“You will be changed.” A friend and former colleague said this to me when I told him that I was going to volunteer at the Humanitarian Respite Center in McAllen, Texas. I had no idea how profoundly true that statement was until I began my journey home and spent some time reflecting back on the experience.
During my time at the Center, because I didn’t speak Spanish, I worked with other volunteers in the clothes room, organizing all of the clothes donations, so each family could be outfitted with a clean set of clothes as they prepared for the final stage of their journey. What struck me most during this time, was the hope and determination of these young families along with their heartfelt gratitude for what they received from the Center. After having endured tremendous danger and hardship, they came to the Center filled with hope for a better life with their family. So many young families arrived with infants or very young children. Some women had even given birth while on the journey. One woman said that she would rather risk the dangers of crossing the Rio Grande than risk remaining in her town.
Returning home from this privileged time left me with a deeper challenge and that challenge is—What next? How can I continue to share this mission with others? As Pope Francis says in Fratelli Tutti, “We cannot be indifferent to suffering, we cannot allow anyone to go through life as an outcast.” ( FT #68)
