When Alice St. Jean arrived from Haiti 30 years ago, she felt like a lost soul. Unable to speak English, with few resources and almost no family to help, she turned to her faith and her church. But one Sunday, after attending a Creole-language Mass at Corpus Christi Catholic Church in Miami, she knew she was home.

''I came from Haiti Catholic,'' she says proudly, ``and I stayed Catholic.''

In the decades that have followed, St. Jean, now 65, witnessed a transformation in her church -- and her life. As the Haitian population grew, so did services to its Catholic Creole-speaking population. That rare Mass in her native language is not so rare anymore.

Haitian Catholics have their own archdiocesan monthly newspaper and Sunday radio show. Sixteen Haitian priests serve a community estimated between 60,000 and 80,000 churchgoers. And while Corpus Christi continues to be a haven for the newly arrived and the old-timers, Notre Dame d'Haiti Catholic Church has become the community's hub. Just last month, the community had a ground-breaking ceremony for their new church on Northeast 62nd Street, the Shrine of Our Lady of Perpetual Help.

St. Jean has been instrumental in the church community's growth. First as a full-time employee and now as a volunteer, the mother of two has dedicated herself to welcoming immigrants and providing for both their physical and spiritual needs through the Pierre Toussaint Center.

''I do a little bit of everything,'' she says. ``Job hunting and social services and looking for houses. Mainly it is to help them find jobs.''

She also instructs new immigrants in their Catholic faith and often teaches them about the sacraments, particularly baptism for their children. Though she is now retired, she still pitches in whenever they call her.

''I want to help,'' she says. ``It gives me satisfaction. I want to return what I was given.''

She is most proud of the Catholic Church's policy of offering help, regardless of race or creed. ``We serve anyone -- Baptist, those who come to church and those who don't come to church. We don't ask religion. We just help.''

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