Simaan Srugi

In 1894, Simaan Srugi was sent to the agricultural school and orphanage of Beit Gemal. He began his novitiate there on July 27, 1895, and pronounced his vows as a coadjutor brother on October 31, 1896. He would spend the rest of his life there. He performed multiple roles: teacher and catechist to the children (mainly Muslim), who nicknamed him "Mu'allem Srugi"; miller managing the flour mill; and above all, nurse. At the head of the Beit Gemal dispensary, assisted by Sister Tersilla Ferrero, he treated dozens of patients of all faiths daily who came from more than fifty surrounding villages, becoming a figure of peace and reconciliation.

The daily life of Simaan Srugi was marked by heroic humility and continual prayer, nourished by the Eucharist and the adoration of the Blessed Sacrament. In 1908, Blessed Michael Rua, the first successor of Don Bosco, visited Beit Gemal and, impressed by his radiance, invited the community to note his deeds and actions because "he is a saint." Brother Simaan also distinguished himself by his heroic capacity to forgive, going so far as to treat at the dispensary one of the alleged murderers of his own community director, Father Mario Rosin.

Exhausted by work, malaria, and bronchopneumonia, Simaan Srugi passed away in Beit Gemal on November 27, 1943, at the age of 66. His funeral brought together crowds of all denominations, and his remains were interred in the crypt of the Saint Stephen sanctuary in Beit Gemal. His cause for beatification was opened on November 5, 1964, at the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem. On April 2, 1993, Pope John Paul II signed the decree recognizing the heroic nature of his virtues, conferring upon him the title of Venerable.

The spirituality of Simaan Srugi illustrates the Salesian "sacrament of presence," sanctifying daily life through ordinary work performed in an extraordinary way. His legacy remains a prophetic model for the Middle East, showing how Christian charity can build fraternal bridges in the heart of a complex multi-religious context. In tribute to his memory, several Salesian works today bear his name, such as the Salesian novitiate in Sunyani, Ghana.