Rev. Fr. Alwyn Furtado’s Celebration - 60 years as a priest
Fr. Alwyn celebrated his 60th anniversary as a Holy Ghost Father on Sunday July 7, 2024 at St. Dunstan Catholic Church, Millbrae, California.
Fr. Al was born in Zanzibar and after graduating from SJCS he left for Ireland to study for the priesthood.
After ordination he worked in many places which included Mombasa, Zanzibar and Pemba. Later, he was assigned to many parishes in the archdiocese of San Francisco, California.
The celebration was attended by his parishioners,people he had taken on pilgrimages and many friends from East Africa.
The Mass was followed by a reception.
From the attendance, I could see that Fr Al was much loved by the people whose lives he touched.
Anthony Antao
Tony Antao
3366. North Lake Drive
Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53211
414-444-0993
414-708-5775(Cell)
Please Click on the Video Clip below to view Fr. Alwyn's Celebrations
received via Zoom,
followed by photographs added below.
Please ignore blank screen below.
Below are some Congratulation messages received.
P.S. Some messages are missing due to a technical fault and will be added later. Apologies for this error. Anyone who wishes to post their Good wishes please send to this email: benny@benitodesouza.com
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On behalf of the Mendes Family “Congratulations Fr. Alwyn” Seems just like yesterday we were at the airport bidding you a farewell to Ireland on your way to becoming a priest.
60 years is a huge milestone.
Fr. we wish You all the best in the Years ahead Cheers and Gods Blessings to You Alwyn
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WOW 60 years already. Congratulations Father Alwyn, 50 years ago you commemorated our wedding in Dar es Salaam.
May you be showered with blessings from above.
Audrey Fernandes (nee Mendes)
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Fr. Alwyn - On behalf of all the Gonsalves Family,
Congratulations on the milestone anniversary of your ordination.
Wishing you a wonderful celebration of this special day.
And then, may you continue to be blessed in your retirement in Ireland.
Joanita Gonsalves Birkmeyer
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Hi Schoolmates
Les Gonsalves reminded me to post the picture of Father Alwyn saying Mass at our Mbave (Bave) Trip - so here it is
Father Alwyn saying Mass at our Most Memorable Mbave (Bave) trip
Unforgettable - we were very lucky to have been part of that trip
Here is Alwyn Mendes's narration of our Bave trip that he posted on our SJCSZANZIBAR Google Forum a while back
"Narrated by Alwyn Mendes
Our Bave Island trip, I found a pic of Father Alwyn saying mass on the Beach.
It was the first Bave Island week-long trip, and here are a few things I remember about this memorable holiday.
Sunny Dourado brought along his full Army fatigue, complete with a huge dagger and scabath attached to his belt. On the second day he took off alone to discover the Island and claimed he was going to see if there were any infiltrators, so he packed his gear and decided to walk along the perimeter of the island, it took about 90 minutes to complete the trek. Sunny came back with no hostages.
Here’s where he got his nickname “Commando”
The Sorpotel wasn’t stolen on this trip as we had Fr. Alwyn with us, and the Commando himself guarding the Post.
We had another incident where Anthony Nazareth walked off a rock as his eye glasses fell off, we watched the glasses fall into the ocean, and slowly disappear into the ocean. He was safe but we never found the glasses…. I think.
Here’s an incident that I will never forget, one morning we were all lazing around when in the distance we saw one of our mates walking along the beach,…. Naked as a Jay Bird, however he wasn’t totally nude, he had a pair of white running shoes we called Keds, a white hat, one that Cricketers wore, complete with a white towel under his arms, he claimed he was looking for a spot to sunbathe. He was darker than molasses but insisted on getting some sun.
that’s all I can recall from this trip. I have no idea how we survived, as there were no mobile phones to communicate with anyone, I’m not sure we even had a boat to get back in case of an emergency.
Cheers All, Take care and Stay safe
Alwyn"
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Congratulations Dear Fr Alwyn on your wonderful anniversary. My mind immediately flew back to the time at Bawe island and the morning mass with Madhu and I (the non-catholics) preparing breakfast. God Bless you. Khurshed Madon
Sent from my iPhone
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Thank you for all you did for my mom.❤️
Meg
On Friday, June 14, 2024, 7:57 PM, Thomas Meiklejohn <meiklejohn@sbcglobal.net> wrote:
Congratulations! On behalf of all the Pereira’s
We send our love.
