By Laura Larson, Lombard Mennonite Church
and Celine Woznica, Ascension-St Edmund Catholic Parish in Oak Park
Making political points with humans as pawns, Governor Abbott of Texas began bussing asylum-seeking migrants from Texas to Chicago in August 2022. By April 2023, the shelters in Chicago were near capacity and by May 2023, migrants were being placed in Chicago police stations, including a station just two blocks from the border of Chicago and the suburb of Oak Park where both of us live.
I (Celine) joined a local volunteer team that quickly responded with blankets, air mattresses, clothes, toiletries, and meals. But what about showers? Where could the migrants refresh themselves after that arduous 3000-mile trip? Having recently learned a new word (NAG-VOCATE), I was able to make arrangements for those we call our “new neighbors” to take showers at the closed rectory of a Catholic parish just three blocks from the station in Oak Park. Volunteers were recruited from the Catholic parishes, towels and personal hygiene supplies were donated, and snacks were made available. Easy-peasy.
But as the summer progressed into the fall, the number of migrants at the station swelled from a few dozen to almost two hundred. The demands changed as well. Our new neighbors needed more and a wider variety of clothes, shoes, and toiletries. Snacks turned into a full breakfast and, as the weather turned cooler, our friends needed coats and blankets. We needed help.
And the Spirit provided, breaking down the silos that kept too many faith centers isolated in their ministries. Ahh….
About this time, my heart was aching for the migrant men, women, and children struggling to survive in Chicago without adequate housing and resources. The Wednesday Journal of Oak Park and River Forest was the first place I (Laura) learned of the relief efforts of the Catholic Parishes of Oak Park. Volunteering to assist with their work seemed like the perfect opportunity to contribute. Soon after I started volunteering, the mission commission of my church, Lombard Mennonite, decided that assisting asylum-seekers was a high priority for our congregation. I suggested partnering with the efforts of the Catholic Parishes in Oak Park as one way to help.
Working with our Catholic brothers and sisters was a natural fit because both our traditions place a strong emphasis on compassionate service and justice. Our congregation decided to make the Migrant Ministry the focus of our annual Advent giving project. With enthusiasm we raised significant funds and collected piles of warm coats, clothing, boots and blankets. Several individuals volunteered. Carmen, a retiree, and Emily, a college student, helped distribute jackets. Bill, a social work student, handed out warm blankets. Rebecca and Gray, a mother-daughter team, used their ability to speak Spanish to help the migrants feel welcome as they selected hats, scarves, and gloves. God inspired an outpouring of generosity.
The Catholic Parishes of Oak Park provide the space for what is now known as the Migrant Ministry at Centro San Edmundo, but the effort is so beautifully interdenominational. We are blessed with volunteers from a wide variety of faith traditions and, of course, those who identify their religious affiliation as “none.” We have served thousands of our asylum-seeking brothers and sisters, and in this service, have found joy and fellowship with the other volunteers.
On a personal note, how wonderful it has been for my husband and me (Celine) to reconnect with Mennonites in ministry! Don and I served as Maryknoll Lay Missioners in Nicaragua in the early 1980s. These were tough times, and most of the lay missioners left for their safety. Not the Mennonites and the Catholics! Don and I stuck it out because we had Gerald and Joetta Schlabach for support.
I (Laura) have been so blessed to volunteer for the Migrant Ministry. I appreciate the spirit of cooperation that the volunteers share. Every week Celine says, “We are learning, we are adapting, we are growing.” The dynamic of love propels the mission.
I was pleasantly surprised to learn that Celine considers herself to be a “closet Mennonite”! In turn, my seminary thesis advisor was the Catholic feminist theologian Rosemary Ruether. Both of us have deep regard for our respective faith traditions. After all, Christ commanded, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself”. All of us can be united by this aspiration.
Mennonites and Catholics – we are cut from the same faith-motivated, hope-filled, social justice cloth!
Note: Bridgefolk would like to feature other Catholic-Mennonite collaborations that are happening in Canada, the US — and beyond! If you are involved in such a relationship in your local community, please let us know by sending a message to info@bridgefolk.net.