On October 12th,  the Northeast Florida Area joined a joyful celebration at the Closing Mass for the Cause for Beatification of Antonio Inija and Companions, a total of fifty-seven (native Americans, including women and children, as well as Spanish missionaries) martyred in Florida between 1549 and 1715.  The Closing Mass and Ceremonies took place on the grounds of the old Mission outside Tallahassee, concelebrated by Bishop Wack (Pensacola-Tallahassee) Archbishop Wenski (Miami) Bishop Parkes (St. Petersburg), Bishop Pohlmeier (St. Augustine) and Bishop Emeritus Baker (Birmingham).The Cause proceeds now to Rome, as the faithful in Florida continue work to develop the mission grounds into a Shrine appropriate for these models of heroic virtue.  The story of the “Martyrs of La Florida” can be seen in the EWTN Special “They Might Be Saints,” and information is available on the Mission website martyrsoflafloridamissions.org.