When Tessie Lopez was a young girl, she could imagine nothing more wonderful than growing up to become a nun. She loved the way the sisters at Cristo Rey carried themselves with a sense of peace as they sang and as they prayed.

Lopez didn't follow that path, however. She married and had six children, and lived with her husband on Elena Street long after the nest became empty.

Now 71 years old, the widow is living a life devoted to service.

"I don't want any glory," she said when she was contacted about her selection as one of this year's 10 Who Made a Difference. "I don't want any recognition. I do it for God and he blesses me."

Inside the modest home she shares with her dog Esa, a silver basket labeled "Prayers" hangs from a doorknob. Next to the telephone on her kitchen counter is a small notebook. Although it was blank in August, now nearly every line on every page is taken up with requests for prayers. Those that are circled, she said, have been answered.

For the last 20 years, Lopez has organized a "Holy Faith Prayer Line," an effort that includes not only the women in a group she helps lead from Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Church, but that is also passed on to others across the state and nation. The requests roll in day and night.

"Praying is my job," said Lopez, who wears a strong, kind face and short gray hair. "I am on the phone most of the time. Sometimes people can't reach me, so I do have another line because I feel that people need to leave their prayer requests ... sometimes I have to call them back and pray with them."

In between prayers, Lopez has plenty of other things do. From the late '80s to 2002, she volunteered with Open Hands at the side of the ailing, and she still regularly drops in on those in her life who could use a little help. Whether it's grocery shopping, a ride to the doctor, or a listening ear, she provides it.

In the words of longtime friend Adrienne Victory, who nominated her for the award, Lopez is "like a one-person social service agency." This fall, for example, Lopez has spent two or three nights a week with a young mother and her newborn twins, who were premature and are still on oxygen.

"The Lord leads me to people who have no one," Lopez said.