Letter from the Chair – Summer 2025
Letter from the Chair – Summer 2025
by Joe Curro, Board Chair, American Pilgrims on the Camino
Dear Pilgrims,
The theme of this issue of La Concha is “cultural exchange,” something I’ve been committed to ever since spending a summer during high school with a Swiss host family. My time abroad set the stage for a life of foreign language study, overseas academic opportunities, and involvement with school-based international exchange, refugee resettlement, and sister-city programs.
As rich as all of these experiences have been, they are eclipsed by the encounters I’ve had on the Camino de Santiago and as a volunteer with American Pilgrims on the Camino.
On my first Camino, I met people from over 40 countries, two-thirds of the U.S. states, and most Canadian provinces and territories. Some of these interactions were fleeting, while others were of a deeper nature. This pattern has repeated itself with each subsequent pilgrimage.
In the last issue of La Concha, I wrote about some of the ways in which American Pilgrims has engaged in international outreach, most recently with our successful Vancouver Gathering, presence at the European Union Open House in Washington, our third cultural journey in conjunction with Spanish pilgrim associations, and our recently-announced partnership with the Universidade de Santiago de Compostela.
In my work with American Pilgrims, as important as the opportunities for international exchange have been, the chance to make the acquaintance of pilgrims from around the United States has been equally–if not more–rewarding.
If you were to pick up a newspaper or turn on the TV or radio, you could be forgiven for believing that communication and cooperation between Americans from different regions and backgrounds is a quaint memory from the past. At American Pilgrims, we disprove this notion every day, working across time zones and states on behalf of our shared community, and forming friendships.
True cultural exchange takes the form of listening, learning, and growing from our fellow pilgrims. It transcends place, and it can also transcend time, as we benefit from those who have gone before us, some we may never have met.
At the Annual Gathering of Pilgrims, we have a tradition of ringing a bell of remembrance for those who have died. Please allow me to sound a few virtual chimes here.
I never met Sandy Lenthall, but—with every Annual Gathering of Pilgrims—I am mindful that our organization’s roots trace back to her living room. (Find a tribute to her in La Concha Winter 2024 , p. 6-7.)
I never met Gene McCullough, but I feel I know him through others, and I think of him every time I order a credential or visit our website. (Find a tribute to him in La Concha Autumn 2021, p. 37)
I never met John Brierley, but—as with many of you—his guidebooks gave me the confidence to take my first steps on the Camino. (Find a tribute to him in La Concha Summer 2023 , p. 9.)
I never met Father José Ignacio, but his spirit lives on through the hundreds of hospitaleros we have trained. (Find a tribute to him in La Concha Winter 2024 , p. 12.)
Two dedicated pilgrims I have had the pleasure of knowing were Sam Hull and Francine Mastini.
I met Sam Hull at my very first Gathering; as fellow New Englanders, we clicked instantly. He was so welcoming that he helped to reinforce my decision to apply for board service.
When he heard of Sam’s passing, Steve Lytch, who preceded me as chair, remarked, “Sam packed a lot into 90 years. He was in his 80s when he came on the board, and he outpaced most of us in his creativity and energy… [H]e went on to other pursuits, but continued to be a loyal supporter of American Pilgrims. When I saw him at Gatherings and heard about his latest adventures, I felt like a slug. I want to be like Sam when I grow up.”
The last time I saw Sam was at a board meeting near Boston two years ago, but I was always happy to receive notes of encouragement from him. I look forward to joining his friends and family at a Celebration of Life in Maine in August and remembering a remarkable man.
Whether you realize it or not, you have probably met Francine Mastini through her work for many years as creative director of La Concha, as an hospitalera, and most recently as our social media coordinator. For a perfect expression of Francine’s exuberant spirit, read her reflection “The Fine Art of Napping” (La Concha, Winter 2024).
As I initially wrote this letter, Francine was metaphorically walking her final Camino, receiving hospice care for a terminal illness. On June 21, she reached the 0.00 km marker of her steps on Earth. As an individual of deep Roman Catholic faith, I have no doubt Francine would find resonance at the Puerta de las Platerías of the Santiago cathedral, where the Greek letters Alpha and Omega are displayed in reverse: the end is the beginning.
I give thanks for the opportunities I’ve had to learn and grow from pilgrims like Francine and Sam, and I offer prayers for them and their families, including Sam’s wife, Joan, and Francine’s husband, Thom Ryng, also a longtime member of Team La Concha and editor of our monthly email updates to members.
