Pope meets with family who drove 13,000 miles to see him

[Omaha Steve]

Source: AP

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Pope Francis met Sunday with a family who made a 13,000-mile trip over 194 days from Argentina to Philadelphia in an old Volkswagen van.

Francis spent time with fellow Argentinians Catire Walker and Noel Zemborain and their four children and was touched by their experience, said Vatican spokesman Father Federico Lombardi.

Walker and Zemborain quit their jobs in food service and marketing to lead their children on the unforgettable tour of the Americas, using savings and soliciting donations to fund the trip to the World Meeting of Families in Philadelphia.

Along the way they made 12 border crossings and stayed with dozens of host families, did lots of sightseeing and documented the trip online. They schooled their children — Cala, 12; Dimas, 8; Mia, 5; and Carmin, 3 — with the help of a distance learning program.

FULL story at link.



FILE - In this Aug. 22, 2015, file photo, in Mexico City, 41-year-old Catire Walker, center, 39-year-old Noel Zemborain, left, and their children, from left, 3-year-old Carmin, 5-year-old Mia, 8-year-old Dimas and 12-year-old Cala pose in front of their 1980 Volkswagen van, which they named Francisca. The family piled into the van in March in Buenos Aires, Argentina, traveling 13,000 miles to see Pope Francis in Philadelphia and attend the Festival of Families. It took 194 days and 12 border crossings, but the family arrived on Monday, Sept. 21, 2015. (AP Photo/Marco Ugarte, File)

Read more: http://bigstory.ap.org/article/f08810041d054e15851d294d58e22c0c/pope-meets-family-who-drove-13000-miles-see-him

[LiberalElite]

1. Well, they're nothing if not dedicated and committed

[Liberal_in_LA]

29. Understatement

[LiberalElite]

30. I later read that the Pope

at the end of meeting with them, laughed and said "you're crazy."

[rocktivity]

2. But when rock bands do that

they're called dirty hippies and lazy bums!


rocktivity

[Politicalboi]

3. At least the kids got a trip and learned about the world

Too bad it was for a crazy reason. Cult people will do the craziest shit. The pope is no different than Jim Jones or David Koresh, except he has more money. Crazy followers who believe crazy shit.

[treestar]

4. Wouldn't it have been cheaper to fly?

That's a long trip!

[karynnj]

5. Round trip tickets for 6 people would be far greater than the cost of driving nt

[treestar]

18. but then add in hotels/meals even if cheap

for six people for that length of time.

And not having to go to work for that length of time is interesting.

[NYCButterfinger]

6. Pope Francis is a good man. We should all honor him. We thank him for coming

this week to the U.S. It was a good week, a powerful week. He brought clarity and honor to the U.S.

[skepticscott]

7. Unless you believe in

equal rights for women and homosexuals and stuff like that.

Then, not so much..

[BuddhaGirl]

8. I like Bernie's approach

http://www.rawstory.com/2015/09/bernie-sanders-defends-pope-francis-he-is-helping-to-significantly-turn-the-tide-on-climate-change/

[skepticscott]

17. Bernie's "approach" is deeply dishonest

There has been no significant "shifting of the tide" with regard to climate change because of anything the pope has said or done, and he is well aware of that. I would defy him or you to point to anyone who matters whose mind has been changed by the pope's encyclical.

[BuddhaGirl]

20. With time, there will be a shift

It's so great the Pope is speaking of this, he has a pulpit from which to do this.

Your opinion is noted.

[skepticscott]

21. There may be a shift with time

But that's not what Bernie is claiming. Nor does it make any sense to give the wonderpope credit for any change if it does happen, rather than the thousands of scientists and environmentalists who have spoken out eloquently on this issue for years before Frankie said word one about it.

Frankie and his PR team do know how to grab credit they're not entitled to, though.

[BuddhaGirl]

23. Obviously you think that way, you're not a fan

He is sincere re: his positions. I don't agree with some of his positions but I am glad he is speaking out on immigration, climate change, capitalism, etc.

YMMV

[roguevalley]

28. I laugh when people expect him to turn the titanic around in one day

this is the oldest most entrenched organization in the world. What he has done is phenomenal. He will continue and in the end it will be for the good of everyone. I agree that him coming here was wonderful and change making. As for those who think an organization can pivot on a dime because someone is in charge who might want it to, consider the country on gay marriage, the military on gays, you name it. What they are really saying is that their hate religion and him because he leads the largest church in the world. Give him time. He has turned the church so far already that the conservatives are massing to get him inside of it.

