Grantee Highlights  

Edwina Gateley and Maureen Gallagher with Dreamcatcher Leaders in Chicago

Issues of Justice

Community and the Common Good:  La Casita of Louisville, KY

Women of La Casita

La Casita Center supports women working in the Louisville-area through creation of women's circles. They provide a space and community for women, and connect women to information and local resources around health, language and human rights. The population in Louisville is very transient, which makes community building both a challenge and a necessity.

Mary's Pence loves to hear stories from grantees about the impact of their work. La Casita shared the following:

Nineteen-year-old Maria fled Guatemala when her family was murdered and eventually ended up in Louisville. Traumatized by the violence she had already witnessed at her young age, she now lives each day under the radar as an undocumented worker. Seeking whatever support she could find in a very isolated situation, she began a relationship with an older man she met at work. Over time, he abused her and used his power and her immigration status to control her. During this time, Maria began coming to the women's group at La Casita, and meeting familiar, friendly faces. A few months later, pregnant and in a very abusive relationship, she recognized that she now had a network of support that could help her leave her abuser and connect her with resources for making a fresh start.  La Casita Center continues to support Maria in her journey.   

In a community where very few people and organizations offer a safe space for undocumented women to seek support when they need it, La Casita Center is unique and vital, if not life-saving.

Community and the Common Good is a core principle of Catholic Social Teaching. Click here  to learn more about Catholic Social Teaching. 

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Recently several supporters have shared the news of Mary's Pence with their faith community and sponsored collections to support our work. We're very grateful to the following faith communities: 

We also thank faith communities that have recently given to us from their tithe or granting fund:  

Mary's Pence at Call to Action in November

Mary's Pence is excited to be presenting a workshop at the Call to Action Conference: The New Dynamics of Solidarity: Stories and Strategies of Women in Latin America. The panelists will be Gilda Larios, who coordinates our ESPERA program in Latin America; Eva Martinez Menjivar of Suchitoto, El Salvador who served as the local coordinator of the ESPERA Fund in Suchitoto; and Sr. Peggy O'Neill of Centro Arte por La Paz in Suchitoto. Join us in Louisville, KY on November 9-11. To learn more, please click here.

Founder Maureen Gallagher Tells the Story of Our Founding at Mary's Pence 25th Anniversary    

Hear the story of the founding of Mary's Pence from Maureen Gallagher herself! Watch the video here.

Notes from Nicaragua - Mary's Pence Blog by Kitty Madden    

The Mary's Pence blog has wonderful stories from founders, supporters and women's groups we've had the privilege of supporting. In this story, Kitty Madden tells of her first introduction to Mary's Pence and of the important work of Casa Materna in Nicaragua. Kitty is a former grantee and former Mary's Pence board member. To read Kitty's story, click here.  

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Mary's Pence - Who Are We?

We are a small organization with a big vision.  We want women in the Americas living in poverty to have a say and a hand in how poverty can be alleviated and social equity achieved.  Therefore we invest in local women who are creating models to increase women's economic status and improve their status in their community.  We look for models that foster women working together, to learn from each other, support each other, and explore new ideas.  We fund women in North, Central and South America.

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