An Unexpected Christmas Mission to Diego Garcia

 Some of the most memorable journeys are the ones we never plan.

My visit to Diego Garcia came about entirely by surprise. While we were having lunch at the CBCP Secretariat one December afternoon, someone mentioned that the Episcopal Commission on Migrants and Itinerant People (ECMI) was urgently looking for a priest who could celebrate the Simbang Gabi Masses and minister to the Catholic community on Diego Garcia from Christmas until the New Year. For several months, the island had been without a resident priest.

The moment I heard about the need, I immediately volunteered. I was then informed that I would have to leave the very next day, December 16. Since I was already scheduled to celebrate a Simbang Gabi Mass that evening, I asked if I could depart the following day instead. Thankfully, that posed no difficulty, and my departure was moved to December 17.

My journey first took me to Singapore. From there, I was to board a special chartered flight to Diego Garcia departing from Paya Lebar Air Base. I soon learned that the island is served by only two flights each week—on Tuesdays and Thursdays—making travel to this remote destination highly dependent on military logistics.

An unexpected twist awaited me in Singapore. Upon arrival, I was informed that the Thursday flight had been postponed because the aircraft required replacement parts that had to be flown in from the United States. What initially seemed like an inconvenience became an unexpected blessing, giving me almost two full days to revisit and explore one of Asia's most vibrant cities before continuing my journey.

My stay in Diego Garcia, a remote coral atoll in the British Indian Ocean Territory (BIOT), proved to be both pastorally fulfilling and unexpectedly adventurous. Shaped like an open horseshoe enclosing a vast turquoise lagoon, the island is home to a major United States military support facility. There is no native civilian population. Instead, its small community is composed of U.S. Navy and Air Force personnel, civilian contractors from various countries, and members of the British Indian Ocean Territory Police.

At its peak, the Filipino civilian workforce numbered around 2,300. Today, just over 1,000 remain, many employed by major contractors such as KBR. A Filipino chaplain ordinarily ministers to the Catholic workers at the Sacred Heart of Jesus Chapel in Seabreeze Village, where I also stayed during my visit.

For the Christmas season, however, my mission was not to discover an isolated military outpost but to bring the Eucharist and the joy of Christmas to Catholics living and working thousands of miles away from their families. What began as an unexpected request over lunch at the CBCP Secretariat became one of the most unique Christmas experiences of my priestly ministry.

Arrival and Community Life

I finally arrived on December 19 and was warmly welcomed by the chapel volunteers. My residence was a simple standalone house beside the Sacred Heart of Jesus Chapel, and before long I had settled into the quiet rhythm of island life. For my transportation around the island, I was issued a pickup truck, which proved especially useful for the daily drive to the downtown area, about four kilometers away, where I usually took my meals and attended to other errands.

Mornings often began with breakfast at Seven Degrees South Café in the downtown area, followed by visits with base officials and Filipino workers. Evenings were devoted to celebrating Mass, especially the Simbang Gabi novena, which became particularly meaningful since the community had missed several of the earlier novena Masses before my arrival.

Christmas on the island was deeply moving. The Christmas Eve Mass at 9:00 p.m. brought together not only Filipinos but also Kenyan and Indian workers. The New Year's Mass was equally well attended, followed—as one would expect in any Filipino community—by a generous meal and joyful fellowship.

Beyond serving as a place of worship, the Sacred Heart of Jesus Chapel was clearly the spiritual heart of the Catholic community. Nearby stood a chapel for members of the Iglesia ni Cristo and a Hindu temple, reflecting the rich religious diversity among the island's multinational workforce.

Exploring the Island

Despite its military character, Diego Garcia is remarkably beautiful. Crystal-clear waters, white sandy beaches, and lush tropical vegetation create an environment more reminiscent of a secluded paradise than a strategic military installation.

I enjoyed snorkeling at the Marina and at Mariano Beach near the Lourdes Grotto, where vibrant coral reefs teemed with marine life. I also cycled approximately 53 kilometers to the Plantation Gate, passing stretches of pristine coastline and encountering red crabs, giant coconut crabs, and even wild donkeys—descendants of animals left behind after the Chagossian inhabitants were forcibly removed from the island in the early 1970s.

Fishing in the lagoon was another first for me. I caught a snapper and quickly learned the technique of giving the fishing line a sharp jerk at the slightest tug. Many afternoons were spent cycling through shaded roads lined with towering coconut trees, passing radomes, communications antennae, and the remains of World War II defensive positions at Cannon Point.

A Rare Glimpse into Strategic Operations

Because of continuing aircraft maintenance issues, my return flight was delayed, leaving me stranded on the island for an additional week. What might have been frustrating turned into an extraordinary opportunity, as I was invited to visit several facilities that are rarely accessible to visitors.

            One of the highlights was touring the Satellite Control Network (SCN) station operated by the United States Space Force's 22nd Space Operations Squadron, known by the call sign "REEF." Operating around the clock, the facility commands and monitors government, military, and commercial satellites orbiting the Earth. Its personnel work in continuous shifts to ensure satellite health, maintain orbital positioning, and securely relay mission data to processing centers around the world.

