We're excited about having Sr. Lika Mejia as our guest on Monday, and taking a field trip with her on Tuesday down to Casa De La Misericordia in Nogales, Mexico! Rev. Randy Mayer of the Good Shepherd UCC in Sahuarita will be our well-seasoned guide over the border.
The clergy retreat planning team hopes that retreat attendees will consider accepting Sister Lika’s invitation (see below) to go on the Tuesday trip to Casa De La Misericordia in Nogales. We’re in relationship with this shelter as the Southwest Conference; immigration is the largest mission project that the conference is putting money toward. Out of all the UCC conferences, the SWC has the most engagement at the border. It’s an important place for us to talk about and do justice and it’s critically important for the SWC to have a knowledge base of what's happening and be in relationship with a project that’s claiming that.
Sister Lika’s hope for our visit is clear: Su presencia será testimonio viviente de un Dios que escucha y acompaña./ Your presence Will be a living testimony to the God who listens and accompanies.
Conference Minister Rev. Bill Lyons accepted her invitation with the assurance that “haremos todo lo posible para ser un testimonio vivo del Dios que escucha y acompaña. Gracias por confiarnos esta sagrada responsabilidad.”/we Will do everything possible to be a living testimony of the God who listens and accompanies.
He formally extended an invitation for her and a member of the La Casa Community to join the clergy retreat the preceding day for a day of preparation.
Sister Lika’s full letter translation is as follows:
CMTN/031
Nogales, Sonora on August 29, 2022
Subject: Invitation letter
"For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you you entertained me, I was naked and you clothed me, sick and you visited me, in prison and you came to see me" (Mt 25, 35-36)
Reverend WILLIAM LYONS
United Churches of Christ Representative
I sincerely address you in order to extend a cordial invitation to you and to the religious community that you represent to live the experience "A day as a migrant" in the House of Mercy and All Nations on November 1, 2022.
They will have the opportunity to listen and share experiences with people in transit who will help them to clearly understand the phenomenon of migration and bring the Gospel to life.
We currently have a population of 120 people, most of them under 18 years of age from different parts of the Mexican Republic and Central America.
Your presence will be a living testimony of a God who listens and accompanies.
Without further ado, I thank you for your time and I look forward to your kind response.
Sincerely,
Sister Lika
Rev. Randy Mayer assures us that a driver’s license is sufficient to re-enter the U.S. Here’s some official info:
The Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative requires all persons, including US citizens, who are traveling to and from the Americas, the Caribbean, and Bermuda to have a passport or other WHTI compliant document, such as a Passport Card (PASS Card), that establishes identity and citizenship to enter or re-enter the United States.
The approved documents include a passport, a passport card, a NEXUS, SENTRI or FAST trusted traveler program card, or a state- or province-issued enhanced driver’s license. Travelers under age 16 need to present only a birth certificate or alternative proof of citizenship.