Our Mission

Mission Statement

With the help of God and in union with women in the struggle for justice, we, the women of Centro Santa Catalina Desire:

-To present an education to ourselves, other women and the children in the Colonia, in order to grow in a community of faith and hope; to offer to the women of the Center the Word and Spirit of God;

-To have the opportunity to grow in our skills and provide money for our families

-In solidarity with our fundamental values to achieve a better future in our continued struggle.

Our Values

Our fundamental values are: respect, love, friendship, confidence, justice, peace, moral security, community, and fraternal love with persons of different cultures.

Our Patron Saint

Our Center, Centro de Santa Catalina, is named after St. Catherine of Siena who was a lay Dominican woman in 1366. She is perhaps the best known mystic of the fourteenth century. Her name is very relevant to our Center since she devoted herself to the sick and poor of Siena. She was a mystic who experienced visions. As a young girl, the visions she had showed her the need to go out into the world and help her neighbors out of love for God. in 1939 she was declared the patron saint of Italy. In 1970 she was given the title of Doctor of the Church, a title that very few women hold. We also chose her as our patron saint because she exemplified the strength of women to have a voice in society.