Fr. Rick Matty, s.m.Father Rick Matty, s.m., a Marist priest who served for many years in the southwestern United States, will be honored posthumously November 9 with a "Lifetime Service Award" by the Las Americas Immigrant Advocacy Center. Matty, who died in 2012, will be honored along with four others who have "dedicated their lives to making our border a more just and humane place," according to Las Americas.
A short bio released by Las Galinas said that Matty graduated from John Carroll University and earned a graduate degree in Theology from Catholic University in Washington. He was ordained in 1983 for the Society of Mary and moved to El Paso in 1986 and helped establish the Diocesan Migrant and Refugee Services organization, serving as its first director.
He became pastor of St. Frances Xavier Cabrini in 1993 and further served the area by taking the helm of the Catholic Diocese of El Paso as the chancellor in 1994 and as the interim administrator after the departure of Bishop Raymundo Peña. He became Rector of St. Patrick Cathedral in 1997 and served until his death in 2012. The nonprofit organization he helped establish—the Diocesan Migrant and Refugee Services—still offers immigration legal aid primarily to low-income immigrants and refugees requiring assistance. To date, they have helped thousands of immigrants resolve their cases successfully.
The others receiving honors at the Nov. 9 Border Heroes Awards Dinner in El Paso are activist Rosemary Martinez and Drs. Trent Filler, Hank Marcantoni and David Malavé.
Las Americas is a 25 year-old, homegrown, non-profit dedicated to serving the legal needs of low-income immigrants, including refugees and battered women.
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About Notre Dame Preparatory School and Marist Academy
Notre Dame Preparatory School and Marist Academy is a private, Catholic, independent, coeducational day school located in Oakland County. The school's upper division enrolls students in grades nine through twelve and has been named one of the nation's best 50 Catholic high schools (Acton Institute) four times since 2005. Notre Dame's middle and lower divisions enroll students in jr. kindergarten through grade eight. All three divisions are International Baccalaureate "World Schools." NDPMA is conducted by the Marist Fathers and Brothers and is accredited by the Independent Schools Association of the Central States and the North Central Association Commission on Accreditation and School Improvement. For more on Notre Dame Preparatory School and Marist Academy, visit the school's home page at www.ndpma.org.