AM Technical Solutions (AM) is driven by a desire to make a positive impact on the people in our care. One of the ways we live that out is by taking mission trips to countries around the globe to support individuals and families in need.
Each year, AM COO Dan Codi and his wife Cindy travel with the Franciscan Friars of The Renewal to join Hope of the Poor as they serve communities in Mexico City. Specifically, they support a small community of families and individuals who live, work, and play near a garbage site.
This year’s mission team included dozens of individuals ranging from 16 to 70 years old. It was an amazing group that brought distinct talents and perspectives on the trip to care for the spiritual, physical, and emotional needs of the people in this community.
Highlights From the Mission Trip to Mexico City
The team stayed at a local convent with sisters who cooked for the team, sent them off with sandwiches before heading out of the day of ministry work, and prayed for the team. Everyone could feel their prayers!
The sisters allowed the team to pray in their chapel and have Holy Hour and Mass each day. Fr. Giuseppe, who was their spiritual leader for the fourth consecutive year, tended to the group’s needs magnificently and served the people of Mexico City that the team encountered.
One of the most important aspects of the trip was revisiting a local orphanage. The children and young adults have been abandoned, with some of them being severely disabled. A few people work at the orphanage, but the people who reside there essentially serve one another. It was beautiful to witness and see that many residents remembered last year’s group!
The mission team also served the homeless on the streets outside of the Basilica. The team brought them food and clothing, but most importantly spent time talking and praying with them. A common “drug” on the streets is paint thinner, which they inhale off a rag. The extremely sad aspect is they are not doing this for a “high,” but, rather, to quell the hunger pains they experience way too often.
One gentleman, in particular, the team encountered shared his story of how he came to live on the streets. It was a very sad series of events, which led to the team praying for him. As they began to pray, he fell to his knees and outstretched his hands in prayer. This moment brought everyone to tears. The team learned that their presence and physical touch were even more important than meeting physical needs: the people they encountered felt valued.
Next, the team celebrated Mass in the dumps again this year. The chapel is the only concrete structure in the dump and is only used a few times a year for Mass, when a priest comes to celebrate for them. There is a statue of Jesus that hangs in this chapel that was found in the dump without an arm. A gentleman who resides in the dump told some of the volunteers how he found it and fixed it. This meaningful statue now adorns this chapel building for Mass.
After Mass, the team served food and distributed clothing to the people there. The group then stayed to visit with the people and play with the children. Most families who reside in the dump (from young children to elderly family members) live in simple tent-type structures. It’s beyond humbling, but there is still such joy and gratitude these beautiful people display!
The group also spent much of the week with a community that was formerly homeless. This community includes moms who previously supported their families through prostitution. Hope of the Poor has helped these families get off drugs and off the streets into apartments. They also help them secure jobs so they can support their families and move forward. They truly give them a hand up, not simply a handout.
Over the past couple of years, Hope of the Poor has provided counseling and catechism to affected families each Saturday morning. They realize that simultaneously meeting the spiritual and physical needs of the people is critical. Now, many of these people have been baptized into the Catholic faith.
On this occasion during the visit, approximately 20 children and young adults were ready to receive the sacrament of Communion. The team was privileged to be present at this Mass that Fr. Giuseppe celebrated. After the Mass, Fr. Giuseppe exposed the Blessed Sacrament and brought Christ to each individual kneeling at the altar. One boy stole the heart of the group, praying so reverently in his pew after receiving his First Holy Communion.
One of the overall highlights of the trip was the work of a 25-year-old musician who joined the team this year. He brought his guitar everywhere the group went, and his music brought such joy to the community. His guitar was a hit, especially in the orphanage. Many children who had been just sitting or lying in their beds or cribs were suddenly smiling and clapping.
“It was such a tremendous privilege to serve the people there, and many thanked us for taking time from our families and jobs to travel to be with them,” says Cindy Codi. “As God works, we go there to serve each year yet receive so much more than we could ever hope to give. So grateful for the experience!”
– Learn more about Hope of the Poor and their mission to serve communities in need.
– Find out how you can partner with Hope of the Poor to provide regular support for their mission.