Following the appointment of the Brother Visitor of the Arlep District (Lasallian Association of Spain and Portugal) on April 8, Brother Armin Luistro, Superior General of the Brothers of the Christian Schools, has appointed the Brother Auxiliary Visitors who will collaborate with Brother Esteban de Vega Alonso – the new Visitor – for a period of four years, starting on September 2, 2024 and ending on September 1, 2028.
The six Brother Visitors appointed by the Superior General are: Brother Juan Carlos Orús Orcástegui, Brother Juan José Santos Hurtado, Brother Francisco José Chiva Benajes, Brother José Eladio Ruiz González, Brother Jesús Miguel Salazar Plaza and Brother Julio González.
Brother Juan Carlos Orús Orcástegui
Brother Juan Carlos Orús Orcástegui was born in Zaragoza in 1955. He studied Theology and Catechetics for Educators, Pedagogy and holds a degree in Philosophy and Literature. He also took part in 1995 in the upgrading course for Lasallian Educators organised by the Lasallian Region of Latin America (RELAL) and, in 2022, in the 46fh General Chapter.
In Arlep he has offered his educational services in various centres, in some of them as director or in programmes of attention to diversity. He has also served as a formator in the Postulancy in Zaragoza and in the Novitiate in Quito. He has also been a volunteer with Caritas and Ozanam in the accompaniment and education of immigrants, as well as with the NGO Proyde and Proyde-Proega.
Between 1986 and 2001 he was a missionary in Cañar (Ecuador), in the Educational Unit of Azogues and in the Service of Rural Promotion and Evangelisation of Awaronko, where he carried out his ministry with Kichwa communities.
He has been Auxiliary Visitor of Arlep and member of the District Animation Team for the last few years (2017-2024), accompanying, in a special way, the communities of La Rioja, Zaragoza, Gipuzkoa and Bizkaia, being also a member of the District MEL Council and Vice-President of Proyde.
Brother Juan José Santos Hurtado
Brother Juan José Santos Hurtado was born in Yudego (Burgos). He was a student at Colegio La Salle de Deusto (Bilbao).
He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Religious Sciences (1967) from the Instituto Superior de Ciencias Religiosas y Catequéticas San Pío X (Universidad Pontificia de Salamanca) and a Bachelor’s degree in Mathematics (1974) from the Universidad de Zaragoza.
In his educational ministry he has been a teacher of Mathematics in High School, in charge of Pastoral Ministry at the Colegio La Salle Gran Vía (Zaragoza) and Director of the Hospitality and Catering Centre in Guayente.
He has also served as Director of Community, Formator of Aspirants (Irún and Hogar Zaragoza) and Auxiliary Visitor of the District of Bilbao (1985-1989), and Animator of the Lasallian Communities of Zaragoza and La Rioja (2023-2024). Since his retirement in 2013, he has also been a volunteer in Caritas, the Sopeña Foundation and Adubir.
Brother Francisco José Chiva Benajes
Brother Francisco José Chiva Benajes was born in L’Alcora in 1965. He has been linked to the Sector of Valencia-Palma (Spain).
Brother Paco – as he is known – has been a primary school teacher and a teacher of Ethics, Religion and Psychology in Secondary schools. He has also been the pioneer, together with other Lasallians, of socio-educational projects for young people without resources.
From 2017 to 2023 he resided at the Generalate in Rome, where he served as Co-Secretary of Association of the Institute of the Brothers of the Christian Schools. In the last year he has been in charge of the recruitment, training and accompaniment of new educators, and collaborating with the Animation Team of the Sector.
It is worth noting that Brother Paco has been part of mixed communities of Brothers and lay people since 2005. To date he belongs to the San Benildo Community, together with four other Brothers and 10 committed Lasallians.
Brother José Eladio Ruiz González
Brother José Eladio Ruiz González was born in Burgos on February 10, 1963. He did his novitiate in Griñón (Madrid) and made his perpetual vows on August 15, 1991 in Bujedo (Burgos).
He studied the Basic Triennium of Theology in Griñón, and studied Therapeutic Pedagogy and Hispanic Philology at the Universidad de Valladolid.
He has carried out his Lasallian ministry by collaborating in the formation of the Brothers for eight years – two of them as Director of the Postulancy.
Subsequently he has held other positions of responsibility such as the direction of the schools of La Salle Managua in Palencia, Astorga (León), Ujo (Asturias) and the Direction of the Network of Educational Works of the Sector of Valladolid. He is currently Director of the Colegio La Salle in La Felguera (Asturias).
Brother Jesús Miguel Salazar Plaza
Brother Jesús Miguel Salazar Plaza was born in Madrid on May 4, 1975. He was a student at Colegio La Salle in Corral de Almaguer (Toledo).
He did his initial formation in Griñón, where he did his Aspirancy (1991-1993) and Novitiate (1995-1997); in Valladolid, where he did his Postulancy (1993-1995); and in Madrid, where he earned a Teaching degree at the CSEULS in Aravaca (1997-2000).
Brother Jesús Miguel holds a degree in Psychopedagogy from the Universidad de La Laguna (Tenerife). He completed the five courses of studies of Religious Sciences at the Instituto Superior de Teología de las Islas Canarias at its headquarters in Tenerife.
He has carried out his educational ministry at Colegio La Salle – San Ildefonso in Tenerife (Canary Islands), as Director of Pastoral Ministry of the Madrid Sector, and at Colegio La Salle – Arucas in Gran Canaria (Canary Islands).
Among the different services of community animation, he has been Director of the Community of Gran Canaria and Animator of the Zone in the Canary Islands.
Brother Julio González
Brother Julio González was born in Cuenca on December 8, 1975. He entered the Griñón Aspirancy in 1989 and completed his formation as a Brother of the Christian Schools in Griñón, Valladolid and Madrid.
He earned a degree in Geography at Universidad Complutense de Madrid and a degree in Catechetical Sciences at the Instituto Superior de Ciencias Religiosas y Catequéticas San Pío X de Madrid. He has taken various courses in pedagogical, pastoral and Lasallian formation, and has participated in CEL (Spanish Lasallian Studies Centre in Arlep) and CIL.
His ministry as a Brother has been exercised in various educational works in Madrid: Sagrado Corazón, Institución La Salle, San Rafael. He has been Director of Pastoral Ministry in these educational works, class teacher and teacher of Secondary and High school education. He has also collaborated with various socio-educational works.
For two years he worked in the Lasallian educational works in Bomudi and Lea in Equatorial Guinea, as well as in Youth Ministry in the diocese of Bata.
For twelve years he has served as Director of the Network of Educational Works of the Sector of Madrid, carrying out tasks of coordination, management and leadership of Lasallian educators.
We express our compliments and best wishes to the new Brother Auxiliary Visitors of Arlep. May St. John Baptist de La Salle continue to inspire their ministry and enlighten them in the mission entrusted to them by Brother Superior General and by Providence.