Stay well and God bless you for your service and dedication.
Meg (Pereira) Meiklejohn
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Dear Fr Al On behalf of of my wife I would like to congratulate you on your 60th Anniversary You celebrated the 10th Anniversary of Tanzanite in Toronto I have a lot of video memories of your visits to Toronto Arnold and Odette --
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On Friday, June 14, 2024 at 02:44:21 PM CDT, Alwyn Mendes <alwynmendes22@gmail.com> wrote:
On behalf of the Mendes Family “Congratulations Fr. Alwyn”
Seems just like yesterday we were at the airport bidding you a farewell to Ireland on your way to becoming a priest.
60 years is a huge milestone. Fr. we wish You all the best in the Years ahead Cheers and Gods Blessings to You
Alwyn
Audrey Fernandes wrote:
WOW 60 years already. Congratulations Father Alwyn, 50 years ago you commemorated our wedding in Dar es Salaam. May you be showered with blessings from above.
Audrey Fernandes (nee Mendes)
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WOW 60 years already. Congratulations Father Alwyn, 50 years ago you commemorated our wedding in Dar es Salaam. May you be showered with blessings from above. Audrey Fernandes (nee Mendes) Sent from my iPhone --
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Congratulations Rev. Fr. Alwyn, on your 60th Anniversary of spiritual stewardship.
May God continue to bless you abundantly.
Best wishes,
Claude.
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My dear friend and classmate Fr. Alwyn,
Wish you God’s blessings on your 60th anniversary to the Priesthood, may He shower you with His Love and Kindness So glad we were able to be with you for your 40th and then your 50th anniversaries, and we enjoyed the Best Car Drive ever, starting in Orlando and driving through nine States to get to you, which of course included the magic Route 66, never to be forgotten. For your 50th anniversary we started in Chicago (start of Route 66), having spent the day with Anthony Antao. We took in Louisville (my greatest hero’s home, Cassius Clay) followed by Graceland, then through many States and finally the Grand Canyon, and onto you. I have vivid and wonderful memories of the time we spent together on “Our Tropical, Paradise, Spice Island” in the Sun. All those bike rides, fishing trips, madafus, and of course our wonderful Class in 1955 Sadly, we are unable to be with you in person this time, but we are certainly with you in spirit God bless you always.
Kweheri rafiki Francis
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Dear Fr Alwyn,
Congratulations on your 60th anniversary of priesthood!
I miss those visits you made to my mom’s place in Edwardsville and even more so my visits to you when you were assigned to parishes in the San Francisco area. Remember the fresh fish you caught and had that restaurant cook it for us.
It has been many years since we were in touch.
I wish you all the best, God’s eternal Blessings.
Sincerely
Grig Pereira
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CONGRATULATIONS Fr Al 👏👏👏
60 Years Service 👌
Well Done! 👍
Here,s to many more to come🙌
Enjoy the accolades and the celebrations 🤗
Love & Best Wishes
Karpal Aujla wrote:
Well done FR Alwyn! The next 60 will be a whole lot easier! Trust me.
On the attachment below is an image when FR Loyd was in town. He held a
service in Richmond BC. He insisted that I attend for I had humongous
outstanding amounts of sins that needed to be cleared off the slate.
All I can say is that FR Loyd was good at his craft.
Do get in touch with me if and when you are in my neck of the woods.
Incidentally, how is your brother Lenny?
Kwahayri.
Karpal.
===============
To: sjcszanzibar@googlegroups.com; Arnold Mendes;
13/06/2024 19:15
Arnold,
I know your parents cherished that statue. This from Pop's 2010 funeral service "Ode to Pop" by Les.
"Pop was a very religious man, devout to the Blessed Virgin with the daily rosary he said with Artie since the first day they were married. He was also very passionate to St. Anthony. He hosted many a feast day at St Anthony’s Chapel in Machui, Zanzibar. In their home today, there is a miraculous statue of St. Anthony that was salvaged from a fire in Portugal, and to the last days, Pop never failed to touch the statue of St. Anthony in reverence, hope, love, and devotion. I am sure, until his last days of consciousness, he continued to pray to St. Anthony, not just for himself but for us all."
Several years ago, the Mendes Clan 'hosted' the celebrations at Machui in honor of your parents. Photos/videos posted on our old school site. I can't recall which one of you carried the statue at the end of the church service. Perhaps you can repost the pictures.
