With Thanksgiving on the horizon, I’m full of gratitude for CRS Fair Trade colleagues around the country sharing messages of Fair Trade as a tool of economic justice.  From our Southwest office, for instance, Fr. Juan Molina was recently at St. Patrick parish in Colorado Springs, Colorado working to promote the role Fair Trade can play in social ministry.  Fr. Juan has his PhD in economics, so he brings a unique dual perspective to making the case for Fair Trade.

Bob Sallee of St. Patrick’s reports that Fr. Juan had several opportunities to share about the impact of Fair Trade, thanks to the work of several members of the St. Patrick community. Ann Christensen, Chair of the parish Social Ministry Council and a member of the diocesan Social Concerns and Public Policy Committee, made arrangements for Father Molina to offer weekend Masses and to present a “parish mission” which connected the dynamics of migration to the lack of economic opportunity in migrants’ home countries, a dynamic which can be changed by embracing Fair Trade.  The Council, which includes representatives of more than a dozen outreach ministries, has focused on educating the parish on the seven themes of social justice put forth by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. As a direct result of a parish mission on immigration two years ago, the parish recruited and trained English as a Second Language (ESL) teachers, and began offering regular classes.  A Justice for Immigrants committee also was established to aid with informing the parish on immigration issues and coordinating outreach to local immigrant populations.

For Fr. Juan, the lessons of the Fair Trade Program have made clear that Fair Trade can reduce the need for young people to migrate to support their families, contributing to the reduction of illegal immigration. He noted that there are 25 million small family farms growing coffee representing 100 million people.   Fair trade provides economic opportunity, allowing people to take care of the essentials of life–food, shelter, clothing, health care, education– in their home countries.  This financial grounding can lessen the “push” people feel to find opportunity outside their communities.  The complexities of migration, both forced and voluntary, are a top priority for CRS globally.

Back at St. Patrick’s church, volunteer Julie Harmon has coordinated a Fair Trade Ministry focused on parish education, much of which takes place during various Fair Trade sales at the church.  Annually, the parish hosts a pre-Christmas Bazaar offering a wide variety of craft items from the Work of Human Hands catalog, and also Divine Chocolate and coffee from CRS partner Earth Friendly Coffee.  Coffee and chocolate are also offered on a monthly basis, and are available for sale from the church office during the week.  The success of the program is evident from the large percentage of “repeat customers” who value the quality of these specialty food items.  Parishioner Ann Christensen explained that the parish provided a $1,000 grant for the initial purchase of coffee and chocolate products to jump-start the ministry.

This kind of initiative and commitment is another reason for the economic justice team at CRS to be thankful!  Working alongside our partners, we offer a range of Fair Trade projects but, as Fr. Juan said,  “It is the parishioners around the country that make a difference….It’s the people of God who make a difference”  when they commit to Fair Trade.