CLEMMONS — Holy Family Church recently presented its fourth annual Saint Teresa of Calcutta Award to Dr. Peter Robie, recognizing his lifelong commitment to faith-filled service, charitable outreach and care for those most in need.
Recipients of the award, named after the servant for the poorest of the poor, are recognized for humble service, compassion, generosity, and dedication to others, and for echoing Mother Teresa’s dedication to doing small things with great love.
A parishioner since 1998, Robie has devoted much of his professional life to serving the poor and underserved. A physician specializing in Internal Medicine, he has worked with the Pacific and Caribbean Island Outreach Program to provide medical care in remote and impoverished communities. He continues this ministry as one of three physicians serving at the Community Care Center Clinic, where free healthcare is provided to those in need.
In 2020, he became involved with the Joseph-Mary Foundation, established by Father Peter Nouck to support the educational and healthcare needs of young people in Cameroon. He helped coordinate the shipment of medical equipment and supplies and assisted in the development of a $2.4 million hospital that has dramatically improved healthcare outcomes in the region.
Within Holy Family Parish, Robie previously taught Religious Education to second grade and middle school students and currently serves as a soundboard operator at the Saturday evening Mass while leading the monthly Rosary before Mass.
Robie and his wife, Joan, recently celebrated 50 years of marriage. Together they have three children, seven grandchildren, and one great-grandchild.
— LeiLanie D'Agostino
WAYNESVILLE — On June 4, St. John the Evangelist Parish in Waynesville became one of 15 parishes in the Diocese of Charlotte to host the Silver Rose Pilgrimage and prayer service.
Each year, the nine-month pilgrimage starts in March and ends on December 12, the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe. The pilgrimage, which honors Our Lady of Guadalupe and expresses international unity and dedication to the sanctity of life, began in 1960, when the first live rose was blessed by a bishop in Ontario. Today, eight silver roses travel different routes throughout North America, several of which begin in Canada and end in Mexico.
Father Lucas Rossi, pastor of St. John the Evangelist, led a bilingual prayer service, litany and rosary, followed by a gathering in the parish hall. Mark DeMarco welcomed visitors on behalf of the Knights of Columbus, who host the program.
In 2001, when Carl Anderson, past Supreme Knight of the Knight of Columbus, expanded the Silver Rose Program, he told those gathered for their annual meeting in Toronto,
“Through (the Silver Rose Program) we honor not only Our Lady of Guadalupe and express unity of the (Knights of Columbus), but we also reaffirm the Order’s dedication to the sanctity of human life. It is to the Blessed Mother that we turn in prayer as we work to end the Culture of Death that grips our society. As we think in terms of ‘One Life, One Rose,’ it is most appropriate that we turn to Our Lady of Guadalupe who made known her will through Juan Diego, and the miracle of roses.”
— Gail Webb
