Third accuser says archdiocese knew about abuse allegations by Houston-area priest as early as 1992
By Nicole Hensley
The headline caught the 37-year-old Army veteran’s eye. Swiping through the results of his fantasy football league, he spied the news on his phone that a Richmond priest had been arrested for decades-old claims that he molested two children at a church in Conroe.
Though he barely recognized the gray-haired man in the Montgomery County booking photo as the young Peruvian seminary student from his days as a 12-year-old altar boy at St. Thomas More Catholic Church in Houston, the news report from September ripped open years of guilt and shame he had long buried.
“My heart just broke,” the Houston-area man told the Houston Chronicle, asking that he not be identified.
Within days, he had contacted the Montgomery County District Attorney’s Office — becoming the third accuser to step forward with allegations of molestation against Manuel La Rosa-Lopez, now a priest at the center of a growing investigation that has engulfed the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston.
Winter Appeal 2023
To our friends,
2023 has been a long year with many ups and downs for us all. As we close out the year, we at SNAP hope that you are feeling like you are on your way to being healthy, fulfilled, and happy. This past year has brought both successes and challenges. Thanks to the support you have shown in the past, we’ve been able to celebrate the good days and weather the stormy ones. Now, we are once again asking for your support as we work to support survivors new and old as we ‘Move SNAP Forward.’
At SNAP we are proud to have hosted a very well-attended conference in August 2023. This event allowed us to gather friends, survivors, advocates, and allies for a weekend of camaraderie and connection. We were so happy to be able to welcome many first-time attendees to gather in person and are already looking forward to the next conference.
To strengthen our movement for justice, healing, and prevention, SNAP will be expanding our peer support and providing more volunteer opportunities in the coming year. Through this great work, we are ensuring survivor voices are represented as we work for significant change that will benefit children and survivors.
Right now, survivors worldwide are getting the help they need from SNAP, and more and more reach out to us daily, but we need your help to keep those programs going and get our volunteers the training they need to thrive.
Your tax-deductible gift to SNAP can help offset the cost of our important mission. If you are not in a position to contribute, you can still support us by sharing this letter with those who can. As we continue to fight for survivors across the globe, your donation or sharing the great work SNAP does will help us continue our work to protect the vulnerable, heal the wounded, and prevent abuse.
Your donation ensures SNAP will be there for those who need us more than ever!
Warmly,
Michael W. McDonnell, C.P.S.
Interim Executive Director