“Let them know that reconciliation is possible!”… Awash in the light of the new day in Immokalee this morning, Wilson Perez (right) and his wife and 9-month-old baby boy listen to Pastor Miguel Estrada as he bestows an Ash Wednesday blessing (below) on dozens of farmworkers and their allies before they embark on the first leg of the Now Is the Time Tour. Over 60 farmworkers and their allies head out from Immokalee at dawn, launching their 10-day, 10-city journey as ”Now is the Time” Tour hits the road!… In the cool, early hours of a beautiful March morning in Immokalee, farmworkers gathered at the CIW community center ahead of the launch of the Now Is the Time Tour with a To-Do list almost as long as the 2,800-mile tour itself. After many weeks of preparation, a veritable mountain of signs and banners for the protests, hand-painted props for the tour theater piece to be performed at community meetings along the way, and food, drink, and medical supplies for the long days on the road had accumulated at the CIW office.  Before the tour crew could head north, all those materials had to make their way onto the bus and into the many vehicles of the trailing caravan, and the front door of the CIW headquarters was swinging throughout the morning as members carried box after box… to the tour vehicles parked outside: Amidst the buzz of packing and last-minute preparations, men, women, and children poured into the office, ready for the 10-day trek.  Spirits soared among the group as the day broke… Don't miss the rest of today's photos -- and moving words from Pastor Miguel's Ash Wednesday blessing for workers as they embarked on the Tour -- at the CIW website!

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