“I Came Home with Hope”
Reflections from the 2026 Mary’s Pence Grantee Gathering By Anisa Hajimumin When Comfort Dondo, Founder and Executive Director of Phumulani: African Women Against Violence, invited me to accompany her to the 2026 Mary’s Pence Grantee Gathering, I thought I knew what awaited me. What I did not expect was to leave with a renewed sense […]
The Death of the Forest is the End of Our Lives
Sr. Dorothy Stang, SND Advocate for Brazil’s Indigenous Poor and the Amazonian Rainforest An Inspiring Woman Featured in the Mary Pence Women’s Calendar Sr. Dorothy Stang, SND lived and died...
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Grantee Spotlight: Exodus Lending
Featured image is that of Exodus Lending staff: Anika Riewe, Kaitlyn Szabo, Anna Li and Sara Nelson-Pallmeyer. One of the rewards that comes from partnering with a grantee organization for...
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Meet Bridget – What I Value About Mary’s Pence
I could’ve chosen not to work with Mary’s Pence. As a St Joseph Worker, I had a few options as to where I wanted the program to place me for my...
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As Crisis Deepens, Auxiliadora Accompanies Women
Auxiladora didn’t talk much about herself at first. We’d walked up the block to grab coffee and chatted for about an hour about the ESPERA program before she shared details...
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How We Work: Mary’s Pence Grants
With the fall 2019 grant cycle quickly approaching, it will soon be a busy time for all involved with Mary’s Pence grants. Seeking insight into our process, applicants often ask how grantees are selected. Here’s a glimpse into our process, a unique one among grantmaking organizations.
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In Depth with ESPERA: Different Life Stories, One True Collaboration
In Tonacatepeque, El Salvador, women in a new ESPERA group have come together across social differences: one part is from the local Catholic parish, and the other is a feminist group working on women’s rights.
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Record Number of Applications for Mary’s Pence Grants
As the need for supporting social justice efforts continues to grow, so does Mary’s Pence Grants program. Our spring 2019 funding cycle saw the highest number of applications submitted in the history of Mary’s Pence Grants. With limited funding opportunities available for grassroots organizations focused on social justice, Mary’s Pence Grants is now more important than ever before for supporting grassroots social justice programs.
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Holy Week: Radical Love
This Holy Week we honor the many individuals who engage in the struggle for justice throughout the world. The women of ESPERA and Mary’s Pence Grantees are devoted to uplifting the poor and oppressed, ceaselessly going against the grain of societal acceptance. This commitment to Radical Love flows out of and is nourished by the story of Easter.
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In Depth with ESPERA: Grupo Emprendedor La Epifanía, Tegucigalpa, Honduras
The seed contribution from Mary’s Pence into Epifanía’s community lending pool was $3,500 in September of 2012. Six and a half years later, the 26 members of Epifanía have distributed 156 loans amongst themselves with a cumulative total of $61,670.
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