Simone Orendain

Simone Orendain is a freelance multimedia journalist who reports from the Chicago/Midwest area and Asia. A seasoned journalist of nearly 20 years, Simone regularly covers the Catholic Church in Asia and the United States. She was a foreign correspondent based in Manila for six years before returning to the United States in the summer of 2016. In the United States, Simone was an education reporter and regularly covered business and religion. She has covered Pope Francis' visits to South Korea and the Philippines as well as a wide range of subjects including peace talks between Muslim rebels and the Philippine government, China's relations with its Southeast Asian neighbors, and U.S.-Asia military relations.

Children displaced by flooding stand outside their family tent while waiting for food handouts and relief material in Sehwan, Pakistan

Sep 16, 2022

Pakistani bishops say they need more help after deadly flooding

Three bishops of Pakistan dioceses most affected by recent deadly monsoon flooding appealed for more funding for emergency food, repairing damaged homes and providing medical needs for the worst-hit victims in their provinces. The South Asian country has been hit hard by record floods caused by monsoon rains and glacial melting since the rainy season started this summer.