[treestar]

22. ...

“Obviously, I disagree with the Pope on a woman’s right to choose, and I disagree with the Pope on issues of gay marriage,” Sanders said. “And our Republican friends kind of gravitate to him on those issues. But I think the fundamental critique he is making of the hyper-capitalist society that we are seeing globally is something that is striking a strong resonance in the hearts of many of the progressive members of the Congress, and we applaud him very much.”

[Submariner]

9. Volkswagen public relations should probably give the family a new van

Just not a diesel.

[Geronimoe]

10. I guess they missed to Global Warming Speech

That's a big CO2 foot print.

[Gregorian]

13. We had better set up a flame shield.

Reasonable thinking isn't allowed when something this happy happens. Utterly foolish behavior to do what they did.

To defend our position, I always ask this question: What if everyone had done that? Answer that; look at the consequences; then tell us we're party poopers.

[underpants]

11. I'll bet they had a blast

I sold a Toyota pickup about 10 years ago. This guy shows up to look at it and says he can't use it - automatic transmission, he needed manual. I'm talking to him and ask why standard. He and his buddy fixed up Toyota pickups and sold them in Guatemala. Mountainous terrain. They fix up two and tow one with the other. They took turns driving. I think he said it was a 36 hour trip.

[Munificence]

19. haha

I still have a 40 year old "stick" Toyota 4x4.....300K+ miles. It's in good shape also, mainly original with little rust, still starts every time I try. I drive it "out and about" about 5 times a month....But I damn sure wouldn't trust driving it to Guatemala.

[Gregorian]

12. 500 gallons of gas.

[kentauros]

25. divided by 194 days = 2.6 gallons per day.

That's not bad. And consider all those Americans that insist on living in the "exurbs" and driving into the city to work, likely use more than 3 gallons one way per day (the exurbs are often over 90 miles from the center of a large city, and most are driving guzzlers, usually large pick-up trucks.)

At least that's what I see around here and have chatted with too many that refuse to live in the "scary" inner city.

[FuzzyRabbit]

32. Lighten up.

It's OK to have fun. Or do you agree with Dean Vernon Wormer: "No more fun of any kind!"

[Gregorian]

33. I don't know. I've thought about it.

Since posting that, I've thought about whether or not the planet is disposable. Is it our concern? Should we be stewards of the earth?

We're at a point in world population where small inputs from us are magnified hugely through multiplicity.

Then when I ask the same question "lighten up?", I think of saying that to the people who will live in our aftermath. I have had visions of what it might be like. A world of trash without biodiversity in a climate that might be nearly unbearable.

I haven't spent nearly 50 years of my life in a state of nervousness over what I see for nothing, I hope. I have even communicated with Paul Ehrlich about this, and I can see he has the exact attitude that I do.

So yeah, maybe I should have been doing the pre-rides on the Tour de France stages like my friends. Maybe I should be traveling like they do. I just have broader and longer vision that doesn't allow me to ignore something so massively destructive to future generations.

I cannot tell the future. And in that sense, lightening up does make sense. I just don't know.

[BlueJazz]

14. I'm sure they're happy and that's cool.

[LiberalElite]

15. He met with them and -

also laughed and told them "You're crazy." https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/acts-of-faith/wp/2015/09/27/pope-francis-tells-family-that-drove-13000-miles-to-see-him-you-must-be-crazy/

[valerief]

16. I'm sure the GOP is bitching about these "immigrants" showing up here. nt

[bklyncowgirl]

24. The kids will have gotten a priceless education

Good for them.

[Sunlei]

26. what a wonderful road trip and with social media to contact friends, even better!

[FuzzyRabbit]

27. I find it hard to believe

that anyone would criticize these people for making this trip of a lifetime. You've got to be lead a pretty unhappy life to criticize someone for having an adventure like this.

[Gregorian]

31. It's called living in reality.

Unless their grandchildren can tread water indefinitely, what they (and all the rest of us, just to be clear) are doing, is utterly foolish. But most people are in denial, so what I've said will probably go unprocessed.