FaithWorks Team to El Paso

June 2021. Jessica Corley, Immigration Coordinator for ABQ FaithWorks, organized a 2-day trip to El Paso. A medical team, Family Liaisons, Board Members, and FaithWorks clergy participated, greeting MPP and Title 42 migrants as they crossed the border orderly and without detention, and guiding them to a shelter or to transportation on their journeys to sponsors. A team provided a medical clinic in a 3-story shelter in Juarez for a day, and observed what life was like for those waiting the many months for their appointment with Border Patrol to cross. They visited the Wall in 105-degree heat which covers over 130 miles in the El Paso sector. They were also fortunate to visit the operation and shelter warehouse of Annunciation House and hear the humanitarian perspective of (Saint) Ruben Garcia who has provided the blueprint for us for welcoming the stranger. In this time, they also demo'd an app for receiving and processing asylum seekers based on the 2019 experience, in case the day comes when the border opens again to the "huddled masses yearning to breathe free." There are more stories to come about this experience!

Wins for Asylum Seekers in Albuquerque!

Jun 2021. News from the busy resident asylum seeker program:

• Vaccinations! As of the end of May, 70% of our families have been vaccinated! Through trust and education, we hope to achieve 100% this summer.

• Referrals! Three new referrals came in during the last week of May! Family Liaisons are meeting with the new families.

• Jobs! One asylum seeker interviewed and was hired for a job.

• Work Permits! Another asylum seeker, being assisted by our partner New Mexico Immigrant Law Center, should be getting a work permit soon.

• Housing! Two families are struggling to stay housed. We are looking for options and helping as our budget allows.

Thank you to those at the heart of this work, the creative and dedicated teams that Jessica Corley coordinates: Spanish-speaking Family Liaisons, and the Food, Donations, and Transportation Teams. You are helping over 40 people, post-trauma of migration, survive and acclimate in our community.

Dear readers, there is room for you to join this work, too! Please email admin@abqfaithworks.org today - we will find a spot that suits you and your schedule.

Migrant Nutrition Program Funding!

May 2021. A big thank you to the Jewish Community Foundation of New Mexico for generously funding the Nutrition Program, which is part of the Asylum Seeker Food Box Distribution Program! The program introduces not only the US non-metric recipe and measuring system, but how to use many herbs and spices. It also provides cooking tools and supplements food box items with what is needed to cook the recipe of the month. ¡Buen provecho!