To the best of my memory, maybe a few other Zanzibaris hosted this feast in all the years. I would have expected Zanzibaris to have hosted the first celebrations in this new brick church with spanking new pews.
Ed Antao and his daughter, and Astrid will be there this time. Waiting to see pictures of the events.
John Desilva wrote:
Have fond memories of this blessed statue of St.Anthony. Was very curious of its whereabouts. So glad you have it Arnold God Bless You
John
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Hi Fr. Alwyn congratulations on serving Our Lord for 60 years, carry on and hope you will be Blessed to serve Our Lord for many more years to come.
Regards 🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻
Sent from my iPad
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Congratulations ‘One and All.’ Proud of you. God bless. Your good works are written in heaven, Zanzibar and around the world with much admiration and love.
Asante sana WADUGU wote.
Yvette
Sent: Friday, June 14th 2024, 12:36
Subject: Re: Congratulations on your 6oth year of service. Wow that's a lot of wine.
Hi Fr. Alwyn congratulations on serving Our Lord for 60 years, carry on and hope you will be Blessed to serve Our Lord for many more years to come.
Regards 🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻
Sent from my iPad
Juliette Crunden wrote:
CONGRATULATIONS Fr Al 👏👏👏
60 Years Service 👌
Well Done! 👍
Here,s to many more to come🙌
Enjoy the accolades and the celebrations 🤗
Love & Best Wishes
Karpal Aujla wrote:
Well done FR Alwyn! The next 60 will be a whole lot easier! Trust me.
On the attachment below is an image when FR Loyd was in town. He held a
service in Richmond BC. He insisted that I attend for I had humongous
outstanding amounts of sins that needed to be cleared off the slate.
All I can say is that FR Loyd was good at his craft.
Do get in touch with me if and when you are in my neck of the woods.
Incidentally, how is your brother Lenny?
Kwahayri.
Karpal.
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On behalf of the Mendes Family “Congratulations Fr. Alwyn” Seems just like yesterday we were at the airport bidding you a farewell to Ireland on your way to becoming a priest. 60 years is a huge milestone. Fr. we wish You all the best in the Years ahead Cheers and Gods Blessings to You Alwyn Sent from my iPad > On Jun 14, 2024, at 3:16 PM, Audrey Fernandes <audreyvfernandes@gmail.com> wrote: > > WOW 60 years already. Congratulations Father Alwyn, 50 years ago you commemorated our wedding in Dar es Salaam. May you be showered with blessings from above. > Audrey Fernandes (nee Mendes) > Sent from my iPhone > > --
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Hi Schoolmates
Les Gonsalves reminded me to post the picture of Father Alwyn saying Mass at our Mbave (Bave) Trip - so here it is
Father Alwyn saying Mass at our Most Memorable Mbave (Bave) trip
Unforgettable - we were very lucky to have been part of that trip
Here is Allwyn Mendes's narration of our Bave trip that he posted on our SJCSZANZIBAR Google Forum a while back
"Narrated by Alwyn Mendes
Our Bave Island trip, I found a pic of Father Alwyn saying mass on the Beach.
It was the first Bave Island week-long trip, and here are a few things I remember about this memorable holiday.
Sunny Dourado brought along his full Army fatigue, complete with a huge dagger and scabath attached to his belt. On the second day he took off alone to discover the Island and claimed he was going to see if there were any infiltrators, so he packed his gear and decided to walk along the perimeter of the island, it took about 90 minutes to complete the trek. Sunny came back with no hostages.
Here’s where he got his nickname “Commando”
The Sorpotel wasn’t stolen on this trip as we had Fr. Alwyn with us, and the Commando himself guarding the Post.
We had another incident where Anthony Nazareth walked off a rock as his eye glasses fell off, we watched the glasses fall into the ocean, and slowly disappear into the ocean. He was safe but we never found the glasses…. I think.
Here’s an incident that I will never forget, one morning we were all lazing around when in the distance we saw one of our mates walking along the beach,…. Naked as a Jay Bird, however he wasn’t totally nude, he had a pair of white running shoes we called Keds, a white hat, one that Cricketers wore, complete with a white towel under his arms, he claimed he was looking for a spot to sunbathe. He was darker than molasses but insisted on getting some sun.
that’s all I can recall from this trip. I have no idea how we survived, as there were no mobile phones to communicate with anyone, I’m not sure we even had a boat to get back in case of an emergency.
