The pictures above are worth a thousand words (from me). I recently enjoyed an art show at this renovated Bates Mansion, which is a fabulous place downtown. It’s at the old Mountain Oyster Club locale, on the SW corner of Stone Avenue and Franklin. Enjoy this fiesta!

Last night I attended the preview opening of a special exhibit “Our Padre on Horseback” honoring the 300th anniversary of the death of Padre Eusebio Francisco Kino, S.J. (1645 to 1711), at the Diocese of Tucson Archives at 300 S. Tucson Blvd. The exhibit itself depicts 16 of the 24 missions that Padre Kino founded, with photos, maps, drawings and several lovely Ted DeGrazia reprints. Last night Bishop Gerald Kicanas and Father Chris Corbally spoke of the work of Padre Kino and the Kino Heritage Society. Father Corbally aptly said that Kino “used all his knowledge and survival skills to bring people to God”. Padre Kino is remembered as a “Missionary & Explorer, Friend of Native Peoples, Founder of 24 missions, Scientist & Map maker, Candidate for Sainthood, and Arizona’s First Cattleman.”

This exhibit will run through May 30, 2011, hours of operation M, T, TH, F from 9 to 4 p.m., phone 520-886-5201. (The archives bldg. is at the south end of this property shared with St. Ambrose Parish & School.)

Additional upcoming weekend events to mark the 300th anniversary of Padre Kino’s death, which was on March 15, 1711:

Concerts in honor of Padre Kino by Southern Arizona Symphony Orchestra– Sat. March 12, 7:30 p.m. at St. Augustine Cathedral, and Sunday March 13, 3 p.m. Catalina Foothills H.S. Auditorium (4300 E. Sunrise Dr.), $20 admission for each.

Memorial Mass on Sunday March 13, 12 noon, St. Augustine Cathedral, Diocese of Tucson Celebrates Padre Kino’s Life, 192 S. Stone Avenue.

Tucson Festival of Books, Sunday March 13, 4 p.m. University of Arizona Student Union, Catalina Room, “The Trail of Arizona’s First Cowboy & Missionary Explorer” by a panel of authors(Ben Clevenger, Deni Seymour, Jacqueline Soule). Free event.

For more details & events, log onto Kino Heritage Society website, www.padrekino.com. And for my earlier blog on Padre Kino & the Kino Heritage Society click here.

Federal District Judge John Roll was shot at that Tucson “massacre” on January 8, 2011 while standing in line to speak with Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords (CD 8). He apparently died on the scene at the Safeway store at Oracle/Ina Road. He was the Chief Judge of the U.S. District Court of Arizona (click here).

Funeral services for Chief Judge John M. Roll will proceed as follows:

Thursday, January 13, 2011
Visitation from 5:00 to 7:00 pm, Rosary at 6:00 pm
St. Thomas The Apostle Catholic Church
5150 N. Valley View Road
Tucson, AZ 85718

Friday, January 14, 2011
Mass at 10:00 am
St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Catholic Church
8650 N. Shannon Road
Tucson, AZ 85742

Private Burial – Time to be determined
Holy Hope Cemetery
3555 N. Oracle Road
Tucson, AZ 85705

Bio info from Arizona Daily Star:

http://azstarnet.com/news/state-and-regional/article_9db91254-7663-5d64-97cc-801877868c4b.html:

JOHN ROLL, 63:
Named Arizona’s chief federal judge in 2006, U.S. District Judge John M. Roll won acclaim for a career as a respected jurist and leader who had pushed to beef up the court’s strained bench to handle a growing number of border crime-related cases. Roll was appointed to the federal bench in 1991 by President George H.W. Bush. He previously served as a state trial judge and as a judge on the midlevel Arizona Court of Appeals, and as a county and state prosecutor. Bishop Gerald Kicanas of the Roman Catholic Church’s Tucson Diocese said Roll was an active parishioner. “He lived his faith as a servant of our nation for the cause of justice,” Kicanas said. Roll was a Pennsylvania native who got his law degree from the University of Virginia. He is survived by his wife, Maureen, three sons, and five grandchildren.

The Friday mass service is at the same Catholic church where fellow shooting victim 9 year old Christina Taylor Green’s service will be held, the day before (click here).

Rest in peace Judge Roll.

1/12/11 Obituary in Arizona Daily Star (linked through Tucsoncitizen.com)
http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/tucson/obituary.aspx?n=john-mccarthy-roll&pid=147763103

According to the Tucson Sentinel, the memorial service for Christina-Taylor Green will be on Thursday, January 13 at 1 p.m. The 9 year old child was killed on January 8, 2011 at the mass shooting at the Safeway store on Oracle/Ina Roads. Five others were killed and as many as 19 were injured in total.

http://www.tucsonsentinel.com/local/report/011011_green_funeral

The funeral Mass will be at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Parish, 8560 N. Shannon Rd. in northwest Tucson. Phone (520) 297-7357.

Bishop Gerald Kicanas is expected to preside over the Catholic service.

Green was just elected to the student council at Mesa Verde Elementary School, and apparently had aspirations of becoming a politician, hence her standing in the constituent line to speak to her Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords of Congressional District 8 on Saturday. The neighbor Susan Hileman who brought Green to that event was shot & injured, & remains hospitalized at UMC.

More information about Christina from the Arizona Daily Star:

Christina Taylor Green was only 9, but the third-grader already was an aspiring politician. Her parents say Christina had just been elected to the student council at Mesa Verde Elementary School and had been interested in politics from a young age. She already had told her parents she wanted to attend Penn State and have a career that involved helping those less fortunate than her. The brown-eyed athletic girl loved to swim with her 11-year-old brother Dallas, her lone sibling. Her mother, Roxanna Green, said Christina also loved animals, singing, dancing and gymnastics. She also was the only girl on her Canyon del Oro Little League baseball team. Her grandfather, former major-league pitcher Dallas Green, managed the 1980 world champion Philadelphia Phillies. Christina’s father, John Green, is a scout for the Los Angeles Dodgers. Christina was born on the tragic day of Sept. 11, 2001.

Rest in peace young Christina. Heartfelt condolences to the Green family.

UPDATE from Arizona Public Media:

The family of Christina Taylor Green, killed in the tragic shooting in Tucson on Saturday, January 8, 2011, has announced the creation of a charitable memorial fund to honor the life and memory of this special little girl. The fund will be held by the Community Foundation for Southern Arizona. John Green, Christina’s father said, “Our family has been overwhelmed by the outpouring of love for our sweet Christina. This memorial fund will ensure her legacy for the children in our community.”Those wishing to make a donation in memory of Christina Taylor Green may do so by:· Logging on to the website of the Community Foundation for Southern Arizona at http://www.cfsoaz.org and clicking on the link to the Christina Taylor Green Memorial Fund,· Or by contacting the Community Foundation for Southern Arizona by email at christinataylorgreenmemorial@cfsoaz.org, or by calling (520) 545-0313.· Checks may be sent to:The Community Foundation for Southern Arizona In Memory of Christina Taylor Green2250 E. Broadway Boulevard Tucson, AZ 85719

1/12/11 Obituary in Arizona Daily Star (linked through Tucsoncitizen.com)
http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/tucson/obituary.aspx?n=christina-taylor-green&pid=147763094

Photos from the funeral:
http://tucsoncitizen.com/tc-guest-blog/2011/01/13/photos-from-services-for-christina-taylor-green/