Testimonials
Through the Encuentro Project, members from our parish…have been to the border four times. Each encounter has been a life-changing experience for the participants. The Encuentro Project offers an affordable, comprehensive, unbiased experience of what is happening to our brothers and sisters fleeing violence and oppression.
–Sue Robb, Pastoral Associate for Justice & Life, Missouri
Working with the Encuentro Project was a transformative experience for my high school students and for me. The Encuentro Project provides a comprehensive look at the immigration issue through meetings with different groups including immigration attorneys, border patrol agents and community activists as well as the direct ministry to migrants in shelters.
–Mary Pullano, Spanish Teacher, Washington, DC
El Paso ShelterLoyola Marymount University Students and Staff shared their reflections:
– I am grateful I had the chance to learn the truth about forced migration and asylum seeking with The Encuentro Project. I have been to the San Ysidro Border many times and believed there wasn’t much more to learn about migration justice – boy was I wrong! We discovered what makes El Paso distinct as a border city thanks to The Encuentro Project’s passionate, welcoming, and faith-filled staff and community partners. Please sign up for this inspiring and engaging encounter, you won’t regret it!
– We were able to listen to many stories that illustrated how Hispanic communities continued to hope despite the oppressive situation that surrounded them. When we crossed the border into Juarez, one of our stops was at a library built for the community. One community member made us fried tacos and we listened as she shared her story. As a mother of several children she lived in the poorest community in Juarez with her family. She described to us how when a charity group came to the community and offered to help her, God was made incarnate for her because she had no conception of being supported before. I talked with her after and she was so animated talking about how her oldest son is now an industrial engineer and the catechism program that she now helps with. This and many other stories we heard from the border are what I carry with me and am grateful I could experience it with a community I cherish.
– The Encuentro Project has offered an opportunity that I would have never participated in, and produced one of the most informative educational experiences of my lifetime. As a student, being able to spend a week learning about one of, if not the, most pressing matters in our nation was extremely beneficial and humanized the horror stories we frequently hear about immigration and migration. The Encuentro Project took 19 years of high-class American Education and contextualized it, putting together pieces of a puzzle that suddenly seemed much easier to understand. With a newfound understanding, I approach my classes differently and can truly see the extent to which cause and effect have shaped the border, America, and the world. Thank you so much to the Encuentro Project, and all who make it possible!
University of Detroit Mercy students and staff shared their reflections:
1. Published articles/reflections about their experiences with Encuentro Project
“Faith Is All They Have Left”: Encounter on the U.S.-Mexico Border by Vania Noguez
Excerpt: In order to better understand the wrongs against humanity, we need to reverse the tables and ask ourselves how we would want to be treated. Catholic Social Teaching explains that we have a universal responsibility as Catholics and as human beings to embrace and support suffering communities. By learning about people who suffer differently than ourselves, through interaction with diverse cultures, we can connect as a holy human family and truly be moved to action.
A Christmas of Encounter at the El Paso Border by Fr. Tom Florek, SJ
Excerpt: Arriving at 3:30 p.m. on a government bus were the first dozen Central American families who had just been released from an ICE detention facility, which is referred to as the la hielera, or ice box, because of the cold temperature…The families came into the back entrance with their children in hand. No one carried luggage or backpacks, only their children. The shelter’s volunteers, including the UDM students, provided a warm welcome, assuring the young, exhausted, cold, and hungry families with hospitality and human care.
Journey of Encounter: Witnessing God’s Great Love at Our Border by Sister Erin McDonald, CSJ
Excerpt: As a social worker who has spent nearly a decade working with refugees and asylum seekers, I have an understanding of our country’s immigration system and the shattering experiences of displaced persons. Yet my time in El Paso stretched me in new ways spiritually, emotionally,
and professionally.
2. One student created a theme for the yearly honor’s symposium around immigration, using the focus points of empathy, expanding moral circles, and the need to dismantle the language of “us and them”; included keynote address on expanding moral circle, followed by a panel of four from the El Paso trip
3. Bulk ordered and sold Capeltic coffee
4. Created video student reflection on the experience of the trip, used to fundraise and promote the next trip
5. Offered post-trip reflection gathering where students did some guided theological reflection on their week in El Paso