By Eli Pacheco 

Each day that the sun rises on the border between the United States and Mexico brings countless stories of pain and horror, but it also brings stories of hope and survival. 

A few steps from the border in El Paso, Texas, stands Annunciation House, where immigrants, migrants and refugees experience the compassion and service of Franciscan friars, volunteers and others who greet them with kindness, water and a warm meal. 

At Annunciation House, people find a place to sleep, clean clothes, assistance in traveling to their next destination and resources to navigate complex immigration laws. 

Brothers Jim McIntosh, OFM, and Ignatius Harding, OFM, serve six days a week at Holy Family, a building the Diocese of El Paso, Texas, lent to Annunciation House to operate and provide humanitarian relief. 

The friars also serve as a voice of justice for those who can’t speak for themselves. 

“They have been in detention and seen terrible things,” Br. Jim said. “Then you realize the situation they’re fleeing from is worse than that.”  

Harrowing, heartbreaking experiences   

Such is the story of a family who came from Venezuela.  

“We had a family recently who had two cars and a business in Venezuela. They went on international vacations every year. They had a house,” Br. Ignatius recounts. “They got here with the clothes on their backs -- nothing else.” 

What drove them to leave their homeland and embark on the life-threatening journey to the border? A recent CBS News report revealed that 6.8 million Venezuelans have left Venezuela since 2014 because of failures in socio-economic policy.  

About 75 percent of Venezuelans live without clean water and electricity. They survive on less than $1.90 a day, the international standard for extreme poverty.  

Thousands of people make the journey from South America to the U.S. each year. Dangers include wild animals, treacherous terrain, crooks and human traffickers.

Brothers Jim and Ignatius see firsthand the effects of U.S. policy change on the volume and frequency of visitors coming through Annunciation House.   

Br. Jim says that there are two common ways that people seek asylum: through an app or by making their case with U.S. Customs and Border Protection. 

Prolonged wait or perilous voyage 

Those who choose the electronic method remain in Mexico and use CBP One, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection app, to request a credible fear-of-persecution review with an immigration judge.   

According to a CBS News report, of the tens of millions of applicants on the app, less than 1 percent make it through with this method, and many must wait for months to get an answer.  

"That’s limiting,” says Br. Jim. “Most give up after a while.”  

The alternative: traverse the treacherous Rio Grande River, maneuver through razor-sharp concertina wire and make their case with U.S. Customs and Border Protection for asylum.  

The unforgiving journey to the United States may require traveling through as many as five countries, navigating unpaved terrain packed with cartels, raging rivers and snakes — situations straight out of movies and nightmares. 

A Marist brother who works with the Franciscans shared a conversation he had with a migrant child. He asked the boy if he liked his trip. The boy said there was nothing good to see. “What, then, did you see?” the Marist brother asked.  

The child spoke of witnessing unspeakable violence against women, murder among men and death around him.  

Br. Ignatius estimates as much as 90 percent of the migrants he sees are women and children.   

Speaking with people who have suffered horrific experiences on the way to the United States has given him and other volunteers a new perspective. It is far from the assumption that migrants are young men, convicts and people who might take American jobs away. 

“Our hearts go out to the children,” Br. Ignatius said. “When we hear what they have been through, we think of ourselves. If we were a man with a wife and kids, would we leave all we have in our country to try to get to the United States for a better life?”   

For most, the trip lasts years, not weeks or months. 

“It is common to have a Venezuelan couple with a kid born in Brazil and another in Peru,” Br. Jim said. “They had to leave their country and are on the move."

Annunciation House has converted an old gymnasium into a place for people to stay on their journey to another destination in the United States. (Photo courtesy of Br. Donald Lachowicz) 

Ministry to migrants in El Paso  

In addition to volunteering at Annunciation House, Franciscan friars also provide humanitarian assistance to migrants crossing the border at Holy Family Refugee Center in El Paso.   

Like Annunciation House, it offers hospitality to migrants, including legal assistance, medications, prayers, rooms and more. Conventual and Secular Franciscans serve there.   

These moments of ministry bring smiles to the friars' faces and to those who volunteer alongside them. Serving meals and eating with families. Hearing conversations between children and parents. Families from different nations sharing stories. 

Friars help families make travel arrangements to their U.S. destinations and provide them with clean clothes. And friars such as Br. Ignatius have sat in a makeshift barber’s chair for a fresh cut – allowing migrants to earn some money with their talents. 

Br. Ignatius Harding receives a haircut. (Photo courtesy of Br. Donald Lachowicz) 

Recently, Annunciation House made headlines as contentious courtroom proceedings have challenged the existence and continuation of the humanitarian work of hundreds of volunteers caring for those suffering on the border.  

For now, the ministry continues. Earlier this year, the Provincial Council of the Province of Our Lady of Guadalupe voiced the province’s support for Annunciation House, saying:   

“Hearing the biblical injunction to ‘welcome the stranger’ and the exhortations of our Holy Father, Pope Francis supporting worldwide humanitarian efforts to protect the migrants of our time… and recognizing the 40+ years of loving service for migrants at Annunciation House in El Paso, Texas…we, Franciscan brothers of Our Lady of Guadalupe Province publicly state our opposition to the cruel legal procedure against Annunciation House.”   

In that same spirit of welcoming the stranger, there is an understanding of the necessary due process. There is also a humanitarian responsibility to extend a hand and share God’s ever-present love.    

“They just need a hand getting organized, their papers in order, while they wait for permission from the U.S. government to work," Br. Ignatius said.   

How you can help  

Ruben Garcia, Annunciation House director, coordinates with parishes across the U.S. to temporarily host migrant families so they can settle in.  

Individuals and ministries are also invited to connect with the Franciscan Migrant Network, a group of Franciscan-hearted people who offer humanitarian assistance and welcome to people displaced from their countries. 

 

This is the second article in a series about Franciscan ministry during the global migration crisis, a humanitarian crisis of vast proportions. The first article in this series focused on Br. David Buer, OFM, and his ministry to migrants crossing the Arizona desert.