A HOME AWAY FROM HOME

St. Michael's Roman Catholic church in Leamington is spiritual home to hundreds of Mexicans Migrant farm workers. As crowds gather to watch a soccer game a stone's throw from St. Michael's Roman Catholic church in Leamington, Ont., Mexican migrant workers in the "tomato capital of Canada" fill the pews for Sunday Mass. Earlier, some of their bosses from fruit and vegetable farms in Essex County attended English services at the church. But as the Canadian and Mexican flags in front of the white edifice flutter in the afternoon breeze, the worshippers inside — mainly men in shirtsleeves — lift their voices en español. On the altar, Father Frank Murphy, the bilingual (Spanish- and English-speaking) parish priest, joins in the hymn singing to the accompaniment of guitars. Then he offers some practical advice to workers — more than 100 of them — who had arrived at the church on bicycles, some from farms more than 10 kilometres away. He suggests they take advantage of a program giving away free adhesive reflectors for their bicycles. Reflectors make it easier for motorists to see the bicycles on the road at night, he reminds his congregation. He also tells workers they should visit a clinic in the city where they can get their eyes tested at no charge. Before distributing communion, Father Murphy offers prayers for dairy farmers affected by the scare over mad cow disease. For hundreds of Mexicans whose only day off is Sunday, St. Michael's Church is more than just a place of worship. It has become a focal point for various other community activities and, as one worker put it, "a place to pick up useful information." After Mass, a group of workers get together in a room in the church for English as a Second Language (ESL) classes. In the basement some watch videos in Spanish while others drink pop and chat and a few practise on guitars. Mexican-born Francisco Cabrera, a chemical engineer who has been the lead guitarist at the church since 1995, points out that several workers play music at Mass. "Some play the guitar, which is a popular instrument among Mexicans, and others are now learning to play," he says. Stressing the importance of ESL classes, one worker says "a little English can be very helpful, especially when you go to the bank to send money back to your family in Mexico "If you get injured on the farm, it also helps if you can tell the doctor where it hurts — in English. Yes, these are simple things but if you don't have the English words in your mouth, puede ser un gran problema (it may be a big problem)," he observes. Ann Seigel-Robertson, a bilingual teacher who organizes cultural and social activities for the workers, says there is a need "to bring some joy into the lives of these hard-working people." "This year, the men will have an opportunity to play soccer and sewing classes will be offered to the women," she says. (While the majority of Mexican migrant workers are men, a small number of women are also recruited.) Mexican migrant workers have been coming to Leamington since the 1970s through the Commonwealth Caribbean and Mexican Seasonal Agricultural Program. Thousands of workers are brought to Canada annually through this government-to-government program to perform a variety of agricultural tasks, including the harvesting the crops . Last year more than 10,000 Mexicans were recruited. While the majority were assigned to farms in Ontario, some were hired in Alberta, Manitoba, Quebec, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island, according to a spokesperson for Human Resources Development Canada. After migrant workers have completed their contracts, they return to their native countries, but many who prove to be hard-working and reliable are rehired year after year. One such worker is Margarito Gonzales who has been with the program for more than 20 years. He spends about six or seven months a year on a fruit farm in Essex County. Gonzales who regularly cycles 14 kilometres to attend Sunday Mass in Leamington, says he looks forward to the service in Spanish. "I like to sing a bit in the church and to meet other Mexicans after Mass," he adds. Father Murphy, who served for eight years as a parish priest in Peru, recalls that Spanish church services were first organized in Leamington in the 1980s. He says a woman who operated a grocery store with her husband discovered that large numbers of Mexican migrant workers in the city were Catholics and she spoke to a priest about "the need for church services in Spanish. "At first, we had a Mass in Spanish once or twice a month during the period the workers were in Canada. "The response was tremendous and the frequency of the Mass was increased. We now have a Mass for the workers every Sunday for 10 months of the year." Father Murphy says on Sundays he would hear "a few confessions in Spanish. But once or twice every three months, I would invite five or six Spanish-speaking priests to hear confessions. On those occasions we would have as many as 150 workers coming to confession." He says there are usually more women than men at most church events, "but not only are there more men at the Spanish Masses but more people sing at these Masses than at other services at the church." According to Father Murphy, many of the Mexican workers are devout Catholics. "Many like soccer and at the same time as the Mass in Spanish, there is a game a short distance from the church. So Catholic workers have to make up their mind. Are they going to attend Mass or watch soccer? Well, hundred of them choose to come to Mass." He also stresses their deep devotion to Our Lady of Guadalupe, who was reported to have appeared to St. Juan Diego in Mexico and was named by Pope Pius X as the patroness of Latin America. "The church has a picture of Our Lady of Guadalupe which from time to time is taken around to the farms where the Mexicans work," he says. A few other churches in farming areas in southwestern Ontario are providing services in Spanish for Mexican workers, but at St. Michael's, the Mass in Spanish and the programs the church provides make it a special meeting place for many of los companeros (the comrades) who spend half the year or more away from their families doing work most Canadians wouldn't touch.