Nadia Suleman writes:

As executive director of Catholic Charities of the Rio Grande Valley (CCRGV) since 2004, Sister Norma Pimentel has helped transform the Humanitarian Respite Center in McAllen, Texas, into a place of refuge that has served more than 100,000 migrants, providing them with food, shelter, and essentials like clothing and hygiene products. But last year, with a national crackdown on immigration, the number of asylum seekers entering the center fell to nearly zero. Rather than closing the facility, Pimentel, 72, shifted its focus to aiding community members who are elderly, hungry, or experiencing homelessness; according to 2024 U.S. Census data, 1 in 5 McAllen residents lives in poverty….

Pimentel, known as the late Pope Francis’ “favorite nun,” aims to bring “light in the midst of darkness.” The respite center continues to provide up to three meals a day to hundreds of people per week, plus natural­ disaster and emergency relief and short-term rent and utility assistance.