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Refugee Center Settles 85,000

Diocesan Press Service. March 8, 1965 [XXX-13]

The Cuban Refugee Center, Miami, Fla., passed a significant milestone last December with the resettlement of the 85,000th Cuban refugee outside of the Miami area. The program has accomplished this feat since its beginning in January of 1961 because of the many offers of sponsorships and jobs from all 50 states.

A 59 year-old former Cuban sugar mill worker, Benito Lopez, who is now settled with his wife, Enerina, in Des Plaines, Il., pushed the total over the 85,000 mark.

Mr. and Mrs. Lopez are representative of the older group of refugees whose resettlement has not been as rapid as with younger Cubans. These older refugees and those with physical or social handicaps often need special assistance, as do those who arrive in Miami on small boats, usually fishermen with little or no education and no knowledge of English. Retraining, English study, and job and sponsorship offers make the task not an impossible one, however. The Benito Lopezes were aided in their move by their married daughter's family who had already been resettled in Des Plaines. St. Martin's Episcopal Church in that community participated in the sponsorship of both the daughter and her parents.

Mr. Lopez, an Episcopalian, attended high school in Maine in his youth and, thus, is bilingual. From 1928 to 1961 he worked in a Hershey Co. sugar mill in Cuba, becoming a supervisor of mechanics. This mechanical experience qualified him for a factory position in his new home. Mr. and Mrs. Lopez will also be near three grandsons: Orlando Martinez in Des Plaines; and Alejandro and Stephen, children of their son, Jesus, and his wife, who were resettled in Waukegan, Ill.

Four voluntary agencies are involved in the resettlement program under federal government coordination: Catholic Relief Services, International Rescue Committee, Church World Service, and the United Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society. The Episcopal Church, which works through Church World Service, has been involved in more than 4000 resettlements.