including Jerry Usher of Catholic Radio fame who will be doing daily live reports on Sonrise on EWTN. I will join him.

We are all settled in at Ron Beach Hotel on the shore of Galilee and everyone is asleep getting rested for a busy day tomorrow at Mount Tabor (Mount of the Transfiguration), renewal of Wedding Vows in Cana of Galilee, lunch and Mass in Nazareth. We will have Mass at the Grotto of the Annunciation.

Please leave a Comment (under the video) for your family and friends and I will read them daily on the bus!!!



16 Comments

  • Lauren, Martha, Louise, Therese and John Paul says:

    Hi Mom and Dad ( Laurie and Chris Lapain),
    We had a good day today! The weather is still warm and sunny but just a bit cool. John Paul really wanted to wear shorts today but we had to convince him that it was cold so we made him go outside with his shorts on. He soon changed after that. Martha woke up and made it to the bus on time and she didn’t have to walk to Leamington! LOL! Louise, Therese,John Paul and Lauren got ready so fast that we were ready to go to mass at 7:45am! Fr. Larry prayed for you as you journey on your pilgrimage with Steve.
    Guess what! Mr. Ouellette has a punching bag in his room with a water base. It fell over and Martha with her ‘strong muscles’ lifted it all by herself! There was a bucket of water next to it and Martha broke it in the process and made a mess of the classroom. And she got to press the easy button for getting perfect on her science quiz!Louise had an okay day. She didn’t really like her trumpet class today or just about any day. Therese had an awesome day and brought home an assignment yesterday that got a level 4! She said she really didn’t learn anything. Mr. Chambers, the new VP, came into John’s class and read a story about the human race, kindness and all that. In gym, Mr. Chambers had the class make the word goodness using their bodies as the letters and then they played hockey, basketball and hold chickens between their legs. Lauren broke a record for writing her Sign Language final in 10 minutes and got an A on her paper about Ritalin. Now if only she can concentrate on studying for the rest of her finals! Grandma B said to say hello and she is praying for you. Her knees were a bit sore today!
    We (kinda) miss you guys!
    With all of our love and prayers,
    Your kids
    PS. Zetterberg is out for at least the first two games with a left knee injury and we will text you with all your playoff hockey updates.
    PPS. The lasagna was killer. We inhaled it.

  • Yvonne Pastore says:

    Hello Holy Pilgrims! Greetings from Gilbert, AZ! Our family is so blessed for you all to be there in the Holy Land! We are praying for you all as you visit all those beautiful places! Thank you to Steve Ray and his wife for taking you all on such a journey! What a gift! Please tell Bob and Alice Lopez, our parents, and grandparents not to worry, we will take all the cars out for a spin to keep them working well while you are gone! 😉 Oh, and tell them that we love them very much! Thank you, and Shalom~ Yvonne Pastore

  • Marci Schwartz says:

    Hello to everyone, I hope that you are having a wonderful and enriching experience. To the love of my life Allen Davis, I have yet to really see you on the video so I hope that you are safe and try to get in a couple of camera shots so that I can see your smile and know that you are well. It looks like everyone is going to have such a wonderful time and the weather looks beautiful. Send my prayers and love to the Holy Land. Wish I was there next to you Allen and know that you are thought of and missed.

    Love- Marci

  • Dawn & David Gillet says:

    Hi Mom (Jane Thomas)

    Glad to see you made it there safe and sound. It was actually kinda cool seeing you on video. Hey for such a long trip you looked pretty good. Have a great time and I will continue to follow along.

    Luv Ya,

    Dawn & David

  • Dawn & David Gillet says:

    Hi Mom (Jane Thomas)

    Glad to see you made it there safe and sound. It was kinda cool seeing you on video. Hey for such a long trip you actually looked pretty good. Have a great time and I will continue to follow along.

    Luv Ya,

    Dawn & David

  • Dawn & David Gillet says:

    Hi Mom (Jane Thomas)

    Glad to see you made it there safe and sound. It was kinda cool seeing you on video. Hey for such a long trip you actually looked good. Have fun and I will continue to follow along.

    Luv Ya,

    Dawn & David

  • Steve,

    Heard you this morning on Relevant radio as you talked with Sean Herriott outside the Church of the Ascension. Made we wish we were back there with you and your new group. Trish and I were with you in Feb. of this year with Fr. Shane et al.
    Please tell all the pilgrims to pinch themselves every day and savor each moment–it goes by quickly. We are so grateful we went on the pilgimmage with you and Janet and look forward to going on another one next year.

    Prayers and blessings to all,
    Jim

  • Gina Rayer says:

    Hi Mom (Karen Rodinis),

    It is so nice to see you and Jane on the video! I feel a whole lot better seeing you both there safe and smiling! Wow, everything looks amazing so far. This is so great to be able to watch you as you venture on this pilgrimage. I almost feel like I’m there with you. I hope that you enjoy yourself tremendously. I will continue to pray for you all. I look forward to the next video!

    Love you!
    Gina, Phil, Austin and Amber

  • Karen & Ray says:

    Susan & Terry: We’re watching you so be good! Praying for a safe trip. Miss you and love you.

  • Karen & Ray says:

    Hi Susan & Terry Moore: We’re watching you so be good! Praying for a safe trip. Love you and miss you, Karen and Ray

  • Tine and Gene says:

    Sue and Terry,

    We are enjoying seeing you and sharing with you. Hugs and prayers…

    Gene and Tine

  • Dawn & David Gillet says:

    Hi Mom (Jane),

    Are you and Aunt Karen enjoying yourselves as much as I am just watching the videos. It really makes it feel as though I’m there with you, but I can only imagine what you are experiencing. Glad you had the opportunity to be involved in this journey. Got to thank Steve & Janet for our opportunity to following along with you. I even have Melissa sitting with me watching the videos. Take care and our thoughts and prayers are with you always.

    Luv Ya,

    Dawn, David & Melissa

  • Karen Williams says:

    Hi Amy,

    Have a wonderful trip! I couldn’t help but noticed your huge smile on the video when you arrived. Your just glowing! Must be something to do with the “HOLY LAND!” I will look forward to watching the videos, I am there in spirit with you. Praying for you & the group. Stay safe!

    Peace,
    Karen

  • Bill Alm says:

    Please tell Joe and Sylvia hello from the Alm family in Florida! We love you guys and the trip looks wonderful. Happy Palm Sunday! Savanah wants to “do lunch” with you in Israel.
    Love you all!
    Hugs & Blessings,
    Bill & the kids

  • Jennie, Tim, Madison and Jackson Moore says:

    Grandma and Pop Pop,

    We hope you are having a great time, it looks wonderful!! We really miss you and can’t wait for you to get home, enjoy!!

    Love,
    Jennie, Tim, Madison and Jackson

  • Jennie, Tim, Madison and Jackson Moore says:

    Grandma and Pop Pop,

    WE LOVE YOU!!!!

    Love,
    Jennie, Tim, Madison and Jackson

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