MISSIONER NEWSLETTER – Fall 2025
Coralis Salvador, U.S.-Mexico Border
Coralis Salvador supports women from a co-op in Juárez who create embroidered bags, bracelets, banners, and tablecloths. The artisans, undocumented women from South America, rely on their craft to sustain their families while unable to return home for reasons of safety and economic hardship.
We embrace the challenge to grow from the goodness of communion with each other and God. We strive for understanding, empathy, and learning in relationships.
– Maryknoll Lay Missioners
A cross carried on the Migrant Trail Journey bears the name of a person who died crossing the desert.
GREETINGS FROM THE BORDER OF EL PASO! It has been quite a hot, dusty (haboob) summer that bubbled with activities at the border such as social justice events, talks, and summer festivities.
The El Paso community (lay and religious members) could not turn a deaf ear to the plight of migrants. As a form of resistance and solidarity, I highlight some of our summer involvements.
Migrant Trail Journey: In late May, seven of us participated in a journey following the steps of migrants from the desert of Sasabe, Sonora (Mexico) to Tucson, Arizona. We carried crosses bearing names of the 154 who perished from May 2024 to April 2025. Some of the names were “unknown” or “desconocida/o.” As we approached rest areas, we called each name with a response “presente,” meaning “they are with us.”
We walked 75 miles in seven days and slept under the heavenly stars on sleeping bags. Many interfaith, border, and human rights groups brought us lunch or dinner. It was harsh yet sacred. One of the organizers said, “Part of the walk is to continue to build community, momentum, resistance, and understanding of the migrants.” It was a holy walk, we were one with them and loved them as brothers and sisters. Follow on Facebook.
Master Calendar Hearing: We also trained to be court observers or be a witness outside the courthouses in support of migrants seeking safety as they follow the process for asylum. We accompany migrants before they enter the assigned court room and accompany them as they leave the courtroom until they are safely outside the street. It is heartbreaking to witness agents taking them to detention for deportation without recourse. Volunteers on hand immediately contact family members to inform them of such an event.
I observed a hearing that had 19 respondents scheduled, but due to fear of abduction, only a handful showed up in person with some participating via web. Most of the migrants came without a lawyer. I took notes to submit online a summary of the cases to Border Immigration Legal & Justice Center (BILJC). It warms my heart to observe immigration judges showing patience to ensure migrants understand the process.
Fr. Jarek J. Wysocznski, O.F.M., celebrates Mass on his knees in the desert of Santa Teresa, New Mexico, honoring migrants who perished on their journey.
Search & Rescue: There is a volunteer humanitarian group, led by James Holeman and Abbey Carpenter, that searches high-traffic areas and remote locations for lost and missing migrants in the U.S.-Mexico Border desert (https://battalionsar.com/). As James said, “we search for the lost but not forgotten.”
In June, Jarek J. Wysocznski, O.F.M., introduced a monthly Mass in Santa Teresa, New Mexico for migrants who perished in the desert. We participated in this and also in the annual desert clean-up, collecting back packs, clothing, shoes, and toiletries left behind by migrants as they move on towards the highways. We cleaned and recycled some of the good items. I see the desert as holy ground too.
Arts & Crafts: Two women with a co-op in Juarez make beautiful textile items: embroidered bags for different purposes, bracelets, banners, tablecloths, etc. They are undocumented women from South America who cannot return to their country for economic or safety reasons.
Fr. Bill Morton and Cristina Coronado at the Juarez Cathedral Welcome Center and the Centro Santa Catalina empowered these women to sustain themselves and their families. Visiting and supporting them are part of our Encuentro Project’s agenda.
For the first time in August, we joined the Keystone Heritage Park Arts & Crafts Day in El Paso and had a table to sell their products. The community’s response was moving.
Hopefully you had a funtastic and memorable summer. You bless us with your prayers and continued partnership in our ministry at the border. Thank you so much.
With love and blessings,
Coralis
Community Prayer: Working it out Together
We come together – many gifts in one spirit, many hearts joined in one purpose, many voices blending into truth.
We come as prophets, shaping our vision of truth, bearing our piece of wisdom, proclaiming our good news of salvation.
We come as peacemakers, unifying our purpose, reconciling our hearts, clearing the stones of our conflicts.
We come as pilgrims, journeying together, affirming one another, finding in You our Way our life and our truth.
Gather us now into one holy union.
Weave us together beyond all divisions.
Show us the oneness we are called to be.
Guide us to the source of all community.
Infuse our hearts with one desire, and bring us to the fullness of Your Love.
– Maryknoll 100-year Anniversary
Please consider supporting my mission work at the U.S.-Mexico Border with a donation through the link below.
I invite you to walk with me as a “COMPANION IN MISSION.” Companions in Mission are friends and generous donors who give financial gifts on a regular (usually monthly) basis. For more information, visit Become a Companion in Mission. Thank you so much for your generosity!
Coralis is a community volunteer at a shelter for asylum seekers released from ICE or CBP detentions and at “La Tilma” feeding program of Sacred Heart Church in El Paso, Texas. She previously served with Maryknoll Lay Missioners in Kenya for 19 years. She is the co-author of the Orbis book What’s So Blessed About Being Poor?
