In this presentation, Maria Corazon and Ann Coady will talk about the current immigration situation and how through their various roles, they accompany families journeying through the immigration system.

Maria Corazon, originally from the Philippines, and now rooted in El Paso, Texas as a Maryknoll Lay Missioner. A graduate of Maryknoll College (now Miriam College) in Quezon City, and of the University of the Philippines, College of Law, she has spent four decades in solo legal practice in Los Angeles, CA specializing in immigration law. In those years, she has walked closely with families facing uncertainty, fear, and hardship- experiences that have deepened her commitment to justice, mercy, and the resilience of the human spirit. She joined Maryknoll Lay Missioner as Class of 2025, and brings to mission a lifetime of compassion, legal advocacy, and a heart shaped by her own migrant journey. Ann Coady is a Maryknoll Lay affiliate in the USA. She is fluent in Spanish serving in the Peace Corps in Colombia, South America; worked as Community Liaison and Parent Educator for the Port Washington NY school district serving mostly immigrant families and volunteered as a national disaster responder for the American Red Cross, serving Spanish-speaking victims of disasters. She has had other roles related to the judicial system such as volunteer guardian ad litem in Juvenile Court, working with immigrant families involved in the child protection system, volunteer intake worker and Spanish interpreter for the Free Clinic of Pierce and Saint Croix Counties, Wisconsin and volunteer tutor in public elementary school in Hudson, WI.