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What began as a Christmas gift distribution for farmworker children has now blossomed into an ongoing effort to better the lives of farmworkers by churches in San Jose.
Santa Teresa Catholic Church raised $14,000 at its second annual Farmworker Fundraiser Dinner on May 16, which was attended by 185 people at the church’s Avila Hall. Attendees heard stories from a farmworker and Ann Lopez, the founder and executive director of the Center for Farmworker Families in Watsonville.
Robyn Schlice, a member of the church’s farmworker ministry, said the funds will support school supply drives, a computer literacy program, rental assistance and monthly distributions of clothing, food and household items.
“I think it makes a big difference,” Schlice said. “And it serves our goal to make sure that we’re educating other people about the plights and the challenges that the farmworkers have.”
While the ministry meets at Santa Teresa, Schlice said many parishes in San Jose also participate, including Holy Family, Holy Spirit, St. Julie’s and Church of the Transfiguration. Kristian Gadea, a rising senior at Bellarmine College Prep, designed the bright-colored flyer for the dinner and also volunteered at the event. He said he was grateful for Schlice’s leadership and that the support from attendees at the dinner warmed his heart.
Gadea’s experiences have led him to start a club at Bellarmine called the Farmworkers Association.
“I think it was just to spread more awareness. At Bellarmine, it’s ‘be men and women for and with others,’ and I think that really goes with being in the farmworker ministry,” he said. “I also wanted to not just have the farmworker ministry be at Santa Teresa, but at a bigger school like Bellarmine.”
Gino Sartor, another member of the Santa Teresa farmworker ministry, attended a pesticide reality tour in Watsonville on April 18. Led by Adam Scow of the Campaign for Organic and Regenerative Agriculture, the tour educated participants on pesticide proximity and exposure, including highlighting pesticide monitors on school grounds.
“I really saw it with my own eyes and ears,” Sartor said. ”I just saw with my own observations how close these fields were to the schools, especially, and to homes.”
Sartor arranged a meeting with Assemblymember Gail Pellerin on June 5 to discuss and urge legislation regarding the conversion of pesticide fields into organic fields next to both homes and schools in Watsonville.
Santa Teresa Deacon Steve Herrera in his homilies often mentions farmworkers and the need to integrate the Catholic faith with assisting them.
“The people who picked the food on your table, go through a lot of suffering and pain in order to make sure that you have enough food to eat.
‘So, being aware of where our fruits and vegetables come from, we should be respectful of people and their working conditions because without them, we don’t eat,” Herrera said.
Eliana Aguilar is a member of the class of 2027 at Valley Christian High School in San Jose.