The hard part was supposed to be over.
The mother and her 3-year-old had survived the terrors of the violent gangs that roam Haiti, kidnap children and bring indiscriminate violence down upon the most vulnerable.
She and her child had survived the hunger that has racked the poorest nation in the western hemisphere. They had survived the earthquakes and hurricanes that have killed hundreds and left thousands homeless over the past three years. They had even survived a dangerous 60-mile journey through the rough waters at the confluence of the Atlantic Ocean and Caribbean Sea, known as the Mona Passage.
That was supposed to be the hard part. But as the rickety boat known as a “yola” approached the Puerto Rican shore, it capsized in the 15-foot swells and the 3-year-old was thrown from the mother’s arms. With their destination literally just meters away, the mother lost her precious toddler, who would only return in a body bag. It was just days before Christmas.
Then the hard part began for her and so many other seabound migrants who have lost loved ones during their escape. But they can find God’s loving care at San Mateo Parish in San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Safe passage for fleeing families
It is our Christian belief that God’s love is always and everywhere present to us in every moment—most especially during the hard parts of our lives. Sometimes we imagine God’s love as angels who come near. Mary, Joseph and their newborn, Jesus, were refugees on a dangerous midnight road. The Holy Family was in a hard and desperate place. And God’s love came near. The silent night became a holy night.
The Haitian refugees washing up on the shores of Puerto Rico, have an angel too. His name is Father Olin Pierre-Louis. He brings God’s love to the desperate.
He is the pastor of San Mateo Parish in San Juan. It is a small parish with a $200 weekly Sunday collection. But being an angel, Father Pierre-Louis knows that it does not take a big budget to live the Gospel.
Father Pierre-Louis, a Haitian-born priest, speaks Creole, the language of the Haitians. Puerto Rican federal immigration authorities, at a loss to help the hundreds of desperate Haitians washing up on their shores, release the Haitians from detention and ask Father Pierre-Louis to drive four hours round trip to Puerto Rico’s western coast to pick up the refugees and help them.
Father Pierre-Louis makes room for them in his poor parish. Its connected parish hall is a makeshift migrant shelter that can house up to 80 people.
They sleep on mats on the floor and cook for themselves in the parish’s kitchen where people can donate food supplies. Those who need to stay longer can find rooms in the boiler room. No square inch of the parish goes unused. It is amazing how much room God’s love can make.
Frederick, a former Haitian refugee, has been helping out at the parish for 14 years, ever since he washed up on Puerto Rico’s shore.
Twice a month, Frederick and Father Pierre-Louis fill the parish van with food, clothing and other necessities. They drive it to the coast, take a 24-hour ferry to the Dominican Republic, drive it to Haiti and then deliver the goods. They do this in hope that Haitians won’t be forced to migrate and put their lives in danger.
Click and scroll on the map to see the passageway:
Trusting God’s love
Meanwhile, the mother who lost her child last December is preparing to testify against the “coyotes” who crammed more than 50 people in a rickety boat built for 10. Hundreds have drowned. Father Pierre-Louis is helping her get access to legal and counseling services.
The mother is going to relive her ineffable heartbreak to bring justice to those who so callously take advantage of the desperate. Her love for her child lost at sea will live on in her effort to help others avoid her fate. It is hard to imagine a braver or more fitting memorial.
Father Pierre-Louis never ceases to see God’s hand in this work. When things get tight, the resources run dry and hope gets dim, he says that someone always calls and help comes to assist the refugees escaping violence and gangs.
Catholic Extension Society is part of this help. Our Holy Family Fund supports this amazing ministry. It is our honor to help. If we can’t drive a van, at least we can help fill it.
Angels don’t play harps. They do the hard and gritty work of collecting essentials, packing and driving vans, making room for the homeless, caring for the disconsolate, and standing up for justice. Father Pierre-Louis’ ministry at San Mateo is proof of God’s ever-present love.
Catholic Extension Society is honored to share the story of Father Olin Pierre-Louis, 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 Father Pierre-Louis’ by donating today!