I also had the opportunity to visit two of the station's enormous radomes, one of which houses what I was told is the second-largest satellite dish on Diego Garcia.

Equally fascinating was the GPS ground antenna facility, one of only four dedicated monitoring stations worldwide that continuously track the constellation of 30 GPS satellites. Data gathered there are transmitted to Schriever Space Force Base in Colorado, helping maintain the accuracy of the Global Positioning System used throughout the world.

Perhaps the most remarkable visit was to one of only three Ground-Based Electro-Optical Deep Space Surveillance (GEODSS) sites in existence, the other two being located in Socorro, New Mexico, and Maui, Hawaii. Using powerful optical telescopes, the GEODSS system tracks satellites and space debris orbiting thousands of miles above the Earth, helping prevent collisions in an increasingly crowded orbital environment. Diego Garcia's remote location, with its exceptionally dark skies and minimal light pollution, makes it an ideal site for this mission.

Standing beneath the enormous rotating telescopes, I found myself reflecting on the irony of the place. On one of the world's smallest and most isolated inhabited atolls, humanity keeps watch over the immensity of outer space.

Final Reflections

Diego Garcia is a land of striking contrasts. It is at once a secluded tropical paradise and one of the world's most strategically important military outposts; a place where people come only temporarily, yet where a vibrant faith community has quietly taken root.

What I encountered there was far more than fascinating geography or military history. I experienced the enduring ministry of pastoral presence—celebrating the Eucharist, listening to the stories of overseas Filipino workers, sharing meals with them, cycling beneath the Indian Ocean sun, snorkeling among colorful coral reefs and schools of tropical fish, and standing beneath giant telescopes that gaze into the farthest reaches of space.

In the middle of the Indian Ocean, amid satellites, surveillance systems, and sophisticated technology, the quiet fidelity of faith continues to flourish. That, perhaps more than anything else, is what made this unexpected Christmas mission so unforgettable.

 

Some of the chapel volunteers who met me at the chapel upon my arrival. 

The Sacred Heart Chapel in Seabreeze, Diego Garcia.

At the Seven Degrees South Cafe where meals are taken. It's a 3.7 kilometer ride from Seabreeze. However, a pickup truck was issued for my use. 

With Vera, the Chapel president. 

Downtown of Diego Garcia

With the officemates of Vera. 

With Celeste, the HR manager and her boss Rick Shoulten

With Darren Woods, the Business Operations Director.

With Larronce Harris, the Program General Manager. He oversees all the base operations. 

With Ashraf Ibrahim, the chief engineer and Tech Director

With some of the KBR employees during their Christmas party. 

The Gym

At the Marina

With Ryan Monforte,  a chapel volunteer who was my occasional driver. 

My quarters in Diego Garcia

The residence of the Chaplain

The front of the Sacred Heart Chapel in Seabreeze.

Chapel in the Palms, the non-denominational Chapel in Diego Garcia used by the military. 

With Tim Delaughter, the Base Chaplain (Non-Catholic)

Ryan and Tong Salamatin, who was formerly assigned at the Seabreeze Chapel and now works at the Chapel in the Palms as an overseas government employee (OGE) and no longer under the civilian contractor. 

The huge tents near the airport that houses the B2 stealth bombers when they come. 

At the Turtle Cove

At the Boss Galley near Seabreeze where the contract workers would have their meals. 

With the chapel servers and volunteers

At the music room

Having a fun day at the back of the Grotto.

Christmas midnight mass

With some Kenyan nationals

Joining a fishing trip

Biking in Diego Garcia

A coconut crab

The end of the road—as far as one can go in Diego Garcia—near the GEODSS site, about 27 kilometers from Seabreeze. One needs special permission from the BIOT Police to enter. There lies the old Plantation, where the Chagossians—the former inhabitants of the island—once had their residences, now in ruins.

The GEODSS - Ground-based Electro Optical Deep Space Surveillance in DG. 

One of the donkeys left by the Chagossians. They now roam wild in this eastern part of Diego Garcia until the Donkey gate. 

At the Donkey Gate. The gate prevents the donkeys from accessing and obstructing the airport runway. 

I was informed that this was a dog cemetery at Cannon Point.  I had to pass by radomes before getting to this point. 

Biking through the off-road trails of Diego Garcia.

Asked to bless some quarters at the Splendidville.

With Zoey, of the BIOT police. 

At the Lourdes Grotto

Having lunch with Anne, Jason and Earl (who took the picture) at the Seamen's Club. 

With Patrick who heads the GPS in DG

Visited Jimmy in the bodega of the Ship Store where he works. 

Having brunch at the Officers Club with some of the Filipino workers. 

Enjoyed snorkeling in Diego Garcia

I had been wondering why there were several pools like the one above near the beach—perfect for snorkeling during low tide—until Zoey explained that in the 1970s, when the runway was being built, corals were excavated to make way for it.