Who We Are
Our Pastor
Dianne Garcia began her career running a day camp for homeless children and teaching in marginalized communities. She then ran a gardening business before serving as an Associate Pastor at a Mennonite church for three years. She planted Roca de Refugio in April of 2023 with a group of women who felt called to create a community of belonging and belovedness in the family of God for other immigrants.
Dianne earned her bachelor's in chemistry from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and her master's in education from the Harvard Graduate School of Education. She has trained as a mental health counselor at Our Lady of the Lake University.
Dianne is a second-generation immigrant and also has understood the immigrant experience through many other journeys in her life to new lands--in healing from trauma, becoming the mother of children with special needs, and living with a chronic illness. She feels unbelievably blessed by the support of her family and the trust placed in her to be the shepherd of such an incredible community of people.
Our Founding Leadership Team
Our church was founded and shaped by four immigrant women who trusted in their promise and in the promise of the immigrant community that is their birthright as God's children. They believe that all people deserve to have a community where they can experience belonging, connection, and love. They believe that every person, no matter where they are from, should matter here.
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They envisioned a church that was a place not just for receiving charity but for experiencing transformation through overcoming the narratives of helplessness of those in power in order to fully become who God made them to be. They believe in treasuring and nurturing the promise and strength that immigrant families bring in order to create a flourishing community that is participating in revealing God's kingdom in our world.
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It is because of these women and their message of hope that this church exists and is thriving today.
Our Church Covenant
We commit to love God and one another well. We commit to worship together, praise together, pray together, struggle together, and celebrate together as one body. We commit to take care of one another, listen to one another, serve one another, and to be honest and open with one another. We commit to be disciples of Jesus in our family, in our community, and in the world.
What We Believe
We are a Mennonite church and part of the Mountain States Mennonite Conference. We believe, at the core, in following the teachings of Jesus in our daily lives. We work for peace, justice, and reconciliation in our community and in the world. For more information on what it means to be a Mennonite, visit the MCUSA website.