Fr. Nils Francis Thompson OFM, the newly appointed General SFO Assistant, has been in Malta for a short visit between 31 March and 6 April 1998. Nils was born in 1935 in Galveston, Texas, U.S.A. He is a member of the Province of Our Lady of Guadalupe, Albuquerque, New Mexico. His father was from Norway (Nils Torkelson Seland) and his motherŐs family, Myers, from Labasheeda, Co. Clare, Ireland. Since his ordination in 1963, Fr. Nils has been involved in the preaching ministry and in the parochial ministry, and has served a number of Secular Franciscan Fraternities as spiritual Assistant. He has been Provincial Spiritual Assistant since 1988, and was active in forming the new SFO Regional Fraternity of Our Lady of Guadalupe, in New Mexico and West Texas, of which he was Regional Spiritual Assistant. Fr. Nils was appointed General Assistant on 1 October 1997. He arrived in Rome on 31 December and assumed full responsibility on 1 January 1998.

In Malta Fr. Nils spent a short holiday, but he also had time to take part in two SFO council meetings on Thursday 2 April, one of the local Council of the Hamrun Fraternity and another one of the Provisional National Council. Fr. Nils suggested to the National Council that it appoint various commissions to work together in drafting new policies regarding finances and formation in the Malta SFO. In this unofficial visit Fr. Nils was accompanied by Fr. Noel Muscat OFM, National SFO Assistant.