Cheers All, Take care and Stay safe
Alwyn"
= = = = = = = =
Congratulations Dear Fr Alwyn on your wonderful anniversary. My mind imm flew back to the time at Bawe island and the morning mass with Madhu and I (the non-catholics) preparing breakfast. God Bless you. Khurshed Madon
Sent from my iPhone
= = = = = = = =
Thank you for all you did for my mom.❤️
Meg
On Friday, June 14, 2024, 7:57 PM, Thomas Meiklejohn <meiklejohn@sbcglobal.net> wrote:
Congratulations! On behalf of all the Pereira’s
We send our love.
Stay well and God bless you for your service and dedication.
Meg (Pereira) Meiklejohn
= = = = = = =
Dear Fr Al On behalf of of my wife I would like to congratulate you on your 60th Anniversary You celebrated the 10th Anniversary of Tanzanite in Toronto I have a lot of video memories of your visits to Toronto Arnold and Odette --
= = = = = = = =
Fr. Alwyn - On behalf of all the Gonsalves Family, congratulations on the milestone anniversary of your ordination.
Wishing you a wonderful celebration of this special day.
And then, may you continue to be blessed in your retirement in Ireland.
Joanita Gonsalves Birkmeyer
Alwyn Mendes <alwynmendes22@gmail.com> wrote:
On behalf of the Mendes Family “Congratulations Fr. Alwyn”
Seems just like yesterday we were at the airport bidding you a farewell to Ireland on your way to becoming a priest.
60 years is a huge milestone. Fr. we wish You all the best in the Years ahead Cheers and Gods Blessings to You
Alwyn
Sent from my iPad
Audrey Fernandes wrote:
WOW 60 years already. Congratulations Father Alwyn, 50 years ago you commemorated our wedding in Dar es Salaam. May you be showered with blessings from above.
Audrey Fernandes (nee Mendes)
WOW 60 years already. Congratulations Father Alwyn, 50 years ago you commemorated our wedding in Dar es Salaam. May you be showered with blessings from above. Audrey Fernandes (nee Mendes) Sent from my iPhone --
==========
Congratulations Rev. Fr. Alwyn, on your 60th Anniversary of spiritual stewardship.
May God continue to bless you abundantly.
Best wishes,
Claude.
= = = = = = =
My dear friend and classmate Fr. Alwyn, Wish you God’s blessings on your 60th anniversary to the Priesthood, may He shower you with His Love and Kindness So glad we were able to be with you for your 40th and then your 50th anniversaries, and we enjoyed the Best Car Drive ever, starting in Orlando and driving through nine States to get to you, which of course included the magic Route 66, never to be forgotten. For your 50th anniversary we started in Chicago (start of Route 66), having spent the day with Anthony Antao. We took in Louisville (my greatest hero’s home, Cassius Clay) followed by Graceland, then through many States and finally the Grand Canyon, and onto you. I have vivid and wonderful memories of the time we spent together on “Our Tropical, Paradise, Spice Island” in the Sun. All those bike rides, fishing trips, madafus, and of course our wonderful Class in 1955 Sadly, we are unable to be with you in person this time, but we are certainly with you in spirit God bless you always Kweheri rafiki Francis
Sent from my iPad
= = = = = = = = =
Dear Fr Alwyn,
Congratulations on your 60th anniversary of priesthood!
I miss those visits you made to my mom’s place in Edwardsville and even more so my visits to you when you were assigned to parishes in the San Francisco area. Remember the fresh fish you caught and had that restaurant cook it for us.
It has been many years since we were in touch.
I wish you all the best, God’s eternal Blessings.
Sincerely
Grig Pereira
= = = = = = =
CONGRATULATIONS Fr Al 👏👏👏
60 Years Service 👌
Well Done! 👍
Here,s to many more to come🙌
Enjoy the accolades and the celebrations 🤗
Love & Best Wishes
= = = = = = = = = =
Karpal Aujla wrote:
Well done FR Alwyn! The next 60 will be a whole lot easier! Trust me.
On the attachment below is an image when FR Loyd was in town. He held a
service in Richmond BC. He insisted that I attend for I had humongous
outstanding amounts of sins that needed to be cleared off the slate.
All I can say is that FR Loyd was good at his craft.
