OK! So I left off saying that we visited each of our job placements yesterday. First of all, I need to explain that I have four of the most amazing casa-mates in the world! Katie, Colleen, Paula and Greg. We started out the day by visiting Dolores Mission School and Parish which is where Katie will be teaching P.E. classes, Paula and I will be doing youth ministry, and Colleen will be working in collaboration with as youth resource coordinator. The principal of the school gave us a presentation on the history of DM and the Boyle Heights area. The school is surrounded by project housing, and that is where most students come from. $5600 is the actual cost of tuition at DMS, but expense is never something that should turn a family away from an education. The school works with families personally to come up with a payment plan. Something like 90% of students are given scholarships. Some families only pay $20 a month, depending on their income and situation. The school is hardly run on tuition, the money really comes in from fundraising and donations.

It was nothing less than inspiring to hear the story of Dolores Mission and how this community has come together in order to promote change. There are so many organizations that have come out of this community. I don't have time to go into all of them, but I'll tell you about one that stuck with me. Last year there was a fatal shooting on a corner just a block from the school and parish community. In response, the older women in the community came together, prayed, tried to think what Christ would have them do in this situation, and out of their contemplation came an idea. These women all wore green shirts and stood on every street corner in order to ensure their children getting to and from school safely. On the corner where the shooting happened, two older women and Father Scott (my boss) stood. They didn't need to say anything, just their presence was enough. The respect that people have for these older women and for Father Scott who has done so much for this community is incredible.

After the presentation we walked across the street to the DM church, which was beautiful. By night, it becomes a homeless shelter for men trying to get jobs. There is actually a sleep capacity sign in the church. Just to the right of the church there is a beautiful outdoor area for gathering and parties. The homeless men are involved in gardening, so there are an abundance of plants around the Church as well. There is so much to be involved in here, I can't wait to get started.

Next, we drove over to Greg's placement, the LA Center for Law and Justice. His workplace was celebrating the end of the term for their interns, so they were having a big bbq party that we got to join in on. Greg's placement is very inspiring because they offer free help to people in this area who otherwise could not receive legal help. He will be working largely with women involved in domestic violence. After Greg's placement, we visited Colleen's placement, Projecto Pastoral. This place was bustling with little kids getting ready for a talent show that they were putting on last night! It is basically, from what I understand, a youth center and Colleen will be working with here and in connection with Dolores Mission in youth outreach. One of the goals of this organization is something they called "pipelines," to promote a positive childhood that lasts and eventually leads to attending college.

We were invited back to Dolores Mission to end the day in meditation. Yolanda, a lay minister at DMP, lead us through an Ignation mediation in which we placed ourselves in Peter's feet while he looked out to Christ who was walking on water. We all found this type of meditation/prayer to be very peaceful and powerful. It was a beautiful way to end the very busy day. We drew cards to figure out room situations, and I am living in a double with Colleen--yay! I'm pretty excited about my new roomie. Last night we took it easy, got lost trying to find "El Superior," the local grocery store, not to be confused with "El Super," the least cool of the two.  We did a little staple shopping, walked back to the casa, cut up half a watermelon, warmed up the last of the pizza, and had a great dinner and great conversation.

East LA in a few words: colorful, big families, big-eyed beautiful babies, hoop earrings, taco trucks, horchata, little old ladies, smiling faces, mariachi, loud music, porch parties.

I love you, ELA. Can't wait to get to know you better.

reception area outside church

Colleen at her placement with the mural of Boyle Heights the kids made (it explains the different paths a child can take in their community, either positive in the church or negative into gang life)

Dolores Mission Parish

Dolores Mission Parish sleeping capacity sign