2 min readby Brian Flagg How is the City going to balance their budget this year? I attended yesterday’s City Council meeting along with Kassandra Manriquez and Mary DeCamp and heard City Manager Mike Ortega lay out a menu of spending cuts and tax increases that could fill what he claims is a $25 million budget gap next year. You can see it all online. Maybe I’m dense and/or delusional, but under the leadership of Mike Ortega things don’t seem as threatening as usual for poor people, especially bus riders. Cuts in bus service up to $2.5 million and up to $1

3 min readThanks to Sofia, Luis (both are puro Mexico) and all the farm. The diners here especially like the organic hard-boiled eggs we put in the lunch bags, thanks to all the chickens Luis cares for at the farm. It is quite a place, located off River Road near the Jewish Community Center. Check it out at http://www.feliciasfarm.org/ by Sofia Forier-Montes I started as the farm manager for Felicia’s Farm last January, and one of the first things I did was go to Casa Maria to see how their operation is run and to talk to people about what kind of vegetables

3 min readby Brian Flagg I just finished reading about all the highlights of the Holy Father’s trip to Mexico in the most recent America magazine. I particularly liked how he preached to the bishops of Mexico in Mexico City on February 13. He called on them to live as humble pastors, “not princes,” to be close to the poor and oppressed and to prophetically denounce the evils of society. He revealed that his main reason for visiting Mexico City was to pray before the revered image of Our Lady of Guadalupe, whom is at the heart of the spirituality of the

2 min readAuthor and retired political science profesor Jim Clarke comes here every Monday and Thursday and washes the soup pots! A week ago he and his daughter Julie Brogna, also a Casa Maria supporter, went to see the UA Wildacts come back from a nine point deficit with 1:30 left in the game to defeat the mighty Cal Bears, thanks to 3 incredible 3 pointers by Gabe York.  After the game Jim and Julie went to Old Chicago for a beer and who should enter but Gabe York! He received a big ovation and then he went and greeted everyone there.

3 min readby Brian Flagg That’s what we need in this town – Without it, every year at budget time the bus riders (represented by Bus Riders Union), the bus drivers and mechanics (represented by Teamsters) have to go to wage war with the Democrats on the City Council. The worst case scenario for all of us, the riders, the Teamsters, the Council is another strike from hell like the 42 day strike last summer. Check out paragraph #153 from his Encyclical Letter Laudato Si, in which he advocates that our faith is all about defending God’s Creation. In addition to the

2 min readpor Mari Fuentes Mari Fuentes es es una chica pura mexicana . Es originalmente de Arizpe, Sonora. Ella vive en Barrio Libre con su esposo y 3 hijos y es parte del equipo de Casa Maria.   La visita del Papa a Mexico fue buena por que hablo de casi todos los problemas de mi país. Hablo de la violencia, el narcotraficante, la falta de empleo que hace que las personas abandonen el país por la pobreza y la falta de oportunidad para los jóvenes. El papa les dijo a los jóvenes que no miren el narcotraficante como una forma

5 min read  by Brian Flagg “In a final prayer, the Pope urged Mexicanos to make their country into a land of opportunity where there will be no need to emigrate in order to dream, no need to be exploited in order to work, no need to make the poverty and despair of many the opportunism of a few, a land that will not have to mourn men and women, young people, and children who are destroyed at the hands of the dealers of death.” Agreed, it’s an ugly moment in Mexico’s history and the country has been submerged in blood and

2 min read  To the naked eye, this place looks pretty functional and effective. Lots of gente are served daily (500 bag lunches and as many as 200 family food bags). The corporal works of mercy part of Casa Maria is operative. The other part of a Catholic Worker life is to practice daily the spiritual works of mercy, which is where doing justice comes in. Maybe we can say that we have been creative and unique, even a little bit effective in our living out the Catholic Worker tradition here in Tucson since 1981. I’ve been here since ’83 But today,