The ministry of Presence

I like to call our staff the dream team—like years from now, we’ll look back and call this the golden era of this organization. Thursday’s Youth Friendsgiving was another reassurance of that. The youth gathered to celebrate Thanksgiving, each bringing something to the table. As we went around the room, everyone shared what they were grateful for. Some said food, others said family, but it became clear that in that space, at that hour, the deepest gratitude in the room was for Maritza.

It’s incredibly difficult to have teens open up and invite you into their lives, but with Maritza and her youth, that’s not the case. She’s been welcomed into the uncomfortable, vulnerable corners of their lives, and she has embraced them fully. When we talk about the ministry of presence, Maritza is a shining example of what that looks like.

All this to say, this story is one of joy and admiration—for Maritza, for the youth, and for the community they continue to work with.

-Ester Ocampo