"Hermanamiento in Action"

• AM-Breakfast with host families
• 10:00 am-Meet with Women's Assoc. of Hmong and Lao
• 11:30 am-Lunch at Burrito Mercado and walk around the Hispanic community of St. Paul's West Side
• 1:30 pm-Visit Neighborhood House
• 3 pm-Visit West Side Health Center(La Clinica)
• 4:30 pm-Return to SJA via the St. Paul Cathedral
• 4:30-7 pm-Break time and pizza at SJA
• 7 pm-Workshop on "The Person of Jesus" led by TNII

A visit to the "other side of the river" was the order of the day. The group first met Bo Thao, interim director of the Hmong Women's Association. She told the story of her family's flee from Laos when she was two years old to the refugee camps of Thailand. The Vietnam War had ended and her family was trying to escape the persecution of the Communist government. The family eventually settled in Chicago when they came to the United States. The delegates observed many similarities between the Hmong and the Guatemalan's tragic plights with their respective countries. The Hmong Women's Association sponsors several programs including services to elders, parenting classes, and artisan workshops.

The delegates then walked around the West Side of St. Paul and had lunch at the Burrito Mercado.
Following lunch, the group toured Neighborhood House.Services provided include daycare, a food shelf, recreation and entertainment, a meal program, and social services. The final stop on the West Side was a tour of the West Side Health Center. Spanish, English, and Hmong are spoken there. The agency serves many cultures including Asians, Europeans, African-Americans, Native Americans, and Hispanics. The delegates are becoming increasingly aware that there are many marginalized people living in the United States.
En route back to Joan of Arc, the group stopped to view the skyline above the Mississipi River, toured the St. Paul Cathedral, drove down Summit Avenue, and shopped at Target.

Back at St. Joan of Arc, the group enjoyed Papa John's pizza and a brief rest. As you can see below, some chose recreation and some chose feet up as a resting technique.

In the evening Paul and Aura presented a workshop on "The Person of Jesus" to a group of about 35 parishioners. There was prayer, singing, bible study, and small group discussion centering on the mystics and Jesus' reaction to their beliefs. The interaction demonstrated the "oneness" of the church despite language barriers. The Guatemalans also talked about how many American churches are involved in peace and justice issues.