Press Releases
A shared “yes” to mission
Maryknoll Lay Missioners sent forth eight new missioners to serve in communities across the Americas and Africa.
Maryknoll Lay Missioners prepares to commission newest class for global service
At the upcoming Covenant & Sending Ceremony on Dec. 6 in El Paso, Texas, Maryknoll Lay Missioners will send forth eight candidates training to serve marginalized communities around the world.
Radical welcome: Spirit of Mission Award goes to Celine and Don Woznica for migrant ministry
Returned Maryknoll lay missioners Don and Celine Woznica mobilized their suburban Chicago community to create a hub of hospitality for thousands of migrants—offering food, clothing, housing support, and accompaniment. Their lifelong commitment to mission and justice is now being honored with the 2025 Bishop John E. McCarthy Spirit of Mission Award.
Maryknoll Lay Missioners celebrates 50 years of global mission
Celebrating a milestone anniversary, Maryknoll Lay Missioners honors an inspiring past, a compelling present, and a strong future.
Three Salvadorans sent to serve in Bolivia
Maryknoll Lay Missioners celebrates a new step in intercultural mission.
Old roots, new shoots
Maryknoll lay missioners were commissioned to serve in Bolivia and East Africa during a Sending Ceremony in Ossining, New York on Dec. 7, 2024.
Josie and Frank Cuda recognized with 2024 Bishop McCarthy Award
Each year, the Bishop McCarthy Award honors Maryknoll lay missioners who embody the enduring spirit of mission upon returning home.
A Maryknoll day to discuss and ponder – “Just Cause”
A Maryknoll Lay Missioners statement
Man on a mission
Newest Maryknoll lay missioner Josh Sisolak is set to carry on his family’s legacy as he prepares for mission—to serve marginalized communities in Bolivia.
You Are Not Alone
Veteran Lay Missioner, Joe Loney, recently got to observe the ministries of one of our newest lay missioners, Wilber Montoya. He shares a beautiful reflection of his observations with us here.
A small village, a wider world
From Ordinary Time to extraordinary resilience, missioner Sarah Bueter reflects on what it means to live alongside a community in El Salvador shaped by memory, faith, and unfinished hope.
A life shaped by mission and friendship
An early co-director of Maryknoll Lay Missioners, Chuck Lathrop helped guide the organization through its earliest years while carrying a lifelong commitment to mission across continents. He is remembered with gratitude by family, friends, and missioners around the world.
Catholic search party finds migrant remains in desert
Maryknoll Lay Missioner Heidi Cerneka, an immigration lawyer at the border, joined Jesuits and other volunteers on a sobering mission.
An elder’s mission to form good men
As he balances graduate studies by Zoom, missioner Francis Wayne continues his mission in Kenya—walking alongside incarcerated youth and men in recovery, offering steady presence, practical skills, and hope rooted in dignity and community.
Learning to see possibility
At the Home of Hope in Cambodia, small, patient acts of accompaniment help young people with developmental challenges discover new confidence, connection, and joy.
A shared “yes” to mission
Maryknoll Lay Missioners sent forth eight new missioners to serve in communities across the Americas and Africa.
A missioner’s long legacy of faith and service
A refugee turned missioner and beloved community leader, Son Nguyen devoted his life to others—from Houston’s Vietnamese Catholic community to vulnerable children and families in Bolivia. He is remembered for his courage, kindness, and the love he poured into every act.
Dignity restored through community
Through parish accompaniment and shared meals, Maryknoll lay missioners Filo Siles and Joe Loney are helping older adults in Cochabamba reclaim belonging and hope amid the challenges of aging.
A new chapter opens for a mission—and for the missioner
As Uzima Centre enters a time of leadership transition, Maryknoll lay missioner Joanne Miya reflects on positive change—from expanded apprenticeships and nonviolence education to new spiritual accompaniment at the Lake House of Prayer—while trusting the next generation to carry the work forward.
Out of ruin, a place to call home
After heavy rains worsened the condition of a fragile mud house in Mombasa, a widow and her children found themselves facing the loss of their home. With support from the HOPE Project, what began as collapse became a fresh beginning on solid ground.
Dust trails toward the heart of God
From mountain villages to dense urban neighborhoods in El Salvador, Maryknoll lay missioner Rick Dixon accompanies children whose courage and joy reveal God’s glory in the everyday. Through broken-down buses, makeshift libraries, and a growing circle of young “librarians,” he witnesses a community stitching together learning, belonging, and hope—one small hand at a time.
