Visiting Angels

What this episode covers

Stephen R. Di Trolio Coakley and Héctor Herrera talk to philosophy professor Dr. Mariana Alessandri, whose theological vision of migration is informed by her teaching experience at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley and the work being done with migrants in the Rio Grande Valley. She recounts her experience of living and working at the border, as well as issues related to migration in South Texas amidst the events at the border in 2019. Today, this conversation is as timely as ever. Dr. Alessandri also introduces us to the organizations and the people still doing the work on the ground. She tells the story of the ministry of Sister Norma Pimentel, Executive Director of Catholic Charities of the Rio Grande Valley (CCRGV)—named among Time’s 100 Most Influential People of 2020 as “the Pope’s favorite nun”—and her humanitarian work at the Humanitarian Respite Center (HRC). HRC was initiated by CCRGV as a direct response to the refugee relief crisis that began in June of 2014 in the Rio Grande Valley and since has served 100,000 refugees. Part of the larger family of Catholic Charities USA and Caritas Internacionalis, CCRGV is the first point of contact for these individuals when they are released from the immigration detention centers. HRC provides basic human care to refugees and their families from other countries seeking asylum in the United States. To support the work of Sister Norma and the Humanitarian Respite Center, visit the Catholic Charities of the Rio Grande Valley donation page at: https://www.catholiccharitiesrgv.org/Donations.aspx MORE LISTENING “Restoring Human Dignity at the US Southern Border” by Sister Norma Pimentel, TEDWomen 2019, December 2019. https://www.ted.com/talks/norma_pimentel_restoring_human_dignity_at_the_us_southern_border#t-96

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