In the Jewish tradition, the usual expression of condolence is, “May their memory be a blessing.” May we all gather many memories along our Camino journeys, and—in true pilgrim spirit—may we always strive to bring blessings to others.
¡Buen Camino!
Joe
In Memoriam
Francine Mastini | July 21, 1962 – June 21, 2025
Francine served as creative director of La Concha from the June 2020 through Spring 2025 issues. Her creative vision and artistic skills were instrumental in reshaping La Concha from its earlier newsletter-style format into a magazine-style publication starting with the June 2020 issue. She also played a key role in the transformation of La Concha from a design-layout style into the current web-based format introduced in Spring 2024. You will also find Francine’s Camino photography throughout many La Concha issues, including several featured as cover images. From the latter half of 2024 until she fell ill earlier this year, Francine also served as social media coordinator for American Pilgrims.
Beyond her creative contributions to the Camino community, Francine also fostered traditional pilgrim hospitality through her service as an hospitalera. She completed the hospitalero training program offered by American Pilgrims in March 2020. Together with her Camino sister Becky Rush-Peet, Francine served at Albergue Parroquial Santiago El Real in Logroño, Spain, in September 2023 (first quincena). Francine and Becky again served together at Albergue Betania in Pamplona, Spain, in April 2024 (second quincena).
Francine walked her first Camino in 2013, joining husband Thom Ryng on the Camino Francés from León. Thom and Francine would walk together again on the Camino Francés from St. Jean Pied de Port in 2016 and from O Cebreiro in 2018. In 2022, Francine and Thom walked the Camino Primtivo from Oviedo with their friend Callie Starks. In 2023, Francine and fellow hospitalera Becky walked the Camino Portugués immediately following their Logroño service. And, immediately before their service in Pamplona, the duo walked the Camino Francés from Pamplona to Logroño for a fresh sense of the road ahead for the pilgrims they would serve.
Find Francine’s obituary here.
Samuel Prentiss Hull Jr. | September 14, 1934 – June 12, 2025
Sam served on the American Pilgrims Board of Directors from 2018-2019, was chair of the membership committee, and a member of the finance committee. Following his board service, he continued to contribute as a membership team member in 2021 and 2024. He and his wife walked several Caminos and attended the American Pilgrims Annual Gathering of Pilgrims several times.
Find Sam’s obituary here.
Board Report – April 2025
Prepared by Rachel Ganzon, Secretary, American Pilgrims on the Camino Board of Directors
The board of American Pilgrims on the Camino met in Dallas, TX, the weekend of April 25, 2025, at the St. Raphael Retreat Center. The group opened by reviewing eight Pilgrim Principles—humility, simplicity, flexibility, responsibility, collaboration, candor, hospitality, and gratitude—by which the board operates; reviewing the previous meeting’s minutes, participating in a teambuilding activity.
Discussions included board goals and the articles of incorporation. There was also discussion about the recent virtual board reunion and the valuable feedback received from past board members. The group decided to hold this event annually. Martin Peña, co-chair of the Gatherings committee, provided updates about the 2025 event.
Via Zoom, the board talked to Pilar Taboada-de-Zúñiga Romero, PhD, director of international courses at the Universidade de Santiago de Compostela. The university is offering an educational opportunity this fall open to American Pilgrims members and will include Spanish classes as well as an opportunity to walk on the Camino.
Luis Gussoni reported that in his recent conversations with the Oficina del Peregrino in Santiago de Compostela, they have offered for American Pilgrims to have space in the pilgrim’s reception office. The board discussed the resources this might require and voted to empower Luis to research this further.
The new Albergue de las Comendadoras de Santiago in Madrid opened on April 10, 2025. The board extended gratitude to Luis Gussoni for delivering a plaque to them acknowledging the grant given by American Pilgrims, and to Bill Artz and Tom Coleman who represented American Pilgrims at the opening ceremony. The board discussed the reservation system and will be working on a process, as pilgrims from the United States will need to go through American Pilgrims on the Camino to make their reservation.
The membership committee has been analyzing credential requests trends, and the costs and resources required to distribute credentials. As a result, there changes in the fulfillment of credentials are forthcomings, including discontinuing the printing of the pilgrim’s names on the credential.
The board received updates on the St. James Celebration planned for July 24-27 in South Bend, IN. The board expressed encouragement for pilgrims unable to attend the 2025 Gathering in Vancouver, BC to seize the opportunity to attend this regional pilgrim event.
Two board members will be leaving the board at the end of December. A nominations committee has formed, and the group chatted about the logistics of onboarding new board members.
The board’s next quarterly meeting will be in July, following the St. James Celebration in South Bend, IN.
