The Diocese of Broome has this week issued an urgent call to Perth Catholics to volunteer in various towns across the diocese.

The Diocese of Broome provides essential services to a number of Aboriginal communities, but due to COVID-19 border restrictions, interstate volunteers are unable to enter Western Australia.

In pre-COVID times, 70 per cent of volunteers working in the Diocese across the Kimberley have come from interstate.

At present, six volunteers are urgently needed in two different locations.

The first entry in the baptismal register for Beagle Bay is for Felix’s baby, Maria Norengbor.  During August 1896, 12 Nyul Nyul men were prepared by Fr Alphonse and baptised with great solemnity at Beagle Bay by Abbott Ambrose.  Each retained his traditional names, but took as baptismal name, that of one of the trappist monks (Sebastian, Joseph etc).  From this time on baptisms were recorded regularly both at Beagle Bay and Disaster Bay Missions.

Jacqui Remond and Shirley Quaresimin caught up after Mass last weekend. Shirley is a Member for the Diocese of Broome and represents the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Catholic Commission. Jacqui, who with her family are former Broome parishioners, has the vital role of coordinating the engagement of women Members of the Plenary Council across Australia, a task which takes her far and wide.