St. Joe’s campaign against child soldiers gains dozens of new handprints
August 23, 2010 Leave a comment
Fr. Richard Kelly was one of dozens of people to dip their hands into red paint after Sunday mass, in order to speak out against the deployment of child soldiers. The Coalition to Stop the Use of Child Soldiers has long been calling on governments to speak out against the use of children in war zones and also aims to demobilize and re-integrate into civil society all those who have been recruited to fight in military conflicts.
Fr. Richard Kelly after mass at St. Joseph's Parish (August 22, 2010)
Fr. Richard contributed his own handprint right after mass, while cautiously inquiring about how easily the paint would come off. The campaign’s young representative reassured him that the red paint would vanish easily, to which Fr. Richard remarked that if it did not, then St. Joe’s parishioners would have to put up with his red hands during mass for the next several months. The St. Joe’s campaign against child soldiers posted dozens of red handprints from children and adults alike along the church’s walls. One copy of each handprint will eventually be sent to the Government of Canada, as part of this campaign. Our church’s doors are open each weekday until 5pm, so feel free to drop by and check them out. The handprints are located on the left-hand wall, as you walk in through the main doors.
