10-08-09

Former campus minister John Donaghy to speak about Hondurans in crisis at ISU Oct. 19

AMES, Iowa -- In June 2007, John Donaghy, a former campus minister in Ames, began a ministry in southwestern Honduras and became associate director of the local diocesan social development agency. In a lecture at Iowa State on Monday, Oct. 19, John Donaghy will report on the condition of the Honduran poor during the ongoing political crisis following President Zelaya's forced departure.

Donaghy's lecture, "From Honduras in Crisis: A View from the Rural Poor," will be at 7 p.m. in the Memorial Union Sun Room. The free, public lecture is part of the World Affairs Series: "Can We Save the World?" -- an initiative providing insight into global interactions.

In his talk, Donaghy will share his experiences working with the poor in the countryside as peacekeeping efforts continue between interim leader Roberto Micheletti and deposed President Manuel Zelaya.

Previously, Donaghy was the director of campus ministry and coordinator of charity, justice and peace ministry at St. Thomas Aquinas Church and Catholic Student Center in Ames.

Donaghy, who has a doctorate in philosophy from Boston College, explains that his experiences are invaluable.

"The name 'Hermano Juancito' -- Brother Little John -- was given to me by the children in the Suchitoto, El Salvador, countryside in 1992, a title which I treasure - worth more than any doctorate," he said.

In addition to his current work in Honduras, Donaghy has spent time in El Salvador as a leader of education delegations and in the parishes of Santa Lucia, Suchitoto and San Roque, San Salvador doing pastoral work. He was a volunteer with a program for Catholic and Protestant children in Northern Ireland, sponsored by the Irish Fellowship of Reconciliation. He also participated in Campus Ministry across the Americas in Peru and Bolivia.

Donaghy's lecture is cosponsored by the Catholic Student Community, St. Thomas Aquinas Church and Catholic Student Center, the World Affairs Series and the Committee on Lectures, which is funded by the Government of the Student Body.

More information about John Donaghy is at http://home.igc.org/~jdonaghy/home.html. More information on lectures available at ISU is at http://www.lectures.iastate.edu , or by calling (515) 294-9935.

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