At a crossroads on the border: Challenges faced, next steps emerging
Amid a shifting border landscape, Maryknoll lay missioner Coralis Salvador reports on court accompaniment, shelter realities, and the groups who joined the Encuentro Project this year—anchored by a renewed sense of call and calm discernment.
Pilot program for vulnerable families in Bolivia reports dramatic results
In the Cochabamba suburb of Tiquipaya, a new program is offering families a path out of poverty, instability, and domestic violence. Led by Maryknoll lay missioner Louise Locke and a local psychologist, the center has already shown remarkable impact: children gaining confidence and skills, parents strengthening relationships, and one family in particular breaking a long-entrenched cycle of violence. With a growing waiting list, the program now hopes to expand so more families can find safety, support, and a dignified future.
A culture of peace broadens its reach
With Project AFYA reaching more than 5,000 students in Brazil and EcoRetreats now being replicated in the United States, missioners Kathy Bond and Flavio Rocha report a year marked by expansion and impact. Their ministries continue to reduce school violence, strengthen emotional resilience, and inspire communities to reconnect with creation.
Put hope into action with your gift
At Advent’s threshold, we step forward as Pilgrims of Hope. With your matched Giving Tuesday gift, you help send new missioner candidates into places shadowed by poverty, displacement, and injustice as well as support missioners already serving around the world.
Through the long rain, hope remains
In Kenya’s season of unrelenting cold and rain, Maryknoll lay missioner Theresa Glaser reflects on the stark contrast between her own simple circumstances and those of her students’ families. At the St. John Bosco Rehabilitation Center, she sees how warmth, learning, and faith can change young lives—and how gratitude can rise even from the mud.
Maryknoll Lay Missioners prepares to commission newest class for global service
At the upcoming Covenant & Sending Ceremony on Dec. 6 in El Paso, Texas, Maryknoll Lay Missioners will send forth eight candidates training to serve marginalized communities around the world.
Bread of Life
From bustling basketball courts to quiet daily rhythm at Lake House of Prayer, Stephen and Loyce Veryser’s ministry in Tanzania bridges the physical and the spiritual. This fall, as they celebrate new beginnings—a completed basketball court, a renewed retreat center—they remind us that faith, like sport, flourishes through community, perseverance, and grace.
Stories of hope by the sea
On a radiant Mission Sunday in Cambodia, a lay missioner pauses by the water to reflect on faith, privilege, and purpose. Between sips of coffee and conversations with two young fruit vendors, she finds that the truest stories of hope often begin in the simplest exchanges—by the sea, beneath the sun, and within the human heart.
MKLM Executive Director Elvira Ramirez preaches for All Saints’ Day on Catholic Women Preach
Preaching for Solemnity of All Saints, Elvira Ramirez invites us to become our best selves—with the help of the Holy Spirit—for the glory of God.
Misioneros salvadoreños comparten un primer vistazo a la vida en misión en Bolivia
Maryknoll Lay Missioners envió a tres misioneros salvadoreños—Gabriela Hernández, Wilber Montoya y Ana Morales—el 16 de mayo en Cochabamba, Bolivia. Fue un momento histórico: la primera vez que Maryknoll Lay Missioners envía un equipo totalmente formado y enviado desde fuera de los Estados Unidos. Ahora, al comenzar sus ministerios, los tres misioneros ofrecen su primera actualización desde el terreno.
Communion of saints, community of care
At Uzima Centre in Tanzania, missioner Joanne Miya reflects on the meaning of community in light of Maryknoll Lay Missioners’ 50th anniversary. For her, it includes not only those she serves today but also the beloved friends, missioners, and family members who have passed on—her “communion of saints.” Through their lives and enduring presence and intercession, she is reminded that every story becomes part of a larger mosaic of faith, resilience, and love.
Walking in circles—in a good way
Two Salvadoran teens once helped missioner Josh Wetmore find his footing in an unfamiliar culture and language. Now, three years later, he finds himself walking the same roads with Emelly and Jeremiahs as they prepare for college—and as he prepares to return home. In the classroom, in the library, and along the dusty paths of El Cedro, their journeys have been intertwined in ways that continue to shape them all.
