Girls in crisis pregnancies as young as 11 years old find support at St. María Eufrasia Home in Arecibo, Puerto Rico.
The home’s motto, “One person is worth more than the whole world,” is written prominently in Spanish above a mural of a pregnant girl in the middle of its central courtyard. The staff lives these words every day.
The girls come with unimaginable backstories. Their pregnancies have resulted from assault, abuse, coercion and even forced prostitution in some cases. What these girls share in common is that they all independently decided to see their pregnancies through before arriving at St. María Eufrasia, where they receive help to pursue that goal.
They are referred to the home by the Puerto Rican government’s social services. Once there, they live in a secure environment, surrounded by support staff 24 hours a day. More importantly, the girls can get away from the violence and betrayal they have been unjustly subjected to in their short lives.
Education and encouragement
The residence, which sits on top of a hill with a sea view, elicits a certain sense of calm in the chaos these girls are escaping. It houses up to 15 girls and their babies at a time. Each room is furnished with a bed and crib and has its own private bath. There, the girls learn the skills of motherhood in a supervised and communal environment.
The current facility was built with support from Catholic Extension Society in 2001. Since the early days of St. María Eufrasia’s founding in the mid-1980s, more than 1,000 pregnant girls under the age of 18 have been helped.
The girls need assistance not only with their own ongoing emotional and educational development, but also with caring for the babies they have decided to bring into this world. Psychological counseling, health services, tutoring, career support and up to two years of housing are all part of what they receive while residing at St. María Eufrasia.
Founded by the Sisters of the Good Shepherd and named after their mother foundress, St. María Eufrasia, the home continues to have two onsite religious sisters.
In the photo below, Sisters Socorro Contreras (second from left) and Marta Villalobos (right) live among the girls and their babies. Mariluna Román Rodríguez (left), a staff member from the diocese and Sister Cristina Calderon (second from right) also offer support.
For the past two years the home has been led by a lay woman, Raquel Gonzalez, who has been an employee at the home for the past eight years.
A full-time social worker also works at the home.
In addition to the dedicated staff, several volunteers care for the babies while the girls go to school and receive tutoring and counseling. These caretakers attend to the babies with the same love, smiles and tenderness one would expect from an aunt or grandmother.
Surrounded by love
There are many success stories to celebrate at St. María Eufrasia. Currently, one resident is getting ready to attend university this year, with dreams of being a physician’s assistant.
Many other former residents are gainfully employed, live on their own and are in healthy relationships.
Some of the people responsible for abusing the girls have been convicted of their crimes and are thankfully behind bars.
Meanwhile, the babies spend their first years of life surrounded by love. As they blissfully snooze in their cribs under the watchful eyes of caretakers, their young mothers are hard at work on their personal and educational goals in the hopes of eventually providing for them.
Arecibo is a very poor Catholic diocese. Most of the diocese’s buildings are still damaged from Hurricane Maria in 2017, and collections have plummeted since the pandemic. Yet even a poor diocese with few resources is making a powerful statement by operating a ministry like St. María Eufrasia, which signals to the rest of society that no matter the cost, it is essential to care for the least among us.
Catholic Extension Society is honored to share the story of St. María Eufrasa Home, a finalist for our Lumen Christi Award. This award is Catholic Extension Society’s highest honor given to people who radiate and reveal the light of Christ present in the communities where they serve. Visit this page to read the other inspiring stories from this year’s finalists.
Please consider supporting ministries like St. María Eufrasia Home by donating today!
