Missioner Tales

In Kenya, where I am serving as a Maryknoll lay missioner in the HOPE Project, I met a widow named Lucy. After the death of her husband in 2020, Lucy was left to care for three children with barely any means. Her youngest son, Athman, is now 13 years old but is only in sixth grade. He fell behind because he was in and out of school, depending on whether Lucy could pay the school fees. In August, our project started supporting Athman’s education. He is so happy to be back in school and not have to worry about being sent home because of unpaid bills. We also included the family in our monthly food distributions and provided them with a water tank, as well as a new bed and mattress. Lucy says the HOPE Project has brought her smile back. For me, this is what mission is all about — personal encounters, meeting Jesus in others, and sometimes even bringing smiles to those who feel hopeless. Richard Tarro, MKLM My wife Ann has been tutoring a 9-year-old Mexican boy whose family is living in fear of deportation. One day the mom asked if he could stay with us until 10 p.m. Her work hours at a nearby burger flipping joint had abruptly changed, and she had no one to watch him. Ann, of course, agreed. But how would we entertain our young guest? He’s a sweet boy with a speech impediment who is only just learning English. He partially solved our dilemma by taking a nap. When he woke up around 9 p.m., I was prepared, having cooked some delicious pasta. He finished everything on his plate — and then ate seconds — and went home a happy camper. It was such a small thing to do for that family, and I keep thinking that if all of us do these small things, maybe bigger things will happen. James Coady, Maryknoll affiliate Maryknoll Father Joshua Maondo and I are in the first months of our new mission assignment in Bolivia as recently ordained priests. We serve in the Amazon...