With Friends Like These…
'Vote Our Future' Tour Ends With Mission and Action
October 25, 2024 By 2024 Nuns on the Bus & Friends Riders
Writer: Ralph McCloud, Fellow at NETWORK Advocates
I was pleased to be able to participate in NETWORK’s 2024 Nuns on the Bus & Friends “Vote Our Future” tour. Obviously, I am not a nun, but I was honored to be among the “friends” as the bus traveled the country lifting important issues and stressing the importance of participating in the electoral process.
Arriving at selected sites around the country, our bus was met with ovations that I would imagine rivaled those of rock stars on tour. The bus was greeted with cheering “fans” who appreciated nuns for who they are and how they witness to their faith in the public sphere. It was inspiring and affirming as we traveled from site to site. I saw wonderful people working on improving their communities in Philadelphia, Chicago, and San Francisco.
NETWORK Fellow Ralph McCloud.
In San Francisco, I saw tremendous work done by Mission Action, a local organization that 40 years ago took on the critical task of supplying temporary housing to unhoused people as well as addressing the “wrap-around” needs associated with the community. They also focus on the rights of immigrants and workers, housing rights, and health justice. We walked the neighborhood and saw incredible progress and support for their efforts.
A beautiful, San Francisco marina was the final stop of the Vote Our Future tour, and for me, it was bittersweet. It was the culmination of tons of coordination and work, and it left many of the riders with a feeling like a graduation day — our final day together. My sadness was quickly tempered as I was inspired by the presence of Catholic high school students, community organizers, and of course nuns from the local vicinity. It was a testament to the diversity of creation — young, old, and multi-cultural — all friends committed to the creation of a better world.
This reflection is from the 2024 Nuns on the Bus & Friends bus rider blog.
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- Laura Valdez, Executive Director of Mission Action in San Francisco, gives a tour to the Nuns on the Bus & Friends during their Oct. 18 site visit while Yesenia Lacayo, Operations Director, looks on. Mission Action seeks a just and sustainable community where all residents – regardless of income, immigration, or health status – have equal rights and access to resources.
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- NETWORK’s Christian Watkins and Sr. Emily TeKolste, SP walk around Mission Action’s San Francisco neighborhood.
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- Sr. Deirdre Griffin, SSJ listens to Yesenia Lacayo, Operations Director at Mission Action.
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- David Valencia speaks at the press conference after the Mission Action site visit.
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- Bus riders Sr. Andrea Koverman, SC, Ana Garcia-Ashley, and Amelia Kegan pose for a picture.
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- Yesenia and Angelica of Mission Action in San Francisco.
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- NETWORK Fellow Ralph McCloud shows his support for multi-issue voting during the press conference following the site visit to Mission Action in San Francisco on the final day of the Vote Our Future tour.
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- NETWORK’s Colin Martinez Longmore.