Farewell to Fr. Charlie: A legacy of 25 years in Cambodia
For a quarter century, Fr. Charles Dittmeier has been a steady presence in Cambodia—walking alongside the deaf community, celebrating Eucharist with international parishioners, and sharing life with Maryknoll missioners and friends. At his side for part of this journey has been missioner Julie Lawler, who joined in interpreting, celebrating, and honoring his life of service. As Fr. Charlie retires and returns home to Kentucky, three heartfelt celebrations in Phnom Penh marked his profound impact, his wisdom, and the countless relationships he nurtured.
Immaculate’s path from survival to leadership
When missioner Joanne Blaney arrived in Uganda to accompany survivors of the Lord’s Resistance Army, she met women whose lives bore the heaviest burdens of violence. One of them, Immaculate Adong, was only eight when her father was killed in the 1995 Atiak massacre. Today, she manages a women’s cooperative that empowers survivors with skills, solidarity, and hope—showing how faith and resilience can rebuild lives and communities.
Joy as resistance
In the mountains of Chalatenango, where storms recall the sorrows of El Salvador’s past, missioner Sarah Bueter discovers that joy is no fragile privilege. It is strength, exercised daily in laughter and lament, and a light that defies despair with love.
Amid tension, signs of hope in Cambodia
As border clashes between Cambodia and Thailand give rise to displacement, missioner Hang Tran witnesses hardship and resilience. From children coloring their way toward calm in crowded camps to a historic episcopal ordination drawing 3,500 faithful, the country holds both sorrow and joy in the same breath, and Hang finds glimpses of grace that point toward Micah’s vision of swords turned into plowshares.
Hope takes root, connects continents
From Maryknoll Lay Missioners’ Golden Jubilee in New York to an eco-spirituality retreat in Ohio, missioners in Brazil Kathy Bond and Flávio Rocha share practices of peace, healing, and connection that nurture a more just and compassionate world.
‘Guided by God’: One woman’s journey from refugee to a life of giving
Thu Tam Hoang went from being a refugee herself to helping refugees and becoming a Maryknoll Lay Missioner in Cambodia. She was profiled by Union of Catholic Asian News.
A summer of solidarity at the border
From desert trails to courtroom steps, missioner Coralis Salvador joins interfaith and community efforts in the Southwest to honor lives lost, accompany asylum seekers, and uphold dignity at the U.S.-Mexico border. Her summer of solidarity—marked by prayer, advocacy, and hands-on support—reveals the courage of migrants and the compassion of the communities that welcome them.
Together we send forth missioners of hope
Your support makes historic moments possible—like sending forth new missioners from El Salvador to serve in Bolivia. Because of you, hope is crossing borders and reaching communities most in need.
Podcast spotlights Maryknoll missioners Anita and Curt Klueg’s years in Kenya
Anita and Curt Klueg, who served in Kenya with Maryknoll Lay Missioners alongside their two daughters, are featured in a recent episode of the “1 Christian 1 Topic” podcast. The couple discusses their ministries with children and families, the challenges of raising a family overseas, and the lasting impact of their mission experience on their lives back in the United States.
Jubilee marks a new horizon for mission
Executive Director Elvira Ramirez reflects on Maryknoll Lay Missioners’ Golden Jubilee celebration. Drawing on the themes and voices of the Jubilee gathering, Elvira invites us to join in honoring the past while embracing the vision of a promising future rooted in faith, community, and God’s enduring presence.
Maryknoll Magazine: Holy ground in Kitale
Maryknoll lay missioner Theresa Glaser follows her calling to Kenya, where she serves as a teacher for children at risk of homelessness.
Celebrating the life of Sam Stanton
Sam Stanton (Class of 1985) served Maryknoll Lay Missioners in many different capacities for more than 33 years, including 10 years as executive director. During his 13 years as a lay missioner in southern Chile he worked in social and rural development and headed up Catholic Social Services in the Diocese of Linares.
National Catholic Reporter: 50 years on, Maryknoll lay missioners celebrate lives changed by service
Maryknoll lay missioners from across the globe were invigorated by messages of hope during a weekend gathering in Ossining, New York, that culminated a yearlong 50th anniversary celebration.
OSV News: Maryknoll Lay Missioners mark 50 years doing ‘a world of good for a world in need’
In an era of conflict and division, it’s an intriguing and empowering invitation: “Do a world of good for a world in need.” It comes from the Maryknoll Lay Missioners — a Catholic mission-sending community that tirelessly spreads a message of nonviolence through “prevention, intervention, reconciliation, and the restoration of all creation.”
