Florida Catholic | Ocala Parish Provides Refuge

Ocala parish helps provide refuge to Burmese families

JOHN A. TORRES | FLORIDA CATHOLIC CORRESPONDENT

Published: 10.19.07

Two families of refugees from Burma (Myanmar), in Southeast Asia, recently settled in Ocala with the help of Catholic Charities of Central Florida Inc. and Blessed Trinity Parish of Ocala. In the front row, left to right, are Than Thai and Sai Lay. Than Thai is the cousin of Nain Kyaw, and Sai Lay is the nephew of La Jo Paw, the heads of the household. In the back row, left to right, are La Jo Paw, with son Lay Lay, age 5, and husband, Nain Kyaw.
JANNET WALSH | FC

OCALA | It didn't matter that one family was Buddhist and the other was Baptist.

When the parishioners at Blessed Trinity in Ocala heard that Catholic Charities was resettling two families that had escaped the tyranny in Myanmar, they responded in a big way.

"We're not trying to convert them or anything. It's just the right thing to do," said Steve Hoesterey, director of social services at Blessed Trinity. "It's such a generous parish. There has been an amazing outpouring of love."

MORE ABOUT MYANMAR
About the Country
Current Events
Bishops' Pastoral Statement

Burma, also known as Myanmar, is bordered to the north by both India and China and Thailand in the south. It has been ruled by a military junta for decades despite an election in 1990 that gave power to the winning National League for Democracy. The government has imprisoned numerous opponents to their power including Nobel Peace Prize recipient Aung San Suu Kyi.

Last month Buddhist monks led a peaceful protest against the government. Many were imprisoned and others were gunned down.

Since the country is closed to outsiders, there is little else that can be done except for prayer and to help those fortunate enough to escape.

The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops sent a letter of support to the Catholic Bishops Conference of Myanmar and to the U.S. ambassador there urging a peaceful resolution and stability. Bishop Thomas Wenski, chairman of the USCCB's Committee on International Policy, signed both letters.

The two families in Ocala managed to escape Burma years ago and have spent the last 10 years or so at a refugee camp in bordering Thailand. Many of the children who are being sponsored by Blessed Trinity were actually born at the camp.

"It's not unusual for someone to spend that long in a refugee camp," Hoesterey said.

One of the reasons Blessed Trinity was chosen was because pastor Father Pat Sheedy had experience helping resettle Vietnamese refugees after the end of the Vietnam War.

With the present situation in Burma and the country's poor record regarding human rights violations, there will likely be many more families looking for asylum in the United States.

The Orlando Diocese wants to encourage parishes to be ready to accept these refugees.

"For those future refugees who will be arriving in the diocese, parishes can assist in resettlement by offering to sponsor a refugee family," said Richard Logue, program director of Immigration and Refugee Services for the Orlando Diocese.

"Sponsorship at its basic level is the provision of housing and a job to live by."

Debbie Cruz, the diocese's resettlement program coordinator, said she expects more families to come through the system in the next few months. She hopes that central Florida Catholics are ready to accept them.

"We want to be able to continue accepting these families," she said. "Parishes that are able to have mentors showing how we live here in the U.S. are very helpful."

The two families living in Ocala have been provided with apartments facing each other and, thanks to a government grant, rent for at least three months. Parishioners have chipped in with furniture, food, transportation and friendship.

Both families are taking English lessons as communication remains their main hurdle.

"A parish can do so much to ease the transition to a new culture," Logue said. "Orientation to the community, English tutoring and just being there to answer the many questions that arise when families first arrive are a tremendous help to refugees who have experienced the loss of family, country and a way of life."

Hoesterey said the program would not work without the enthusiasm of the parish. He mentioned two volunteers, Celeste and Luke Reckamp with having done a tremendous amount to help.

According to the Central Intelligence Agency's World Fact Book, only 1 percent of Burma is Catholic. The vast majority are Buddhist.

"We don't care what their religion is," Hoesterey said.

Logue echoed those sentiments by saying it's a great way to live out the lessons of the Gospel.

"It is a wonderful opportunity to 'welcome the stranger,'" he said.

Bishops of the United States unanimously approved a Pastoral Statement titled, "Welcoming the Stranger Among Us: Unity in Diversity." To learn more, visit http://www.usccb.org/mrs/welcome.shtml.

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