WIFE OF A VENERABLE

 

It is time that we get back to our saints or saints to be.  Starting off the New Year is a woman who has been known mostly through her husband, but was a  "go-getter for God", in her own right. Recently in the news we learned that Enrique Ernesto Shaw was made Venerable, but not much is known about his wife, who is also hopefully on the road to canonization.

SERVANT OF GOD CECILIA BUNGE de SHAW was born on May 13, 1921, in the city of Buenos Aires. She was the only child of Jorge Bunge and Cecilia Fourvel Rigolleau. She completed her secondary studies at the Jesús María School and attended the Higher School of Fine Arts to perfect her passion: painting.

 She married Enrique Ernesto Shaw, with whom she had 9 children, 32 grandchildren, and 51 great-grandchildren. With her husband, she raised a large family and accompanied the Venerable Servant of God Enrique Shaw, a business leader and figure in Catholic organizations, on his path to sainthood.

 After becoming a widower and losing her father within a few months, she took charge of Pinamar SA, following in the footsteps of her father who founded the seaside resort city of Pinamar.

 She raised her family while also dedicating herself to her professional life. An enterprising and determined woman, with a commanding presence without being ostentatious, she served as president of the company's board of directors for 35 years. She brought about significant changes in the city, requiring her to dedicate herself fully to the task.

 Beyond her intense business activity, Cecilia Bunge developed a charitable profile that led her to be president and member of the Fleni Foundation (for neurological diseases), national president of the League of Mothers of Families, member of Caritas Argentina, and Catholic Action.

In addition, she chaired the Elsa Shaw de Pearson Foundation, was director of Casa FOA, and a lifetime member of the Christian Association of Business Leaders. She represented the Argentine government at the Congress of the Laity in Rome.

She directed the magazine Vivir en familia and was responsible for managing the Plaza Hotel. For her extensive business work and contributions to numerous charitable institutions, she received many awards, including the Konex Award in 1998.

She strongly advocated for balanced urban development, respecting the ecological environment and thus achieving a healthy and high-quality life for the population, satisfying the needs of the time without compromising the capacity of future generations.

Enrique Shaw and Cecilia Bunge accompanied each other on their paths towards holiness, both accomplishing much in this life in the name of Christ.

 Their granddaughter, Sara Critto de Eiras, selected excerpts from the letters between her grandparents, publishing them in a book titled “ Enrique and Cecilia: Love Letters .”

Cecilia dedicated a poem about love to Enrique in one of her letters:

To be in love is to feel a bird in your heart.
It's to live in a heaven shared by two.
It's to feel the Virgin's mantle.
It's to finally understand the communion of souls.
It's to know the exact value of every minute.
It's to want to capture the fleeting time.
It's to have reached the fullness of life.
It's to find the perfect being you've always searched for.
It's to laugh for no reason and cry for nothing.
It's to forgive.
It's to rejoice in the simple things and forget about difficulties.
It's to close your eyes and see him, to look at the moon and long for him.
It's loving you, Enrique, and that's all.