Adelaide, Australia, May 4, 2008 / 14:46 pm
A flying priest is leading a squadron of 15 pilots in a 4,600-mile flight around Australia to raise funds for World Youth Day pilgrims and to raise awareness about the plight of East Timor.
According to the Southern Cross newspaper, Father John Fowles’ “fly-a-thon” is expected to raise almost $500,000 through donations and sales of a CD titled “Earth Angels Care.” Proceeds will be used to send 10 young East Timorese pilgrims to World Youth Day 2008 in Sydney, while the rest of the donations will go towards projects in East Timor, with orphanages being a priority.
“To these Timorese, the possibility of sharing such a day with the youth of the world is only a dream,” Father Fowles told The Southern Cross. “Fly Away to Heaven hopes to make this dream a reality.
“We are quite complacent in this country. We are not short of anything. I’ve always had that missionary zeal to do something for those less fortunate than ourselves.”