Miles from home, migrant workers treated to family Christmas

Salvador Yax’s daughter was seven years old when he first left Guatemala to earn money in Canada as a migrant farm worker.

His daughter is now 11, and although he gets to go home to visit her, his nine-year-old son, and his wife, times like Christmas are particularly hard as he works thousands of miles away.

“I miss them,” said Yax, who spends months away from his family so he can earn money to support them.

Yax was one of about 250 migrant workers were treated to an early Christmas at St. Ann’s Church in Abbotsford Dec. 14. The temporary farm workers were invited to a special Mass in Spanish followed by a dinner to help brighten the season for men who will be away from their families during the holiday.

He’s grateful to the Archdiocese of Vancouver’s Migrant Ministry for the support the workers receive.

“In many ways they help us because they send buses to pick up all the workers. All the time they give good food,” he said with a smile.

Samuel Ruiz, who has been working on farms across Canada for 12 years earning money for his family, is also grateful for what the ministry provides, including inviting workers to Mass.

“In Mexico, there is not as much money. I can work for more money here,” he said. “What I earn here would take me two to four years to earn in Mexico.”

Mike Podovinnikoff, president of the migrant ministry at St. Ann’s, told The B.C. Catholic the workers are supported in a number of ways. “We provide transportation to and from doctor appointments. We take them shopping. Sometimes it is just coffee and companionship.”

The ministry also hosts monthly Masses and Rosaries, each followed by a meal with gifts and birthday presents.

At the Christmas dinner, volunteers handed out more than 200 gift bags containing necessities like toothpaste and soap as well as tuques handmade by confirmation class students at St. James and St. Ann’s Elementary. 

Men’s clothing was also handed out, as it is each month to the workers.

The dinner, the first of its kind at St. Ann’s, also featured Christmas caroling performed by students and volunteers, as well as the migrant workers themselves.

Government data shows more than 6,000 temporary foreign workers are working in B.C. in any given month, most of them in Vancouver, Kelowna, and Abbotsford.

Maria Pinzon knows what it’s like to be a stranger in a new country. She and her husband came to Canada years ago with five children and have been working with Migrant Ministry for 15 years.

“It is very important to offer support. They leave their countries and they come work” for months at a time to help their families.

“They are lonely and sometimes they are sick. Sometimes they just need someone to talk to them.”

Our Lady of Sorrows Parish in Vancouver also hosts an annual Christmas Mass and dinner for hundreds of farm workers; its festive celebration is scheduled for Dec. 21. See last year’s below.

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