By Connie Berry
Sun editor

Arizona’s deserts are a far cry from Syracuse’s wintertime whiteouts. The news accounts of the immigration debates there may seem removed from this diocese.

Bringing the issue home during a July 29 immigration reform rally in downtown Syracuse, Aly Wane, a local activist, said, “Here in Syracuse there are families where someone went to the grocery store and never came back.”

The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) applauded the July 28 Arizona decision by U.S. District Judge Susan Bolton to halt some of the most controversial elements of Arizona SB 1070 from going into effect. Catholic News Service (CNS) reported that the provisions would have “required law enforcement officers to verify the immigration status of anyone stopped; made it a crime for immigrants not to carry proof of their immigration status at all times; allowed police to make warrantless arrests over suspicion of someone being in the country illegally; and criminalized the act of looking for work without the proper paperwork or hiring someone who lacks a work permit.”

By Claudia Mathis
SUN staff writer

Katie Byrne feels a great sense of satisfaction from her work as a volunteer at Loretto, a provider of eldercare services in Syracuse. Byrne has volunteered at Loretto for the last 30 years and served as treasurer of the Loretto Guild, a group of over 200 volunteers, for the last 17 years. The Guild provides or funds services, amenities, programs and purchases which benefit Loretto residents’ quality of life.

“I enjoy helping people,” said Byrne. “Some of these people have no one else. If you can make their life a little happier, then it’s all worth it.”

Byrne said that when she stops to smile or to say hello to the residents, the gesture usually has a very positive effect on them. “They love it and I enjoy conversing with them.”

St. Pauly Textile helps local parishes and those in need around the world
By Jennika Baines
Sun Assoc. Editor

According to the EPA Office of Solid Waste, the average American throws out 68 pounds of clothing and textiles each year.

But rather than clogging landfills with clothing that could take decades to deteriorate, many in the Syracuse Diocese are choosing to help those in need around the world as well as those right in their own parish by putting their unwanted clothes in St. Pauly donation sheds. There are 22 sheds throughout the Syracuse Diocese.

“We collect 70,000 pounds of clothes every day just in Central and Western New York,” said Ben De George, a vice president at St. Pauly Textile. “It’s amazing how much clothing is out there that people don’t want or don’t need anymore.”

St. Pauly Textile is a business which collects clothing and delivers it to relief organizations. While the business is not a charity, it does share its profits with each of the parishes who agree to take part.