A day in the life of a student

Roxana Rodriguez rises at 4:30 a.m. and doesn’t stop until late in the evening BY ROXANA RODRIGUEZ Special Contributor There I am in a cloudy, peaceful place where worries and responsibilities seem far away, but then something disturbs my thoughts and everything dies away quickly. What could have caused such distraction? Soon I realize it: The 4:30 a.m. alarm is ringing, which means time to wake up. My name is Roxana Rodriguez, and I am senior at Lydia Patterson Institute. My school...

Christ's Foundry is a livinglaboratory in leadership

First in a series on the work of the NTC Center for Leadership Development BY OWEN ROSS Center for Leadership Development Christ’s Foundry United Methodist Mission has always been an experiment. How is the United Methodist Church going to reach the poorest in our society with the good news of Jesus Christ? In the nine years since the North Texas Conference voted to plant a holistic mission in the north Love Field neighborhood, in one of the most oppressed areas of Dallas,...

Dallas Peace Center to honor UM clergyman

The Dallas Peace Center will host its 24th annual Peacemaker Awards Dinner on Thursday, Dec. 2, at the Double Tree Hotel, 4099 Valley View Lane, honoring Rev. Bill Matthews, Larry James of Central Dallas Ministries and the Texas Muslim Women’s Foundation for their diverse efforts in promoting peace, justice and human rights. Rev. Matthews, the Lifetime Achievement Award honoree, has been a cornerstone in the Dallas peace and justice community for more than two decades. Known for bringing...

Lydia Patterson students cross border to forge futures

BY SHERON C. PATTERSON Editor EL PASO — Hope rises from the most desperate and dangerous places — even Ciudad Juárez, Mexico. Nestled directly beside El Paso, Juárez has become the murder capital of the world, with 2,600 dead last year. The death toll is on track to hit 3,000 this year.  It is here that cadres of dedicated young people awake before sunrise, walk the dark, dangerous streets to the U.S. border, cross the bridge and go through customs —...

Request turnsout to be a twin blessing

Earlier this fall, I approached First United Methodist Church of Duncanville about sponsoring a scholarship for Lydia Patterson Institute, our United Methodist high school in El Paso.  LPI provides what’s called a full scholarship-plus for an outstanding academic student with great financial needs — in almost every case, a student from Ciudad Juárez who crosses the border every day to attend class. This scholarship of $3,715 covers the books and tuition, uniforms,...

Faith alive and well in El Paso

BY BISHOP W. EARL BLEDSOE North Texas Conference Wow! This is the word I would use to describe the experiences we had at Lydia Patterson Institute in El Paso this month.   The North Texas appointive and extended Cabinet spent three days visiting the students there. What started as an ordinary Cabinet meeting of agendas, appointments and church-related issues ended in a sacred moment of celebration. It began with us meeting the LPI students at the bridge coming from Ciudad...

UNT Wesley students talk about thanks

DENTON — College students offer profound gratitude for the small blessings. On the campus of the University of North Texas, students find a haven at the United Methodist center known as the Wesley Foundation. Rev. Cammy Gasto, the campus minister, conducts weekly gatherings. Here are some of the students’ thoughts. CONRAD STATON, senior psychology major “I am a social justice person. Over the summer, I spent a week on the streets and I met marginalized people. I lived...