Our Story

Mission San Pedro (MSP) began in June 2013, not as a “program,” but as a relationship—one encounter leading to another, until a small act of care became a durable commitment.

Padre Pedro's Unfinished Mission

In the early 1980s, Father Peter Orlando, a member of the Maryknoll Order, served in Guatemala. Known locally as Padre Pedro, he worked in indigenous Maya communities. It was a time of unspeakable violence. In all, over 200,000 were killed or "disappeared," most of them indigenous Maya. In the Atitlán highlands, massacres and military violence took the lives of countless Maya men and boys, leaving families fractured and women widowed. Clergy and religious workers were being targeted too; there was a price on Padre Pedro's head, and he fled for his life.

Over decades Padre Pedro's love for the Maya people never faded. Late in life and in poor health, Padre Pedro still held on to a vision for helping the people he had served in Guatemala. He asked David Roth and Asha Allen if they would visit Guatemala and find a worthwhile cause.

In 2019, at 80 years old, Padre Pedro briefly returned to Guatemala one more time. In a heartfelt homecoming he never thought he would make, he met the widows of Mission San Pedro and visited them in their homes.

He died in 2024.

ORIGIN STORY ...
a Broken Bus, a Conversation, and the First Eggs

On our first trip to Guatemala in June 2013, Asha and I (David) met Emma and Renzo in the most fortuitous -- some would say providential -- of circumstances. When our bus broke down and caught fire, we were strangers helping strangers, stranded on the side of the road. A seemingly random conversation between the four of us resulted in Emma and Renzo extending an invitation to visit the Tz'utujil Maya village of San Pedro La Laguna on the shores of Lake Atitlan—to bring eggs to two needy widows.

In San Pedro we met Mariano Gonzales Chavajay and his wife Vicenta. Mariano is widely recognized for his work as the preeminent Tz’utujil Maya painter, and his art has also helped sustain MSP through fundraising over the years. Vicenta is the mission’s steady center—trusted, sought out, and often approached directly by widows in need.

Mission San Pedro was born.

WHAT MSP BECAME ...
a steady commitment to
30 widows

MSP’s purpose is simple: to ensure that elderly widows receive dependable care—especially nutritional support and clean water—without being asked to “earn” their support or carry the burden of “sustainability projects.”

For most of its life, MSP has supported 30 widows—a number held steady because need is vast and resources are limited. When one widow dies, another (of the many in need) may be added as resources allow.

Honoring Asha's Leadership

From our founding, Asha Allen was a central public face of MSP with a deep relational commitment to the widows and the local MSP team.

She carried the mission through extraordinary personal effort including three long distance open-water fundraising swims that included crossing the English Channel under extreme conditions.

From 2021-2025 she served as sole US-based leader.

The mission endured because she kept it alive.

A New Chapter of Continuity

In 2025, MSP entered a transition in leadership that created uncertainty about continuity. Those on the ground—Vicenta, Mariano, Emma, and Renzo—asked that David Roth return so the widows would not face a sudden end to support.

David returned, met again with the widows, and made a commitment: there will be no rupture. Mission San Pedro continues as an outreach of the Arizona-based nonprofit The Community of All Souls, while remaining locally led and relationship-based at its core.

If you supported MSP in earlier years, welcome home.

If you are new: thank you for seeing these women and considering standing with them.

Ad Memoriam

The following widows who were under care of Mission San Pedro are no longer with us.

Eternal Rest.

Rosa viuda de Mendez

Alejandra viuda de Quiacain

Catarina viuda de Navichoc

Elena viuda de Gonzalez

Catarina viuda de Petzey

Ana viuda de Gonzalez

Gertrudis viuda de Tuch

Albertina viuda de Rocche

Clara viuda de Gonzalez

Manuela viuda de Peneleu

Juana viuda de Gómez

Julia viuda de Quiche

Gertrudis viuda de Gonzalez

Marta viuda de Mendez

Florinda viuda de Samol

Paula viuda de Moxnay

Delfina viuda de Pichiya

Elena viuda de Raxic

Paulina viuda de Puzul

Lucia viuda de Matzar

Jesus viuda de Chavajay