From chalkboard to keyboard
When Theresa Glaser arrived in Kenya as a Maryknoll lay missioner, she longed to serve the “poorest of the poor.” At St. John Bosco Rehabilitation Center, where vulnerable children prepare for formal schooling, Theresa found her calling not just in witnessing poverty, but in changing futures. By helping equip a computer lab and printer station, she’s helped lift both students and teachers from the margins of the digital world into a space of opportunity and hope.
Hunger in Kenya’s breadbasket
In Kitale, Kenya—an area known as the country’s breadbasket—abundant maize fields stretch to the horizon. Yet hunger persists in nearby villages, where families walk miles asking for food. Missioner Kathy Flatoff joins the Daughters of Charity in their tireless work to feed the poorest of the poor through a small but vital nutrition program. Amid scarcity, rising costs, and heartbreaking choices, their ministry offers a glimpse of God’s presence among those who suffer most.
Smiling in the face of adversity
When tragedy left Lucy a widow with three children, no income, and eventually homeless, hope seemed out of reach. But through the compassionate outreach of missioner Rich Tarro and the HOPE Project, her family found support—food, school fees, and most of all, dignity. Rich shares how mission is less about solving the world’s problems and more about meeting Jesus in others and bringing light to those walking in darkness.
Radical welcome: Spirit of Mission Award goes to Celine and Don Woznica for migrant ministry
Returned Maryknoll lay missioners Don and Celine Woznica mobilized their suburban Chicago community to create a hub of hospitality for thousands of migrants—offering food, clothing, housing support, and accompaniment. Their lifelong commitment to mission and justice is now being honored with the 2025 Bishop John E. McCarthy Spirit of Mission Award.
Vision magazine profiled Sr. Deirdre Griffin, Maryknoll lay missioner at the border
Sr. Deirdre Griffin, an immigration lawyer in El Paso who accompanies asylum seekers at the U.S.-Mexico border, was featured in the latest issue of the publication of the National Religious Vocation Conference, highlighting her deep commitment to justice and human dignity.
FaithND reflection by Notre Dame alum highlights Maryknoll Lay Missioners’ work in El Paso
In a recent FaithND Gospel reflection, Notre Dame alumnus James Luk recounts his time with Maryknoll Lay Missioners in El Paso, where he witnessed the power of faith lived out through daily service to migrants at the border.
Mango tree cathedrals: Healing, justice, and hope in Northern Uganda
In the quiet shade of mango trees across Northern Uganda, Maryknoll lay missioners Marj Humphrey and Joanne Blaney met with parish leaders, teachers, and refugees who are putting lessons of healing, nonviolence, and restorative justice into practice. From remote village churches to camps along the South Sudan border, these open-air gatherings have become places of listening, courage, and renewal. Here, amid deep scars of conflict and loss, communities are finding new ways to mend relationships and move forward—together.
Angel Mountain
In a time of profound personal transition, missioner Rick Dixon reflects on loss, vocation, and the thin veil between this life and the next. As he leaves his ministry in Mexicali, Mexico, and returns to El Salvador, Rick shares the deeply moving story of his late niece, Kirsty Angel Mountain—her struggles with mental illness, her spiritual insight, and the lasting imprint she leaves on his heart and mission.
Trafficked across borders: Migrants trapped by deception, violence, and injustice
Across borders and continents, vulnerable migrants are coerced into forced labor, sexual exploitation, and criminal activity. Maryknoll lay missioner Heidi Cerneka shares stories of courage, survival, and the urgent call to defend human dignity. On World Day Against Trafficking in Persons, bear witness—and take action.
Remembering Atiak: 30 years after the massacre
In 1995, the massacre in Atiak, Uganda, claimed scores of lives—but unlike tragedies elsewhere, it passed with little notice from the world. Thirty years later, Maryknoll lay missioner Marj Humphrey returns to the place that has haunted her memory, bearing witness to both the scars of the past and the quiet perseverance of those who remain.
The smile of accomplishment speaks louder than letters
In a small library in El Cedro, El Salvador, a simple typing class becomes a quiet but powerful lesson in patience, persistence, and pride. Maryknoll lay missioner Josh Wetmore reflects on how the struggle to master one stubborn keyboard key becomes a moment of transformation—for his student Gabriela, and for himself.
Maryknoll Lay Missioners celebrates 50 years of global mission
Celebrating a milestone anniversary, Maryknoll Lay Missioners honors an inspiring past, a compelling present, and a strong future.
