Sisters of Mary Spotlight

Tucked away in Chalco, Mexico, just beyond the city’s bustle, is a place where miracles unfold daily. It’s here at Girlstown Chalco, one of 18 sites around the globe operated by the Sisters of Mary, that lives are being transformed, one young girl at a time.

The core mission? It’s both simple and profound: to help children break free from a life of poverty through holistic education and deep spiritual care. With over 21,000 children currently in the program worldwide, the Sisters are living proof that radical love, discipline, and faith can change the trajectory of a life and, in time, the world.

The Heartbeat of the Mission

Founded by Venerable Father Aloysius Schwartz, known affectionately as Fr. Al, the Sisters of Mary began their work in post-war Korea, caring for orphans. Over time, the mission expanded globally, evolving into a fully residential, year-round, five-year formation program for vulnerable youth aged 11–17.

Today, in Chalco, over 3,000 girls live, learn, and heal together. They receive medical and dental care, clothing, food, beds, and a world-class education, including English, science, math, and vocational training tailored to the country’s workforce, such as nursing and accounting in Mexico. Each girl also spends three hours in prayer each day, grounding her academic formation in a deep relationship with Christ.

But this is more than a school. It’s a family. The Sisters serve as mothers, lovingly walking alongside each girl as they navigate the pain of the past and step into hope.

Stories That Move Mountains

Kevin Wells, author of Priest and Beggar and close friend of the Sisters, remembers his first visit vividly. In April 2020, amid the silence of pandemic lockdowns, he arrived in an empty plane to a nearly silent Chalco. Greeted by Sister Margie, he was told, “If you’re going to begin to understand Fr. Al, you have to understand the stories of his spiritual daughters.”

And he did.

Kevin sat with Antoninia, a 13-year-old girl from Guerrero, a region plagued by human trafficking. She told him, “A bad man used to chase me up the mountain. I had to run and hide just to get home from school.” Her only refuge? A small statue of Our Lady of Guadalupe. “I would kneel in front of that statue and ask her to take it all away,” she said. “Those prayers were the ones that brought the Sisters up the mountain to help me.”

Eleven more girls told similar stories of abuse, abandonment, fear and how, through the Sisters’ love, they were reborn. “It was the day I thought I don’t know how there could be a better mission in the entire world,” Kevin recalls. “They are bringing broken children back to life.”

The Ripple Effect

With over 170,000 graduates across the world, the ripple of this mission is immeasurable. Sherlyn Comia, a graduate from the Philippines, lost a parent while still in school. Orphaned, she stayed with the Sisters, later financing the education of her siblings’ children, and is now working full-time for the Sisters of Mary in the U.S. She recently married and lives in Mexico, continuing her life of service.

Graduates become lawyers, doctors, Olympians, engineers, and musicians. Some build the very places where new students will grow—like Jennifer, who dreamed of being an architect and went on to design the “Fully Alive Building” in Chalco.

“This is the fruit of Our Lady of Guadalupe’s labor,” Kevin says. “These children have become some of the greatest Catholic missionaries in the world.”

New Frontiers and a Sacred Invitation

The Sisters are not slowing down. In Dodoma, Africa, they recently celebrated one year of Boystown, where hunger was so severe that children were only eating once a week. They’ve since opened a bakery to meet both spiritual and physical hunger and are now opening a Girlstown in Africa as well.

Meanwhile, in Chalco, students are baptized each Sunday. They graduate not only with diplomas but with hearts on fire for Christ—ready to serve and rebuild broken corners of the world.

Join Us in Mexico: Fall Pilgrimages 2025

60th Anniversary Trip, October 16-20, 2025: https://www.ctscentral.net/travel-tours/60th-anniversary-pilgrimage-to-mexico

Pilgrimage to Mexico with Cardinal Raymond Burke, November 7-10, 2025: https://www.ctscentral.net/travel-tours/pilgrimage-to-mexico-with-cardinal-raymond-burke

For more information about the Sisters of Mary visit https://worldvillages.org/.