Tampa: MHC Joins the Don Bosco Green Alliance

By Chioma Okoye, Director of Communications, Mary Help of Christians Center, Tampa, FL

(Tampa, FL – September 6) – This past summer, Mary Help of Christians (MHC) Tampa joined the Don Bosco Green Alliance. This proactive initiative strives to make environmental improvements in local Salesian works and houses across the world.

At MHC Tampa, we are constantly surrounded by God’s beauty in creation. We are located on a beautiful 140-acre lakeside property that includes Mary Has a Little Farm, among many other ministries. It is our privilege to participate in this movement that will create a better future for our young people.

As Catholic Christians, we are called to be participants in the ecological changes needed for our hurting world. In Pope Francis’ Encyclical, Laudato Si', we hear about the importance of not only preserving the goodness of nature, but also how we as Christians play an active role in the environment itself: "Living our vocation to be protectors of God’s handiwork is essential to a life of virtue; it is not an optional or secondary aspect of our Christian experience" (#217).

In response to this encyclical and as a member of the Don Bosco Green Alliance, there have been a few green changes around MHC Tampa lately:

• Styrofoam coffee cups have been replaced by paper cups that are unbleached, recyclable, and eco-friendly.
• Roughly 130 new trees have been planted across our 140-acre property.
• We are working to replace all lights with LED lighting.

Although these are just a few changes, we will continue to respond to future environmental needs as part of creating a better and greener tomorrow.

References:
"Laudato Si' "(24 May 2015): Francis, 18 June 2015, https://www.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/encyclicals/documents/papa-francesco_20150524_enciclica-laudato-si.html

“Don Bosco Green Alliance.” Don Bosco Green Alliance, https://www.donboscogreen.org/home

To learn more about the Don Bosco Green Alliance and how you can get involved, please check out their website.