Ana Morales, Wilber Montoya, and Gabriela Hernández. Watch the ceremony.
Maryknoll Lay Missioners commissioned three Salvadoran missioners—Gabriela Hernández, Wilber Montoya, and Ana Morales—on May 16 in Cochabamba, Bolivia.
The Covenant Signing Ceremony marked a historic moment: the first time Maryknoll Lay Missioners has sent a team entirely formed and missioned from outside the United States.
At the Maryknoll Society Chapel in Cochabamba, the three new missioners, all from El Salvador, signed commitment contracts for a time period of two and a half years. Ana, Wilber, and Gabriela selected the theme, “Missioners of Hope,” for the celebration, in honor of the current Jubilee Year of Hope, proclaimed by Pope Francis.
“This Covenant Signing is a celebration that reminds us of God’s promises to be with us and lead us and of our personal and communal response grounded in faith, hope, and being loved,” says Maryknoll Lay Missioners Executive Director Elvira Ramírez. “Gaby, Wilber, and Ana are a visible sign of how the Spirit is moving in new and exciting ways within our organization and in the world.”
After receiving a sending blessing on March 2 in Zaragoza, El Salvador, the three missioners departed on March 14 for Cochabamba, Bolivia. They spent two months in Maryknoll Lay Missioners’ orientation program there. Their formation included not only this preparation, but also years of experience in their careers and service.
On March 2, 2025, a sending blessing was held at the Maryknoll Parish in El Salvador for Ana, Gaby, and Wilber.
Gabriela Hernández: The gift of joy
Gabriela, or “Gaby,” is an accomplished systems and computing engineer from Colonia Lourdes, Planes de Renderos, El Salvador.
She has extensive experience in administrative and technical roles, having worked in maternal lactation support centers, where she managed database updates, logistics coordination, and IT maintenance.
Gaby also has a strong background in community involvement and volunteering, particularly with families in rural areas.
She describes the decision to become a missioner as one that requires courage—letting go of familiar surroundings and routines—but also one that brings rich rewards. She says it’s inspiring to step out of her comfort zone and be more open and receptive to new experiences and other cultures.
For Gaby, mission is a “valuable gift” that can bring joy—not only to those served, but also to the missioner herself.
“Joy plays a very important role. If I am joyful, I create openness with others. Wherever we missioners go, we must go with joy,” she says. “There will be moments when we feel tired, stressed, or receive bad news—but here in orientation, we’re learning techniques to handle that, to continue serving with joy. Giving without expecting anything in return.”
Gaby says that going through difficulties herself has made her more empathetic and capable of giving. “After those experiences, I placed myself in God’s hands—and I healed. He gave me a new heart. And now, that heart is full of love for others. That’s why I feel this desire to help—and that’s how I grow spiritually.”
Wilber Montoya: Justice in action
Wilber comes from San Cristóbal, El Salvador, and is a recent psychology graduate from Universidad Pedagógica de El Salvador, with a specialization in neurodevelopment evaluation and stimulation.
He has spent more than a decade in community engagement, including work with Plan International El Salvador, and extensive volunteer roles coordinating youth and adult groups, promoting human rights, and facilitating pastoral programs.
His experience includes participation in missionary training workshops in Guatemala.
Wilber says he was moved to mission work by seeing the needs and injustices in the world. His past experiences also taught him “how much good we can do, even with what little we know.”
“There are economic and social problems everywhere; however, in Bolivia, we know that it is currently experiencing an economic crisis. Despite being a country with many resources, it remains one of the Latin American regions with high poverty rates. Therefore, with our work, we try to work with the most marginalized communities that have little access to health and education, among other things,” he says.
He wants to do in Bolivia what Maryknoll lay missioners have done in his home country. “Before coming to Bolivia, I saw the ministries in El Salvador. I saw how missioners were working in poor, marginalized communities and the impact they had. One woman told me the missioners were like angels God had sent to her life. Even if it seems like small work from the outside, it means so much to the people receiving it. It’s the same here in Bolivia—the missioners are having a real impact.”
