New Oral Histories: Puerto Rico

This summer, PHS visited Puerto Rico to record oral histories with ten ordained women. Each participant was introduced to the Society by Rvda. Blanqui Otaño, the first woman ordained in Puerto Rico.

The video interviews, available in Pearl Digital Collections, are connected by each woman’s deeply Caribbean ministry. From Costa Rica to Venezuela, from the Dominican Republic to Nicaragua, their experiences with seminary, ordination, and their personal challenges and accomplishments have been documented and added to PHS’s collection of over 200 oral histories. Compelled by their faith, and inspired by liberation theology, the women interviewed ministered to the impoverished in cities and across isolated rural areas. 

PHS first visited Puerto Rico in 2018 in an effort to build relationships and learn more about the record-keeping needs of Presbyterians on the island. That trip, along with outreach in the years that followed, helped archivists identify areas for collaboration with the Rvda. Otaño, as well as Sínodo Presbiteriano Boriquén. These partnerships are helping PHS document the vital voices of Puerto Rican Presbyterians.

Learn how PHS partnered with the Sínodo Presbiteriano Boriquén to preserve records.