The President of the Governorate in Florida for the Patrons of the Arts in the Vatican Museums and the Vatican Observatory Foundation (VOF)

The President of the Governorate, Sr. Raffaella Petrini, participated in the annual Board meeting of the Florida Chapter of the Patrons of the Arts in the Vatican Museums, which took place on Friday, April 10, in Palm Beach, Florida.

During the meeting, the President thanked Mary Viator, leader of the Florida Chapter, the members of the Board of Directors, and the many Chapter members present for their continued support of the Vatican Museums, particularly for the recent generous contribution toward the timely conservation interventions of Michelangelo’s monumental Last Judgment fresco in the Sistine Chapel.

The occasion also provided an opportunity to meet the new Bishop of Palm Beach, Monsignor Manuel de Jesús Rodríguez, along with several members of the diocesan clergy who locally support the activities of the Patrons. Among those present was Monsignor Terence Hogan, Coordinator of the Office for Relations with the Patrons of the Arts in the Vatican Museums.

On Saturday, April 11, the President also attended two meetings at the invitation of the Board of the Vatican Observatory Foundation, held respectively in Boca Raton and Miami, with several benefactors of the Vatican Observatory. Also present were the Chair of the Foundation, Mickey Pohl, the Treasurer, John Lalli, and the President of the Foundation,  Jesuit astronomer Brother Guy Consolmagno. The full Board will be in Rome and Castel Gandolfo in May.

The Vatican Observatory Foundation (VOF) is a non-profit organization established to support the research and academic training activities of the Vatican Observatory, a scientific institution of the Governorate, which also supports the maintenance and technological upgrading of the Vatican Advanced Technology Telescope (VATT) in Arizona.