Lay Mission-Helpers Association (LMH) and Mission Doctors Association (MDA) received the prestigious Mission Award from the United States Catholic Mission Association (USCMA) this past Friday.

Since 1983, the Mission Award has been given annually by USCMA to organizations and individuals that have demonstrated extraordinary commitment to the ideals of international mission work.

This is the first time either organization has received the honor. The award was presented during USCMA’s annual conference, held this year in Los Angeles.

Debbie Bauer, a lay missionary serving at Pius X School in Tatum, Diocese of Kumbo, Cameroon. Debbie is a member of Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary Parish in Pasadena, CA.

“It is a true honor to receive this award from the United States Catholic Mission Association,” said Bill Metzdorf, President of the Board of Directors of LMH.

“I am proud to accept this award on behalf of the many lay missionaries who have chosen to witness their faith by serving the poorest among us. This wonderful award acknowledges their deep commitment to our founder Monsignor Anthony Brouwers’ philosophy that, ‘we are all God’s helpers.’”

“For more than fifty years, Mission Doctors Association has trained, sent and supported Catholic doctors who use the skills with which they have been blessed to serve people of all faiths at mission hospitals and clinics around the world,” said Tom Liautaud, President of the Board of Directors of MDA.

“We thank USCMA for this tremendous honor and take this occasion to recommit ourselves to bringing health and hope to a world in need.”

LMH and its sister organization MDA were founded by Monsignor Anthony Brouwers in 1955 and 1959, respectively. Working with church leaders in Africa, Asia and Latin America who have requested assistance, LMH and MDA have sent hundreds of lay missionaries and doctors to provide urgently needed medical, educational, technical and administrative support.

They are the oldest organizations of their kind in the United States, founded years before the Peace Corps and Doctors Without Borders, to which they have been compared.

“We are excited to honor Lay Mission-Helpers Association and Mission Doctors Association for their exemplary work in promoting the values of mission service and global solidarity,” said Teresita Gonzalez, USCMA President.

Members of the LMH & MDA Staff and Board of Directors, and returned lay missionaries.

“Within the United States and across the world, these two organizations have a rich history of embodying the mission spirit and helping hundreds of Catholics to follow their baptismal calling. Their commitment to the global mission of Jesus Christ makes them deeply deserving of this year’s Mission Award.”

Lay Mission-Helpers Association (LMH) places Catholic individuals, couples and families in volunteer opportunities in countries around the world. As the oldest organization of its kind in the United States, LMH provides urgently needed educational, healthcare, technical and administrative support to struggling communities.

For more than half a century, they have been guided by the philosophy that each of us is capable of service because “we are all God’s helpers.” Since its founding in 1955 by Monsignor Anthony Brouwers, LMH has placed more than 700 lay missionaries in 36 countries.

Since 1959, Mission Doctors Association has trained, sent and supported Catholic doctors and their families who come from across the United States to serve people of all faiths in some of the most underserved areas of the world. This mission of healing provides direct patient care and training for local professionals striving toward the goal of sustainable health care.

The United States Catholic Mission Association unites and supports people committed to the cross-cultural and global mission of Jesus Christ in service to the Church and the world. It is an association open to mission sending congregations and societies, diocesan mission offices, individual missioners, and others interested in cross-cultural and global solidarity.

To learn more about LMH, please visit: www.laymissionhelpers.org/ . To learn more about MDA, please visit: http://missiondoctors.org/ .

To view a video on both organizations that was played during the award ceremony, please visit: www.youtube.com/watch?v=a3J3CFRRYKM&feature=youtube.

** Michael Ireland is an Internet Journalist who has served as Chief Correspondent and Senior International Correspondent for ASSIST News Service ASSIST News Service. since 1998. He is an international British freelance journalist who was formerly a reporter with a London (United Kingdom) newspaper and has been a frequent contributor to UCB UK, a British Christian radio station. He has reported for ANS from Jamaica, Mexico, Nicaragua, Israel, Jordan, China, and Russia. Michael is a member in good standing of the National Writers Union, Society of Professional Journalists, Religion Newswriters Association, Evangelical Press Association and International Press Association. Michael's writing ministry is a sponsored ministry department -- 'Michael Ireland Media Missionary' (MIMM) -- of A.C.T. International of P.O.Box 1649, Brentwood, TN 37024-1649, at: Artists in Christian Testimony (A.C.T.) International. Michael frequently attends the National Religious Broadcasters (NRB) and Evangelical Press Association (EPA) conventions where he interviews high profile leaders of missions and ministries across the US and around the world. His stated mission for writing is 'Truth through Christian communication.' Please contact Michael for more information. Also, if you have a story idea for Michael, you may write to him at:Writer Mike