By Mike Shawver
SACRAMENTO—On April 29 in Sacramento, 25 people from the Diocese of San Bernardino joined with Catholics from all over the state of California for the annual Catholic Advocacy Day gathering. They met with members of the California State Senate and California State Assembly to be a powerful voice for public policy issues of concern to the Catholic Church in California.
SAN BERNARDINO—“There are so many obstacles to just make it to the end of the month.”
It was a sentiment echoed by many participants who experienced Catholic Charities San Bernardino-Riverside’s first Poverty Simulation for students and faculty in the School of Social Work at California State University, San Bernardino.
INDIAN WELLS—The Bishop’s Dinner continues to reach unprecedented levels of attendance and financial support, according to figures from the 15th annual event held on Apr. 26.
Approximately 1,213 people attended the dinner at the Hyatt Regency in Indian Wells, topping last year’s record setting number by more than 200 guests. The dinner raised more than $781,000 to benefit the education of Diocesan seminarians. Last year’s proceeds totaled about $600,000.
By Jeanette Arnquist
The first thing you have to understand is that crossing the desert between the Mexican border and Tucson is very dangerous. There is NO water. None. Well, there are some cattle tanks that amount to e-coli soup with a side of salmonella, but even these are far apart.
The terrain is brutal. It is rocky and steep. Some places there are trails, others just tracks and others just bush whacking. In Arizona, most of the vegetation is full of spines or thorns. There are rattlesnakes and scorpions. And it can be very hot. And it can be very cold as well.
ADELANTO—On a day when the pain of Jesus’ Passion is remembered, María López’s testimony made the pain of national immigration law tragically real.
López spoke into the microphone after more than 250 people had prayed and reflected on the Stations of the Cross outside the Adelanto Detention Center in the High Desert on Good Friday. She shared the story of her husband, who had been detained in the Adelanto facility before being deported to Mexicali, where he suffered a violent death after being robbed.
SAN BERNARDINO—When new San Bernardino Mayor Carey Davis convened a group of the city’s religious leaders in April to focus on preventing youth-related crime and violence, the Catholic Church was well represented.
At the table were Father Leonard De Pasquale, I.M.C., V.F., Administrator of St. Bernardine parish; Father Henry Sseriiso, I.M.C., Administrator of Our Lady of the Assumption; and Father Manuel Cardoza, who will be Administrator of Our Lady of Hope parish beginning July 1. Also present was David Okonkwo, Director of the Diocesan Office of Catholics of African Descent and Michael Segura, a Catholic community organizer.
