Jan 2006 - In Denver, Colorado (L to R) Mr. Thomas Pereira of St Michael Center and parish training consultant www.GrowYourParish.com , was invited by Globus-Cosmos religious travel team Ms.Amee Estill and Mr. Kevin Wright , religious travel manager, to begin a program to encourage the formation of travel ministries in parishes and to organize pilgrimages. Pastors and parishioners are encouraged to contact St Michael Center to learn more about the program as part of helping parishes grow their communities. Global-Cosmos, a 75 year old company, is the largest tour operator in the country.

Kevin Wright (left), acclaimed Catholic travel author and Religious
Travel Manager for Globus and Cosmos; and Thomas Pereira (right) ,
founder and director of St Michael Center met in December 2005 in San Francisco to begin a National Travel Ministry for parishes with the mission of encouraging families to travel to religious, historical and cultural sights around the world.

Designed to serve the Catholic community in America by offering the opportunity of travel and fellowship in a relaxed environment, the opportunities are limitless. Whether it is a trip to the great Catholic shrines of Europe, the Biblical lands, or even a parish vacation to Hawaii, we offer you the very best faith-based travel experiences.

Our travel partner Globus and Cosmos is a world-class leader in escorted vacations, and specialists in pilgrimage travel. Their team of religious travel professionals is headed by Kevin J. Wright, an award-winning Catholic travel author.

Our pilgrimage trips are chosen to provide you or your parish an intimate encounter with the roots of our Catholic faith – whether it is walking in the footsteps of Pope John Paul II in Poland, praying at the site where Our Lady appeared in Fatima and Lourdes, or even touching Mt. Sinai where Moses received the Ten Commandments.

Traveling with St. Michael’s National Travel Ministry is more than a journey, it is an immersion into the richness of our Catholic faith – and where the saints come alive.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

• The Irish Faith and History
11-day tour will let you become intimately involved in Irish faith and history as you visit Our Lady of Lourdes Church, St. Patrick’s Cathedral, and Oscar Wilde’s Trinity College, Knock Shrine, Church of the Apparition, Folk Museum, Croagh Patrick Visitor Centre, Kylemore Abbey, Aran Heritage Centre and Burren Centre. Also explore dairy farm country in the center of the “Emerald Isle”, enjoy an excursion to Inishmore, relish a panoramic drive around “Ring of Kerry” and a horse-drawn car ride through national park, drop by the world famous crystal factory in Waterford, and see Ireland’s oldest handweaving mill at Avoca.


• The Legacy of Pope John Paul II eight-day tour will allow you to experience first hand the Pope’s hometown, his favorite boyhood shrine, his favorite Marian devotion site, the city and cathedral in which he served as cardinal, and much more. Part of the pilgrimage is a visit to Cathedral of St. John, Warsaw Ghetto, Franciscan Friary, Shrine and the famous Black Madonna, Martyrdom Museum, St. Maximilian Kolbe’s cell, Wawel Castle, St. Mary’s Church, and Shrine of Divine Mercy

•The Lourdes and Shrines of France 11-day tour will immerse your faith as you visit Notre Dame Cathedral, Basilica of Sacre Coeur, Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal Shrine, St. Vincent de Paul Shrine, St. Peter’s Cathedral, Carmelite Convent, Our Lady of Lourdes Shrine, St. John Vianney Shrine, and Basilica of the Sacred Heart. Also glimpse at the family home of St. Therese, St. Bernadette’s and St. John Vianney. You may also bathe in the healing waters, attend the “Blessing of the Sick,” or join the evening’s rosary and candlelight procession in Lourdes.


• The Marian Shrines of Europe 11- day tour will allow you to visit three of Christianity’s most famous shrines on this unforgettable pilgrimage- Lourdes, Fatima, and Santiago de Compostela. Stops along the way include a visit to Jeronimos Monastery, Church of St. Anthony, Church of the Holy Miracle, Prado Museum and Basilica of Our Lady of the Pillar. Also visit St. Bernadette’s birth and family homes, bath in the healing waters, attend the “Blessing of the Sick”, or join the evening’s rosary and candlelight procession.

• The Classic Shrines of Italy 10-day tour will let you experience the best of Italy’s famous shrines and cities on this pilgrimage. Discover the history, culture and architecture of Christian faith from Rome, San Giovanni Rotondo to Assisi. Part of the journey are stops to St. Paul Outside the Walls, the Catacombs, St. John Lateran Basilica, the Holy Stairs, St. Mary Major Basilica, the Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel, St. Peter’s Square and Basilica, the Colosseum, Roman Forum. Also visit the Benedictine Abbey, Padre Pio’s friary, Holy House of Loreto, St. Mary of the Angels Basilica and the Portiuncula. Also indulge in the sights and sounds of St. Francis and St. Clare of Assisi’s hometown.

• The Grand Catholic Italy
11-day tour will give you a majestic travel from Rome to Venice as you take pleasure in guided visits to the Holy Stairs, St. John Lateran Basilica, St. Paul outside the Walls, St. Mary Major Basilica, the Catacombs, the Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel, St. Peter’s Square and Basilica, the Colosseum and the Roman Forum. Also visit Benedictine monasteries, Padre Pio’s friary, Shrine of Monte Sant’Angelo, Holy House of Loreto, St. Anthony’s Basilica, and St. Mark’s Square.