A Garbage Dump in Galilee?

by | Jun 2, 2023 | Weekend Reflections

If there were a garbage dump in Galilee 2,000 years ago, I’m confident that Jesus would have gone to it.  If you want to know what that would look like in today’s world, please watch the video below.  It captures Esther Muhia, the leader of our freshly-established...

Why’d They Do That?

by | May 26, 2023 | Weekend Reflections

Children growing up in the Riverton area, located near Jamaica’s capital of Kingston, have the double whammy of being poor and the stigma of living and working near a garbage dump. I grew up in Riverton, too. My own dad never had the opportunity to finish primary...

The Hero in My Story

by | May 19, 2023 | Weekend Reflections

One of the best of many gifts my parents gave me is my middle name, Francis, after my dad’s best friend, Francis Canfield, S.J.  Fr. Frank ran the table on the Sacraments with me. He baptized me, gave me First Communion, sponsored me at Confirmation (where I also took...

Encourage One Another

by | May 12, 2023 | Weekend Reflections

The reason many parents of our scholars are forced to work in the garbage dumps is that they were robbed of the opportunity to learn to read or write as children. They have their own children now, who are flourishing in school because of scholarships you help provide,...

Our God Given Missions

by | May 5, 2023 | Weekend Reflections

Leer este blog en español ይህንን ብሎግ በአማርኛ ያንብቡ Each of us has a vocation—a unique mission to live the life God intends for us. If we discern that vocation, He will equip us with everything we need to live it out. My six siblings and I have incredible parents who taught...

This is Personal

by | Apr 28, 2023 | Weekend Reflections

Leer este blog en español ይህንን ብሎግ በአማርኛ ያንብቡ We invest in service immersion trips with our partners because they make global issues personal. It’s one thing to read that one out of ten people in the world live on less than $2 per day. It’s another thing to have a...

Changing Life Experiences

by | Apr 14, 2023 | Uncategorized, Weekend Reflections

Leer este blog en español ይህንን ብሎግ በአማርኛ ያንብቡ How would your teachers have described you in the third grade? If you have children at home, ask them what three words their teacher would use to describe them. I would love to hear what they say. Before coming to...

Too Young to Die

by | Mar 30, 2023 | Uncategorized, Weekend Reflections

Leer este blog en español ይህንን ብሎግ በአማርኛ ያንብቡ “Seventy is the sum of our years, or eighty if we are strong” (Psalm 90:10). Honduran women on average live to be about 74.  But what if you live near a garbage dump, where the life expectancy is only 35? Iris, the mother...

Does the Fountain of Youth Exist? AMHARIC

by | Mar 24, 2023 | Weekend Reflections TRANSLATED

Read this blog in English Leer este blog en español ከሃያ ሁለት ዓመታት በፊት በታክና፣ ፔሩ  ከነበሩ በጎ ፈቃደኞች ጋር የመኖር እና የማገልገል እድል ነበረኝ ፡፡ በቆይታዬም እንግሊዘኛ በማስተማር እና የቅርጫት ኳስ በማሰልጠን አገለግል ነበር። የታክና ከተማ በፓስፊክ የባህር ዳርቻ እና በአለም ደረቃማ ከሆኑ በረሀዎች አንዱ በሆነው በአንዲስ ተራራ መካከል የምትገኝ ናት። እዚያ በነበርኩባቸው...