On this Easter Sunday, this day of renewed hope and life, the family of Marta Ureña will attend Catholic Mass to give thanks and pray.
The family will pray for Alberto Ureña, Marta’s husband and father to their children, Ana, Nora and Oscar. They will recall his love and joy, which they have missed since his death nearly 15 years ago.
In their prayers they will give thanks to God, because it was their faith that sustained them in the years since Alberto’s sudden death, which for a brief period, left the family unsettled. They will swell with thoughts of gratitude for the friends who assisted them through that period when uncertainty compounded their grief.
And they will again, as they have so often, silently pray for the unknown angel, who after Alberto’s death, gave Marta and her children a home.
I first met Marta in the summer of 2000, the month after Alberto died of a heart attack at the age of 39. Through Habitat for Humanity and its volunteers, the Ureñas were building a three-bedroom house in the “A” Mountain neighborhood. Alberto and Marta had invested 375 hours of “sweat equity” when he died.
However, when Alberto died, so did the prospect of owning a new home. Marta was undocumented and could not legally work. Habitat feared she would not be able to make the monthly payments.
I wrote about the Ureña family’s disappearing dream that July.
Then the Ureñas’ angel came forward. The donor paid the $60,000 mortgage.
To this day, the Ureñas do not know the donor’s name. The Tucson woman asked to remain anonymous.
But the donor’s generosity afforded the Ureñas more than a home. She gave Marta and her three children an optimistic foothold toward stability. She gave them the confidence that they could take advantage of the goodwill and opportunities.
They have.
Next month, Ana Ureña, 22, will graduate from the University of Arizona. The Mexican-American studies major, who earned a full-ride college scholarship, hopes to enter nursing college or maybe become a doctor.
Through Ana, who is a U.S. citizen, her mother initiated the process of acquiring legal residency. Last New Year’s Eve, Marta’s work permit was approved, and this year she expects to receive her legal resident card.
Dec. 31 was a tearful, celebratory night for the Ureñas.
“We were all crying because we were so happy,” said Nora, 20, the youngest of the three children.
While the angel donor gave the Ureña family some footing, Marta has worked hard to keep the home. In the years after her husband’s death, she cleaned homes, made tamales, and cooked other foods to earn income. She paid the property taxes and insurance on the house.
She also kept her children focused on their education. All three graduated from Cholla High School, a few blocks from their home. Oscar and Nora have taken classes at Pima Community College. Their mother wants them to continue.
“My parents always told us we had to do better than they did,” said Ana, who was 7 years old when her dad died. “Education is the only way to get out.”
Along the family’s journey, a small circle of support has buoyed the Ureñas. Habitat volunteers continued to pitch in even after the house was blessed by a priest.
Other volunteers came from Most Holy Trinity Catholic Church, where the Ureñas worship.
Church friends drove Marta to work when public transportation was not an option, and drove the children to religious education classes.
Ken Moreland, a deacon at Most Holy Trinity, said that because of the Ureñas’ strong faith and commitment, “they didn’t see obstacles.”
“They always looked at everything they had as a blessing from God,” said Moreland, who, along with his wife, Linda, has consistently been at the Ureñas’ side.
Also at the family’s side is Alberto. The husband and father is never far. His wedding day photo hangs on the living room wall. There are other photos of him in the house.
Tears flowed when Marta and her children talked about his spirit and cheerfulness.
“He would be proud of me for helping mom with the bills,” said 21-year-old Oscar, who cherishes the memories of the son and father weekend “man trips.”
On this day, as every day, the Ureñas will resurrect thoughts and images of a husband and father, and assure him that they are strong and moving forward.
