New immigrants’ education hub will be beacon of support, Catholic archdiocese leaders say
Caroline MolloyAs immigration enforcement efforts intensify across the country resulting in the detainment and deportation of thousands of undocumented immigrants, including those who are in the process of attaining U.S. citizenship, the Archdiocese of Oklahoma City has created an educational hub for immigrants.
Luis Soto, senior director of the archdiocese’s secretariat for evangelization and catechesis, said seeing the new Holy Angels Education Center come to fruition transcended any present pushback or controversy surrounding immigration.
“As an immigrant myself, I learned sometimes that immigrants, particularly Hispanic immigrants, are not a problem to solve, are not a challenge to overcome, but an asset to bless, particularly in the Catholic Church, even more here in Oklahoma, where about half of all Catholics are Hispanic,” he said.
Martin Rodriguez, a married father of three, immigrated to Oklahoma from Mexico with a dream of starting a new life in America, but he knew he needed to improve his command of the English language.
He enrolled in English as a Second Language classes at the new center, where he went from taking the basic English class to his current level of English 4.
“Learning English is one of the best decisions I have made ― it can change your life,” he said.
The Archdiocese of Oklahoma City transformed a church that was closed several years ago into a hub for immigrants like Rodriguez seeking cultural education and classes including digital literacy for job readiness and U.S. citizenship. At a recent grand opening for the new center at 317 N Blackwelder, Catholic leaders, including Oklahoma City Archbishop Paul S. Coakley, thanked Soto, an archdiocese leader who had the vision for educational facility.
Soto said he served in the Archdiocese of Denver, which had a similar educational center, and he knew that something similar would benefit the Oklahoma City community.
He said the timing of the opening of the Holy Angels center has more to do with the Catholic Church’s commitment to the dignity of all people, than perhaps anything else, including the present atmosphere surrounding immigrants.
“We are the Catholic Church, and we are doing the ministry of God, the ministry of sanctification for people so we are not in the business of checking people’s documents or checking people’s status,” he said.
