Archbishop Wenski laments US cuts to Church aid to unaccompanied minors

By Deborah Castellano Lubov

"For more than 60 years, the Archdiocese of Miami’s services for unaccompanied minors have been recognized for their excellence and have served as a model for other agencies throughout the country. Our track record in serving this vulnerable population is unmatched. Yet, the Archdiocese of Miami’s Catholic Charities’ services for unaccompanied minors has been stripped of funding and will be forced to shut down within three months."

In a statement on the Archdiocese of Miami's website, Archbishop Thomas Wenski decried the US government's decision to cut the charity's aid and end the more than 60-year relationship with Catholic Charities in the Archdiocese of Miami.

He recalled that the partnership began with Operation “Pedro Pan,” which had begun under the direction of then-young Irish priest Monsignor Bryan O. Walsh, who helped resettle some 14,000 Cuban children sent alone to this country by desperate parents seeking to protect them from communist indoctrination.

Archbishop Wenski noted that from 1960 to today, the Archdiocese has worked closely with the Office of Refugee Resettlement to provide shelter and other services to thousands of unaccompanied minor children of all nationalities.

He pointed out that today, a facility named the Msgr. Bryan O. Walsh Children’s Village in Palmetto Bay can house up to 81 minors. The program helps place children in foster care, reunites them with family members, and provides supportive services.

He noted that given the trauma that many of these children have endured before arriving in the US, psychological care is also provided.

"The positive impact of this cooperation between the federal government and Catholic Charities," he emphasized, "can be readily seen in the lives of former Pedro Pan children who, through this intervention, grew up to be successful members of our communities."

He observed that Pedro Pan “alumni” include business leaders and politicians, including a former senator, academics, doctors, lawyers, priests, and Bishops.

The Archbishop acknowledged that the number of unaccompanied minors entering the country has decreased, and called it understandable that some programs may be scaled back or even eliminated.

"But given the history and reputation of the Msgr. Bryan O. Walsh Children’s Village," he stated, "it is baffling that the US government would shut down a program that it would be hard-pressed to replicate at the level of competence and excellence that Catholic Charities has achieved if and when future waves of unaccompanied minors reach our shores."

Archbishop Wenski concluded his statement noting that the Office of Refugee Resettlement, an agency within the US Department of Health and Human Services, includes in its mission the promotion of the health, well-being, and stability of unaccompanied alien children.

The Offie of Refugee Resettlement, he said, is pledged to act in the best interest of the child, noting, "This alone should call for a review of the decision to shut down this legacy and signature program."