The Texas Senate will honor the 2014 Lumen Christi Award recipients, the Missionary Sisters of the Immaculate Heart of Mary (ICM), for their dedication to serving the poor in the most impoverished areas in our nation. For residents of the border town of Penitas, Texas, these Sisters represent hope to the people in their communities.
As the 2014 recipients of Catholic Extension's Lumen Christi Award, Sister Carolyn Kosub, Sister Emily Jocson and Sister Fatima Santiago have spent more than a decade ministering to the needs of residents in one of the most impoverished areas of the country by building up a vibrant Catholic community.
On Tuesday, March 24, their contributions will be recognized by not only the Catholic community, but by the entire state of Texas through a ceremonial resolution to be presented on the Senate floor at the State Capitol.
The three women first came to the tornado-stricken colonia of Pueblo de Palmas, in Penitas in 2003. The following year, they created Proyecto Desarrollo Humano (The Project for Human Development), an outreach center dedicated to health, social services, education and evangelization. The center contains classroom space for instruction and activities, a kitchen and hall space for large assemblies, a computer lab, a medical and dental clinic and a pre-kindergarten classroom.
In 2009, the sisters took yet another step to build up and support their surrounding community–they secured donations, found a plot of land and supervised construction of a brand new church, which was dedicated in 2013 and is home to the newest parish in the Diocese of Brownsville.
Catholic Extension named the sisters as the 2014 recipients of its Lumen Christi Award, which in Latin means "Light of Christ." For the past 38 years, through its Lumen Christi Award, Catholic Extension has recognized a priest, woman religious or layperson whose work is transforming the hearts and lives of the people they serve. As the 2014 recipients, the sisters received a grant of $25,000 in support of their ministry; in addition, the Diocese of Brownsville, which nominated the sisters, also received a grant of $25,000.
"The ICM Sisters recognized that the people of Brownsville, because of their faith in God, had hope and a belief that they are more than their circumstances," said Father Jack Wall, Catholic Extension President, upon bestowing the award to the sisters last fall during a celebration at the church the sisters helped build near Brownsville. "We are honored to have recognized the ICM Sisters of Brownsville with the Lumen Christi Award because they truly embody what it means to sacrifice oneself and live out the ways of Jesus Christ within the world."