Author Archives: Pat Erzinger

Legumes for Lent! Help Provide Beans for the Casa . . .

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legumes-logo(a letter from Fr. Gil Gentile, SJ . . .)

Do a Work of Mercy during Lent – Feed the Hungry by Buying a Bag of Beans!

Dear friends & family,

Once again we are appealing to your wonderful generosity. The last time that we made this appeal in 2013, the response to our “Legumes for Lent” Campaign was truly amazing! As you can imagine, the need continues. For the meals and for the grocery bag program for the elderly, handicapped and families, the Casa uses over 7,000 pounds of dried pinto beans per month which costs between $4,000-$5,000! Continue reading →

“In the measure you give you shall receive, and more besides.”

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Mark 5:24

What are the Greatest Needs?

Sister Armida says:  FOOD and MEDICINE are the greatest needs now.  casa-trucks-2Sick people line up at the Clinic while it is still dark and cold. The breakfast lines are very long. People begin arriving at 6:00 AM and circle around the sidewalks outside the Casa shivering in the cold while waiting for the doors to open.  The Casa is a place of refuge, spiritual solace, and friendship for the many men, women and children who come there.

WE THANK GOD for all who donated money to feed the hungry people, and for you who donated blankets, food, and warm clothing. We are grateful for the steady supply of blankets from the Scripps ER delivered by Ron. Your generosity for January was $15,436 from our monthly donors and this includes an anonymous donation of $1,000 from the San Diego Foundation. Three additional anonymous donations of $20,000, $4,000, and $2,300 were also received. Late Christmas giving was $1274.92.  Plus 350 new tarps were donated!  THANK YOU, THANK YOU!! Continue reading →

“The Lord Hears the Cry of the Poor”

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Psalm 34

Christmas at the Casa 2015

Thank you for hearing the cry of the poor!  You made Christmas a time of JOY for our 2014christmas-boysbrothers and sisters in Christ who endure harsh poverty in the dumps of Tijuana.  You provided 1,500 bags of special food and a precious new blanket for 1500 families.

About 1,500 families came via bus lines or on foot from the hills and dumps to attend an early Mass.  The mission of the Casa is to glorify God through the works of mercy. The people did indeed glorify God and the Holy Family by their thankfulness and joy as they received the food, blankets, toys, and quilts. Continue reading →

Jesus is the Face of the Poor

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Give the Most Valuable Gift You Can Give this Christmas — the Gift of a Donation to the Poor

“Laura and her husband Marcial and their four children live in a very poor and distant  holiday-scene
colony. The father has a leg prosthesis as the result of a serious accident. In this colony, many of the poor work at making mud bricks. Marcial makes bricks. The ‘factory’ is the size of a small house. Noxious black smoke and flames continually billow from the chimney. This kiln serves as Marcial’s main source of income. They do not own the land upon which they live and are at risk to be thrown out of their little shack anytime. Marcial earns little from this job and has no work if the bricks do not sell.”   This family periodically receives food, clothes, and school supplies from the Casa and are deeply grateful.  These are the people of the Casa that your generous donations help to survive — and they need your help this Christmas. Continue reading →

“Give us this day our daily bread.”

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“My name is Jose.  I am 14 years old and have been diagnosed with infantile cerebral  

The children of the Casa are grateful for school supplies and shoes.

The children of the Casa are grateful for school supplies and shoes.

paralysis. I also have a cleft lip. I never met my dad, only met my mother Ramona who passed away a year ago in Tijuana.  She had cancer. I have a few brothers and sisters, but all are poor, and all of them have their own family.

That is why my mother brought me here to the Casa where all the Sisters love me, feed me, give me clothes, and put me in a special school. This school charges 350 pesos a week (about $28 U.S. dollars). Here they teach me a better language, help my behavior, and also give me food. My sister works in a market. She has her own children and her pay is too low to help with my school. This is the reason that I came here to the Casa asking for help, so they can help with my school because studying makes me happy.” Continue reading →

” . . . whoever is kind to the needy honors God.”

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“He who oppresses the poor shows contempt for their Maker, but whoever is kind to the needy honors God.”  Proverbs 14:31

casa-sept2014

The People of the Casa Thank You — in Their Own Words (Translated)

“Hola, my name is David. I am 13 years old. Through this note, I present to you my most heart-felt gratitude for the help you offer us, the school supplies. You are angels announcing from heaven that have helped us in our scholarly future. Thank you!! God bless you.” Continue reading →

“To live charitably means not looking out for our own interests . . .

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” . . . but carrying the burdens of the weakest and poorest among us.” Pope Francis, Pontifex, 11/25/13

“Mrs. Isabel B. has been separated from her husband for two years. He left when she
2momswas pregnant with their 4th child because she refused to have an abortion. She works very hard to support the family:  sons 15, 9, 2, and a daughter 11. They go to school. She takes the little one and goes to clean houses.”

“She worries because she does not have enough to feed them and also send them to school. She is thinking, with tears in her eyes, between two options . . . to have the oldest leave the 9th grade, so he can work or give in adoption the little one. The children are earning good grades in school. The children receive help and food from the Casa and milk for the little one. The three older ones have received catechetical instructions here in the Casa and received Baptism, First Communion and Confirmation.”  These are the heartbreaking challenges of the people of the Casa de Los Pobres. Continue reading →

“Love consists in sharing what one has and what one is with those one loves . . .

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 . . . Love ought to show itself in deeds more than in words.”

From Brandon:  “First, I thank God and my parents for having something that I can share with you. It is few but with much love. I am 9 years and pray to God that when I grow up I am going to help the children that need most. Thank you for everything! May God Bless you!”

THANK YOU for your GENEROUS donations of $13,729.12 from 43 families. We also studentsthank the San Diego Foundation for a generous check of $1,000 from an anonymous donor and for a very special donation of 500 shares of stock to provide for the general needs of the Casa!  Thank you for donations of bedding, clothing, miscellaneous items, and FOOD. And a special thank you to All Hallows Church for the many donated school supplies. Your financial donations keep the people who come to the Casa from hunger and support vital services in the Medical Clinic. Continue reading →

Casa de Los Pobres Featured in the Southern Cross

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southerncrossThe work of the Sisters of Casa de Los Pobres was featured in the Southern Cross in the May 2014 issue!

Nicholas, a Jesuit novice, accompanied the madres to the colonias.  His two-part account of his visit to the colonias gives a detailed look into the life of the poorest of the poor, living just over the border in Tijuana, Mexico.

The Southern Cross article appeared in Spanish — but we have the English version posted here:

Part 1 of the Visit                      Part 2 of the Visit