A Testimony from Rev. Siobhan Lopez

I have the privilege to serve alongside a beautiful and vibrant community in the city of Whittier. Our ministry is dedicated to creating a safe space for all people to develop an authentic and meaningful relationship with God and with one another. We provide and share resources that cultivate dignity and belonging. In the summer of 2025, our community began to live through an all too familiar experience. Every step outside their homes was shadowed by uncertainty, “Con Cuidado” (be careful) was not just a farewell, but a prayer wrapped in heartache.

Stories of ICE were no longer bound to border towns, but in the heart of our community. Sightings became relentless and commonplace. Streets grew as quiet as they had been during the 2020 pandemic. Local restaurants, establishments, and parks, once full of life and neighbors, became hollow —attendance dwindled and the warmth of community faded.

Fear moved to the forefront of daily life. Stories of disappearing family members spread not through news headlines but through text messages, phone calls and social media- immediate, personal and constant. 

Work, school, shopping, doctor visits became danger zones. Home- though not safe for all- became the only refuge. Yet within the first few weeks, once shock and disbelief began to settle our neighbors became lifelines. 

In the mist of uncertainty, pain, and fear, neighbors were no longer strangers. They began to look out for each other, shopping for one each other, checking in regularly and building networks of communication for safe passage. Protests arose bringing forth awareness and the calling for policy reform. A new wave of resilience swept through the community. Neighbors marching against injustice, human chains formed to protect the vulnerable, vigils held for those who had disappeared and for those held in detention centers – all of it became the foundation of an extraordinary resilience. 

Our community, though still carrying its own fears and vulnerabilities, found ways to show up for their neighbors. Unable to march in the streets or form human chains, they responded in the ways they knew best — with presence, with purpose, and with food. Members of our congregation joined response teams, to cook meals for those most vulnerable among us. Week after week, families take turns preparing, cooking, and blessing each plate — refusing to let anyone go unseen or unfed.

This weekly practice reflects our belief in peaceful protest. It declares to our community: We are here. We remember those who have disappeared. And for those held inside that building – You are not alone. When we show up, we stand firm in love, expose injustice and offer hope where despair threatens to take root.

When we continue to show up, neighbor to neighbor, we embody our calling. We become the living proof of "love your neighbor."