{Hoping you can begin something similar in your faith community}
Jesus Washes the Feet of the Apostles
In the
summer of 1966, when 19 years old, I came to Capac, MI to work with Fr. Joe
Melton from the Detroit diocese in migrant farmworker ministry. He spoke fluent Spanish having accepted the
invitation of Cardinal Dearden to live in Puerto Rico and learn the language to
be able to better serve the growing number of Hispanic Catholics.
That first year
I made frequent visits to the camps, forming some young adult discussion
groups, with the help of members of the local parishes, volunteer groups from
Marygrove College, and a Quaker service agency. It was an ambitious project with high
enthusiasm and little experience to guide us—the meeting of different cultures in
their small shacks, and the town’s church, was the tortillas y frijoles of the
project. Two and a half months of
stretching across language, life style, and economic barriers. Fr. Joe was a constant encouragement, and I’d
come often to daily mass for the prayer with him and other members of the
parish, and to then go over our ongoing activities.
It was such
a good summer, with great hopes in shared service, just sitting down with young
people who were always on the move, learning how we were alike and different. I
returned the two following years. Those
times I lived in the migrant camps, and got up at 4:30 am with them to travel
in old school buses to often distant fields to pick pickles, or hoe sugar
beets, from the cold dew before daylight to dusk. I contributed my scant earnings, they
invited me into their homes, coffee, warm tortillas, and more always offered. For me money wasn’t an issue. Fr. Joe had arranged for support from the local
Deanery of Catholic Women, enough to cover my college tuition the following
year. Fr. Farrell and Fr. O’Neill of
Our Lady of Mt. Carmel, pastors of his main parish, opened their doors also to
my efforts.
Junior and Paulina - married at St. Nicholas Church, mission of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel, Emmett, MI -- 1967
By getting
to know the people of the camps better, and each other’s needs, there came
trust, and some new job training opportunities were created so some migrants could
find more stability. My friends Junior
and Paulina after six years common law marriage and four kids [she was one year
older than me] celebrated a church wedding.
Ten years later he was dead—someone from a vendetta from an earlier
fight or marijuana deal. It was a very hard,
short life for some of them. My first ventures into disarmament
were 2 scimitar pocket knives, handles carved from cows’ horns, and a 10 gauge
sawed-off shotgun—going away presents from the few of those that had such things, at end of season. Fr. Joe was a constant servant of us all,
making things possible, from church liturgies, to farmworker and farmers union
support, to rummage sales benefiting the migrants.
Cesar Chavez accepts bread from Father Joe Melton to end his 24-day Fast for Justice, Phoenix, Arizona
This
opportunity was such a blessing in my life.
I began to have a working knowledge of Spanish—becoming bi-lingual as
most of these farmworkers already were. My faith
was strengthened, my horizons were expanded—such an important gift for a young
adult to feel the beauty, difficulty, and rightness of service, and Gospel
beliefs. Fr. Joe had shared part of his
ministry with me. It is
prayer-study-action Holy Spirit fire that keeps me going to this day. The hope now is that this experience of
service, and similar stories from many others in our local faith community, can
invite and inspire a wealth of opportunities for our next generations. We are asking the many more members of our
parish who’ve been on mission and service projects, to tell us their stories,
and join in support of this young adult faith formation.
For more information on
Youth Service Opportunities, and to help, contact Michael McCarthy [810 982
2870] and this committee under Holy Trinity’s Christian Service Commission. Our new objective:
To expand youth service and formation
opportunities for the young members of our parish
1. Form committee
within Christian Service, with assistance from Pax Christi and the Youth
Ministry groups, to explore the available shorter and longer service projects
available to our high school, college and young adult members and their
friends.
2. Investigate the
opportunities and make the valuable ones known and available to our young
people and their families—helping to vet, choose, apply, and follow through on
arrangements.
{And in the future.}
- Begin the process of
forming a scholarship fund to aid in the expenses that many service
projects entail [assist also in tapping already existing supports as
provided for by programs like AmeriCorps, Jesuit Volunteer Corps, and
others listed in the Catholic Volunteer Network manual]
- Invite the involvement of
as many in our church community and broader community—the youth to serve,
and as many as possible to give prayer, financial and mentoring support to
young people interested in service, a way to make vibrant the formation of
their faith in Christ.
- Explore the possibilities
of uniting on the vicariate and diocesan levels, and in the interfaith
community, with others interested in these efforts.
“It is better to light one candle than to curse the
darkness.” – The Cristophers
“Take up your cross and follow me.” Mt 16:24
Illumination by Kathy Brahney
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