Maria Elena Manzo (to the right of Pope Francis) with the Pontiff and the 2024 W/SW IAF Vatican delegation. Maria wrote this article.

[Originally published by Monterey County Now]

Last August, I had the opportunity to travel to Rome and visit Pope Francis. I joined a delegation of 18 leaders and organizers from across the West/Southwest Industrial Areas Foundation, the organizing network to which Communities Organized for Relational Power in Action (COPA) belongs. This was the third meeting our group had with Pope Francis between 2022 and 2024, each a 90-minute conversation at his residence at the Casa Santa Marta. At each encounter, he demonstrated humor and humility as he listened attentively to our organizing stories and engaged us in conversation.

My journey to this meeting began 24 years ago, after attending mass at Madonna del Sasso in Salinas, when I was invited to a meeting where the priest spoke about anger. He explained that anger is like fire – it can either burn down a building or light it up. That message deeply resonated with me. I came to California at the age of 16 to work as a farmworker. Early on, I experienced injustice and tried to push back, but ended up feeling ignored and alone.

Hearing the priest that day gave me hope and drew me to leadership work through COPA. Over the years, I have learned to build power through relationships, working alongside others to make lasting changes in our community.

Pope Francis lived what he preached.

I shared my personal story with the Holy Father – from feeling powerless as a young farmworker to becoming a leader in my church and my community through Mujeres en Acción, a member institution of COPA. How, through our work, we have not only developed leaders but empowered them to develop others within their own institutions and churches. Together we are creating a new generation of changemakers.

The Pope listened intently, highlighting the essential role women play. He said, “Where women are, things work better.” He emphasized that women bring a concreteness and strength to leadership and that we must create more space for women, especially in places where they are already making a difference. His words were a powerful affirmation of the work we are doing at Mujeres en Acción to uplift and strengthen women leaders.

When I told Pope Francis about feeling invisible as a young worker, he responded: “People feel invisible because they are kept at a distance, but we are not truly invisible.”

He reflected on the importance of people becoming visible. Pope Francis expressed his concern for the plight of migrants. His words reminded me of his call for the Church to work with people at the peripheries, who are excluded or overlooked. Those at the margins were always on his mind.

Pope Francis lived what he preached. He was a simple man with so much power, yet so humble. As we mourn his death, may we continue his legacy. His words will always be a reminder to continue reaching and empowering those on the margins.

MARIA ELENA MANZO is executive director of Mujeres en Acción and a member of the regional strategy team for COPA, a nonprofit that organizes across churches, synagogues, labor organizations and other member groups to build power to revitalize our democracy. This story is written in partnership with Mayra Bernabe, a COPA organizer.

Recollections of Meeting a Powerful Pope who Listened to the Stories of Regular People Monterey County Now [PDF]