Do get in touch with me if and when you are in my neck of the woods.
Incidentally, how is your brother Lenny?
Kwahayri.
Karpal.
===============
It was a privilege and honor to be attending Fr Alwyn 60 th anniversary ordination mass.
The service was well attended, the homily took us down memory lane and to top it off, Fr sang Malaika
to the surprise of us all. Of course nothing compared to the tropical setting of Bave island
Thanks for the wonderful memories Fr Alwyn ,may God bless you always, staying healthy to carry on the Lords work
Keep us all in your prayers
GREG
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Dear Fr Alwyn
Congratulations!
May The Good Lord shower you with his Heavenly Graces and Blessings for your devotion of 60 years in the priestly ministry.
Love and God bless
Alexander Annabella Fernandes
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Hi Johnny,
Great hearing from you. You know, it was your class of standard six that made me fall in love with teaching forevermore. Ha.
I forgot to mention, in my salute, the wonderful priests, namely Fr. Stanley de Souza, Fr. Richard de Lord, Fr. Lloyd Rebeiro, and Fr. Alwyn Furtado who is celebrating 60 years as a priest, all our confreres and products of SJCSZ and the Spiritans, for their marvellous contribution to our Faith in answering the call to GOYE AFAR. Congratulations and blessings to them all. I am ever so proud. Bless them.
I’m glad you have that hymn still in your heart. We could never forget it. Could we?
God bless and much love,
Yvette
Greetings and blessings once more. It looks like summer has arrived . Hallelujah!
This past week my heart has been stirred by wonderful news from Zanzibar my once idyllic land of abode and never forgotten life in this paradise island in the Indian Ocean, until 1964 when a coup d’état changed the history of Zanzibar and most of the Goans left Zanzibar , to find abode in countries around the world. I had by then left Zanzibar for studied abroad. Those who stayed behind after the Revolution were so brave and followed the teachings of the Holy Ghost Fathers from Ireland, and the Precious Blood Sisters from Germany, all of them our teachers and our mentors at The Holy Ghost Cathedral , our church, and St Joseph’s convent School ; and also our beloved parents who hailed from Goa where St Thomas the Apostle and St. Francis Xavier had brought Christianity in 70AD and the 1500’s.
It is these wonderful Goans who stayed behind that I am most honoured to be saluting in this most inadequate writing. Bless you All. They, since 1964 , took up their cross and followed it par excellence, and kept their God - given Faith , being true to the calling of Jesus to be His true disciples. . . .’ Salute , mes amis! Salute! ‘ What did they do? THEY BUILT A CHURCH!!!
What am I saluting? The enclosed’machuiproject.blogspot.’ from Anthony Antao , says it All.’ With the help of donations from relatives and friends who had left Zanzibar in 1964, these wonderful people built a church , deep in the forest of Josani in a place called Machui. … following the true essence of that Holy Ghost anthem we all learnt growing up in Zanzibar:-
GO YE AFAR
Go Ye afar,
Go teach all nations,
Bear witness unto me.
On earth in ev’ry clime,
And I with you shall be,
Until the end of time.
Congratulations Tony Antao and all of the Zanzibar Goans who helped in this project. You have made us most proud and most grateful to have once been a part of that beautiful island eons ago. Congrats. You have honoured those Priests and Nuns who are blessing you in heaven today, so many years later. WE ARE ALL PROUD OF YOU. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. Proud to be Goan. Proud to be Catholic. Keep up the great work and God bless. Lots of love and blessings to All.
And whilst we celebrate this wonderful event, let us not forget the parishes that are sadly closing down [e’en as I am writing this, ] their churches around the world , near and afar, and let each of us keep Jesus close to our hearts evermore. Sadly, today a church in Cape Breton [dubbed God’s Country] is closing down and I am heart-broken. I don’t know why this story of the two churches has captured my mind so totally. I was awakened at 2.00am this morning by this note that was writing and writing non-stop in my mind. So here it is, signed, sealed and delivered.
Please pray with me . Ta.
God bless.
All my love.
Yvette de Souza-Muise.
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Dear Fr. Alwyn,
Congratulations on your 60th anniversary of priesthood!
We share great memories of our everlasting friendship going back to our school days where you were the first to enjoy spearfishing with me and the late Wellington Almeida. (Some diving photographs added to the special blogspot created for you).
Look forward to meeting up in the near future.
Love - Benny & Betty
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