Elizabeth Canales Almanza
Mission Country: Bolivia
hometown: Colton, CA
home parish: Immaculate Conception, Colton, CA
faith community: My husband and I are part of an online faith-sharing group called The Visitation Village, named after the beautiful encounter between Mary and Elizabeth, a reminder that we need each other and that faith is meant to be lived in community. This small group formed organically with other young adults across the United States who are deeply committed to the Gospel and social justice. We meet bi-monthly to pray, reflect, and share life together, drawing from Catholic and other spiritual traditions. Our gatherings include scripture, readings, personal reflections, and open discussions about current events, grief, celebration, and what it means to live faithfully in today’s world. This community has been incredibly life-giving and transformative, and we hope to continue participating while overseas.
languages: Spanish
travel: Mexico and El Salvador several times over the course of my life.
Elizabeth Canales Almanza of Colton, California, has spent 16 years accompanying low-income, first-generation students in Arizona and Southern California—work funded by state and federal grants that helped families (often Spanish-speaking and mixed-status) navigate college access, persistence, and graduation. A bilingual Salvadoran American with a B.S. in Behavioral Sciences (University of La Verne) and an M.A. in Higher Education (University of Arizona), Elizabeth sees education as a path to dignity and systemic change, and her own story of being first-gen continues to shape how she walks alongside others.
Drawn to Maryknoll Lay Missioners at the Los Angeles Religious Education Congress, she and her husband Ray long envisioned serving as a family with their two children Solomon and Siena; after a recent cancer diagnosis and treatment, that call deepened into a grateful, wholehearted “yes.” Rooted in a simple, intentional lifestyle—a cozy 700-square-foot home, a one-car household—Elizabeth connects faith with justice, eco-spirituality, and hospitality. She is part of the online Visitation Village faith-sharing community and hopes to continue those gatherings while in mission.
Known as kind, funny, and generous, Elizabeth brings Spanish fluency, a gift for relationship-building, and a nonviolent, restorative approach to parenting and community life. She loves reading, travel, and puzzle-solving, and cheers for African and Latin American teams during the World Cup. She says she will miss her parents most, but looks forward to serving in Bolivia with her family—living the Gospel through presence, solidarity, and joy.
education:
B.S. Behavioral Sciences, University of La Verne
M.A. Higher Education
work:
For the past 16 years, my career has been dedicated to working on state and federal grant programs that assist low-income, first-generation students in navigating the college admissions process and earning a college degree. Working in both Arizona and Southern California, I have served primarily families from Spanish-speaking communities that often included mixed-status families and those experiencing housing, health, or food insecurities. Witnessing families break cycles of poverty through education has been profoundly rewarding and reinforced my commitment to social justice. These experiences have deepened my empathy and strengthened my ability to work alongside those facing poverty and marginalization. They have taught me the power of accompaniment—standing in solidarity with those who are struggling, amplifying their voices, and working toward systemic change.
volunteer:
As a couple we serve on the Advisory Board for the Office of Marriage and Family Life for the Diocese of San Bernardino. We provide feedback on programming at the diocese and have provided workshops for couples, godparents, and parents.
I am also a parent volunteer at the school where my children go to school. Attending school site council meetings, chaperoning field trips, and volunteering for special events at the school.
hobbies:
Reading, spending quality time with family, traveling, solving puzzles.
What motivated you to become a Maryknoll Lay Missioner?
I discovered Maryknoll Lay Missioners at the Los Angeles Religious Education Congress and was immediately inspired to find an organization rooted in social justice, faith, and service to others within the Catholic tradition.
Maryknoll’s commitment to accompanying marginalized communities through a faith-driven mission resonated deeply with my own spiritual journey and desire to live out the Gospel through action.
Since then, my husband and I have often discussed applying to serve as a family. We wanted our children to be a little older so they could develop an awareness of what it means to live in mission, and we felt called to meet the needs of our own extended family, which made leaving our home during that time difficult. My recent experience with a cancer diagnosis and treatment gave us the opportunity to reflect more deeply on our family’s values, purpose, and the way we want to live in the world.
