Dominican nuns find need and hope in Juárez as they help poor women survive
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EL PASO – Left alone to deal with the household responsibilities, forced to steal to eat, humiliated and treated as if they were worthless, the women escaped to safety to a haven they call the “dump” in Ciudad Juárez. These abused women made the move to seek a better life in a community of friendship and hope, anchored by the Centro Santa Catalina run by Dominican nuns from El Paso. Although located in a city now filled with violence and homicides, the “dump” is the only neighborhood in Juárez where these women can find the strength to move beyond their misery. Many El Pasoans consider crossing the border to Ciudad Juárez dangerous and life threatening, but that is exactly what Sister Rene and Sister Maureen do every day to help these struggling women and children in Juárez. Sister Rene Weeks and Sister Maureen Gallagher of the Dominican Sisters say they cross the border to bring some light to women and children who have only seen poverty and a struggle to survive.