PROJECT ADVANCE

YouTubing archbishop surfs web

By Malin Jordan

Internet singing sensation Susan Boyle now has some company from Project Advance.

The Archdiocese of Vancouver's major fund-raising office has ventured onto YouTube this year, stretching the campaign's reach from local parishes to around the world.

"From its inception in 1980, Project Advance has provided funding for important programs in the areas of building, education, social service, and spiritual growth," begins the new video on YouTube.

The video, broken into two parts, is the one seen a few weeks ago in parishes. It's a new step for the project as they try to appeal to a younger audience using the Internet.

"I think it's going to change the way we do the video," said Laura Hughes, director of Project Advance. She said there have been problems showing the video in the past because of lighting and technical issues.

"I think the pastors would be happier just to say, `Here it is on YouTube,' and it'll be a lot less trouble for everybody," she said. "I think it'll change things next year."

In the video, filmed in Holy Rosary Cathedral, Archbishop J. Michael Miller, CSB, talks about the annual event that's been going since 1980. "This appeal," he says, "Has enabled us, over the years, to build new churches, to build new schools and refurbish schools, to reach out to the needy, to the young, and to those who are in any kind of need."

Hughes said the annual event is a special opportunity for parishioners to participate in the stewardship of their parish, and she said she encourages everyone to be a part of it.

"It's really a special thing that is happening," she said. "Every time you drive past (your) church you can say, `That's there because I did something about it.'"

Project Advance runs until the end of the month and again, briefly at the end of the year. The video has been on YouTube since the beginning of May.

YouTube, started in 2005, is a video-sharing web site where members can upload and share videos.