Five Things to Remember for Jan. 9

 

1.      Unaccompanied Refugee and Migrant Children are among the most vulnerable people on earth. Refugee children who have lost their families through war, violence, or other causes are often forgotten when they arrive in refugee camps, alone, scared and, at times, abused and exploited. Another vulnerable population is the children traveling alone to the U.S. without legal status. Upon entering the country without documentation, they often are apprehended by the Department of Homeland Security and placed in the custody of the Office of Refugee Resettlement. They face alone the uncertainties of being held in the custody of the U.S. government and awaiting their case determination or reunification with family. MRS’ Children’s Services provides critical assistance by providing family reunification services to migrant children here alone without family support. In 2012, Children’s Services provided such services to 560 children through over 180 local, community-based providers. The top four countries of origin of children served in 2012 were El Salvador, Mexico,  Guatemala and Honduras. In 2012 a total of 180 children arrived into the USCCB’s unaccompanied children and unaccompanied refugee minors foster care program. Among them: refugee children, human trafficking victims, asylees and others from 27 countries.
 
2.      For Poverty Awareness Month, Carolyn Woo, CEO of Catholic Relief Services, blogged in English and Spanish about the intricacies of serving the poor in a foreign land. English - http://usccbmedia.blogspot.com/2013/01/sometimes-poverty-smiles.html and Spanish - http://usccbmedia.blogspot.com/2013/01/a-veces-la-pobreza-sonrie.html

 

3.      Ten percent of Congress graduated from a Jesuit institution. Tweets Jesuit author Father James Martin at @JamesMartinSJ: “10% of Congress are Jesuit alums. On the one hand, Jesuits are proud of our alumni! On the other hand, don't blame us!” 

 

4.      Monitoring tweets: Pope Benedict XVI sent a challenging message today through his Twitter account, saying, “Following Christ’s example, we have to learn to give ourselves completely. Anything else is not enough.”

5.      God loves you.