Get to Know Us
“When I arrived in Southern California I was homeless. Just a year earlier I had a successful construction business, a marriage and came home every night to my beautiful daughter”, explained Ben. The truth is, I looked down on homeless people. Then, drugs and alcohol took over. I lost my business, my wife, and I was estranged from my daughter. I slept in my car and cleaned up the best I could in the restrooms on Oceanside Beaches. One day, I made my way to the Mission, met a friar and starting spending a little time each day on those peaceful grounds. The peace it brought me led me to get clean and sober. When a construction job came up at the Mission, I was encouraged to try to get hired as part of a crew. That was my new beginning. I was a good worker and eventually reapplied for my General Contractor license. I reestablished communication with my wife and visited with my daughter. Being at the Mission, the compassion and support the friars and staff showed me, helped me to believe in myself again. I have a new understanding and concern for the homeless and hope to do what I can to help those without a home.”
A faith community in the spirit of St. Francis of Assisi. Served by the Franciscan Friars of the Province of Our Lady of Guadalupe.
“We came to California when my husband got transferred with the military and joined Mission San Luis Rey Parish back in 1978, explains Marta Werner. We felt so welcomed by the Franciscan community that we became involved in the parish ministry. A year later my husband Ray was sent overseas for a year. I don’t know what I would have done without the support of my parish family. I was alone, working in a very stressful job, with a 5-year old and no immediate family in the area. My parish family stepped in and supported me and my daughter during a period of time when we needed it the most. Now many years later, I am still involved, I continue to call this Franciscan Community “Family” and I will always be grateful!”