As the church bell at Mission San Rafael Catholic Church calls the faithful to worship, Theresita Hernandez sits on the hood of her 1988 Ford Taurus waiting patiently for her son to arrive.
“It’s been hard on him. I’ve had to move around a lot in the last 15 years–jobs are hard to find and the one’s that are available don’t pay very much. But with a teenager to take care of, it’s not like I have a lot of options.”
Flicking the ashes of her cigarette, Hernandez determinedly clutches the beads of a rosary in the fingers of her free hand.
“Sure I wish things could be different–but they aren’t and that’s what I’ve got to deal with right now. My only hope is that we can stay close as a family and make the best out of a bad situation. All I can do is keeping praying.”
Theresita Hernandez lives in Emery County, Utah and works nights as a cashier at a local convenience store in the small town of Price. She has been coming to Mass at the Mission everyday for the last six years. Despite her persistent prayers, she continues to struggle to make ends meet.
Her son, Edgar, did not show.
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