SAN DIEGO — Father Efrain Bautista, pastor of Corpus Christi Parish in Bonita, recently got a firsthand look at “the hard work it takes to put cherries on our table.”
Father Bautista was one of 14 participants in a Pastor Mission Immersion Trip sponsored by Catholic Extension Society. It was held from July 9 to 11 in Yakima, Washington.
The Diocese of Yakima is home to an ever-increasing migrant population, both temporary and permanent, who are attracted to the agricultural region and are mostly Catholic. Temporary migrant workers arrive in June for cherry-picking season. The work is labor intensive, with some of the workers showing up at 4 a.m. to the fields.
Funded through the Lilly Endowment Inc., the Mission Immersion program aims to broaden Church leaders’ awareness of the Church’s missionary activities.
Father Bautista participated in the trip alongside fellow priests from the Archdioceses of Newark, Chicago and New Orleans.
They participated in the Literacy Wagon Ministry serving teachers, students and children, talked with migrant families and read to the children. They also met and participated in Mass at the migrant camps. The Literacy Wagon and Mass in the Fields are part of a broad effort to reach out to migrant workers where they live, and to bring Church to them, according to information from the Endowment.
“It was an eye-opening experience to see the sacrifices many of these families go through to provide (for) their families, including enduring very early hours to beat the heat of central Washington,” Father Bautista said, reflecting on the trip.
“Among the things which stuck to me is the need to see the Church beyond the Diocese of San Diego,” he said. “It is, at times, easy for us to simply focus on our parish, diocese and region and not think about the broader Church. I think this trip also influenced my way of seeing just the amount of work it takes to put food on our tables and all those who do that hard work.”