Wilber says he’s profoundly drawn to Maryknoll Lay Missioners’ core value of nonviolence. “It’s not just about avoiding conflict—it’s a whole new way of living, relating, and building a better world together. It opens the door to other cultures and seeks the common good.”
On March 14, Ana, Wilbur, and Gaby departed for Cochabamba, Bolivia, where they engaged in Maryknoll Lay Missioners’ orientation and formation program for two months. They will remain in mission in Bolivia. Pictured, they are greeted upon their arrival by the missioners in Bolivia, including Louise Locke, Filo Siles, Joe Loney, Victoria Arce, Josh Sisolak, and Juan Gómez.
Ana Morales: The style of Jesus
Ana is originally from San José Villanueva, but she has lived in Zaragoza, La Libertad, El Salvador for more than 23 years. She brings to Maryknoll Lay Missioners a wealth of experience in both business and community leadership.
With a degree in Tourism Business Administration from Universidad Tecnológica de El Salvador, Ana has over a decade of experience in administrative leadership roles, including managing cooperatives, coordinating with NGOs, and organizing community initiatives.
Ana’s extensive volunteer work includes promoting cultural heritage, supporting local tourism development, and empowering women and youth through workshops and training programs.
Ana says she comes “from a humble family who, like many in El Salvador, had to work hard to move forward.” The support of her family motivated her to consider mission, and their encouragement helped her to make her decision.
Her approach to mission is rooted in the “missionary style of Jesus.” She says, “It means being aware of reality, living simply, and accompanying people closely. The real mission is out there—with the people who need support. We’re called to walk alongside them in their joys and sorrows, with love and presence.”
While there are differences in slang and expressions in the Spanish spoken in El Salvador versus in Bolivia, Ana says the Salvadoran missioners, as native Spanish speakers, can connect easily with Bolivians. And she says, “as fellow Latinos, we naturally build community and trust quickly.”
She embraces the call to mission with both realism and hope, and acknowledges the challenges ahead but sees them as opportunities for growth and grace.
“I know this will be a life-changing experience. Leaving our homes, families, and friends is not easy, but we’re already building new friendships and forming a new family here. It’s been beautiful and positive,” she says.
What she most looks forward to is “the chance to work hand-in-hand with communities, to contribute to a more just world where there are equal opportunities and where human dignity prevails.”
A new chapter in mission
Gaby, Wilber, and Ana are already visiting potential ministry sites and getting to know communities in Bolivia.
They also bring fresh energy to Maryknoll’s presence there. The new missioners carry with them the spirit of their own communities in El Salvador—the same spirit that has shaped their faith and led them to mission.
The Bolivia team, which already includes U.S. lay missioners, is excited to welcome the new Salvadorans.
The commissioning of Salvadoran missioners in Bolivia reflects a broader evolution within Maryknoll Lay Missioners toward a more inclusive and reciprocal model of mission.
Historically, membership in Maryknoll Lay Missioners has been limited to U.S. citizens or residents. The 2022 Mission Assembly initiated a process to remove these restrictions and to welcome lay missioners from around the world responding to the call to mission.
By 2023, Maryknoll Lay Missioners approved a three-year timeline to implement this pilot program, selecting El Salvador as the first country for recruitment.
This decision marked a shift to a more globally diverse community of missioners, better reflecting the universal nature of the church and the mission it serves.
“The call to mission is truly universal. Our vision is not just to send missioners—but to be a community of missioners from all parts of the world reflecting God’s love in words and deeds,” Ramírez says. “As Gaby, Wilber, and Ana begin their ministries in Bolivia, the Maryknoll community prays with them and for them—grateful for their work and their witness.”
ABOUT MARYKNOLL LAY MISSIONERS
Maryknoll Lay Missioners is a Catholic mission-sending community committed to nonviolence through prevention, intervention, reconciliation, and restoration of all creation. We are long-term missioners and missioner families in nine African, Asian, and American countries. Striving to create an inclusive and anti-racist world, we live with those most excluded in society to transform unjust structures together. Learn more at mklm.org.
Jennifer Tomshack was Maryknoll Lay Missioners' communications manager from August, 2024-January, 2026.