Throughout this journey, Maryknoll has remained at the forefront of our hearts, as we feel called to serve in a way that is both faith-centered and transformative.
For me, mission is an extension of my faith—a way to embody God’s love by walking in solidarity with those on the margins. Being part of a Catholic community of faith provides the foundation for this work, offering spiritual nourishment, shared values, and a sense of belonging that sustains the challenges and joys of mission life. I believe that serving through Maryknoll will not only allow us to accompany others but will also deepen our own faith as we witness God’s presence in the communities we serve.
What drew you to Maryknoll Lay Missioners specifically, as opposed to other mission or service organizations?
As a teenager, I was always drawn to the idea of serving overseas and seriously considered joining the Peace Corps multiple times before and after college. But I ultimately felt that its mission lacked the deeper values I was looking for, especially a commitment to faith, mutuality, and justice. I was uncomfortable with the undertones of U.S. exceptionalism and the “white savior” narrative that can sometimes accompany international service work. It felt more self-directed than relational, as if we were bringing something to others rather than walking with them.
In Maryknoll Lay Missioners I was inspired to find an organization rooted in the Catholic tradition that emphasized accompaniment, justice, and service grounded in faith. Maryknoll’s mission to live and serve among marginalized communities not as saviors, but as fellow human beings committed to the Gospel resonated deeply with both my spiritual journey and my desire to serve with humility, love, and purpose.
Of MKLM’s 5 Core Values, please choose one and share an example of living it out.
To me, living a simple lifestyle means trying to live in a way that does less harm to myself, others, and to the Earth. I’ve been on a journey of decolonizing my faith, and part of that has been reconnecting with a more grounded eco-spirituality that honors my indigenous roots.
This has given me the opportunity to be more mindful of how I consume as an individual and collectively as a family and trying to live with more intention and care.
The idea of simplicity is something my family and I have been leaning into for a while now. For over a decade, we’ve lived in a small 700-square-foot, two-bedroom home. Even though we had the financial means to have upgraded our space, we never really felt the pull to do that. It just never aligned with our values. Most recently we have downsized to a one-car household. It has been an adjustment but a meaningful one. We are trying to be more conscious about what we buy and how we live, knowing that our choices have ripple effects.
What personal gifts or strengths do you bring to mission?
I bring an open mind and a deep commitment to living in alignment with the values of the gospel particularly justice, peace, and love. I’m a relational person who thrives on building meaningful connections with others and I believe that relationships are at the heart of mission work, and I try to approach them with humility, curiosity, and care. My passion for social justice and desire to serve are grounded in a faith that calls me to see the dignity in every person and to walk alongside others with compassion and purpose.
How do you define “mission” in your own words?
To me, mission is about deep presence, relationship, and living out the Gospel through love, justice, and humility. It’s not about fixing or saving, but about accompanying—walking alongside others, learning from them, and honoring their dignity and stories. Mission means choosing to live intentionally, rooted in compassion and a deep desire to respond to the needs of the world with grace and solidarity.
It also reflects a full-circle moment in my life. As someone who grew up low-income and first in my family to go to college, and who now works in college access for marginalized students, I’ve experienced what it means to be seen, supported, and empowered. Mission, for me, is about offering that same spirit of accompaniment to others wherever I am.
What does “solidarity” mean to you in the context of your mission?
To me, solidarity means standing with others in love, humility, and mutual commitment recognizing that our lives and liberation are bound together. It’s not about helping from a distance, but about walking alongside others, sharing in their joys, struggles, and hopes. True solidarity is rooted in relationship, mutual respect, and a willingness to be transformed by those we accompany.
I see this reflected in the African philosophy of Ubuntu: “I am because we are.” And in the Mayan concept of In Lak’ech: “you are my other me.” Both remind me that we belong to each other, and that our well-being is interconnected. These ideas resonate deeply with the Catholic belief that we are one body in Christ, if one part suffers, we all suffer; if one part is lifted, we all are lifted.
