The Maryknoll Monarch Initiative (MMI) began in 2025 as a shared vision between the Maryknoll Sisters and the Maryknoll Lay Missioners. Inspired by the Sisters’ formerly Mission Institute, the founders reimagined a new educational and training initiative on the Border in El Paso where each community had a ministry presence. Drawing on the geography, history, and politics of the border, MMI focuses on Care for the Earth, Human Migration, and Nonviolence. The initiative is rooted in Maryknoll’s Catholic faith, but aims to learn from and welcome people of all faiths.

At the hybrid launch event of the Maryknoll Monarch Initiative (MMI), “Hope and Resilience on the Border,” held on March 18, 2025, in El Paso, Texas, Sr. Esperanza Principio, MM (MMI Co-Coordinator), and Elvira Ramirez (Executive Director, MKLM) stood together at the podium. Seated to the left of the podium was Duncan Hilton, former MMI Co-Coordinator.

PRESENT CO-COORDINATORS OF MMI

SR. ESPERANZA V. PRINCIPIO, MM AND DR. MARIA SAJQUIM DE TORRES

Sr. Esperanza V. Principio, MM, originally from the Philippines, is an educator, social development specialist, and advocate for social and environmental justice. She has served in diverse ministries, integrating healing practices, interfaith collaboration, and ecological stewardship, and now continues her mission in El Paso, Texas, where she brings her commitment to faith, justice, and care for creation.

Dr. Maria Sajquim de Torres, originally from Guatemala, has been a resident of El Paso for many years. She has dedicated her career to the mental health field within the non-profit sector, serving as a leader, community organizer, and educator, especially in work with migrants and refugees. She is an interdisciplinary scholar combining psychology, anthropology and health sciences approaches in her work.