A Story of Hope
We are living through incredible times, and many of us are being asked to step up in different ways. I’m honored to share a story with you about an inspiring young man who really stepped up, despite incredible personal challenges.A few years ago, Andres fled violent gangs in Guatemala and made it to the U.S. He was placed in different shelters for unaccompanied youth until he was finally allowed to live with a relative in Oregon while his immigration case moved along. He completed a training program to become a firefighter. He checked in with ICE regularly to let them know he hadn’t run away or gotten into any trouble.
Andres gives me hope. And we can all use a little more of that right now. Your support can make that possible.
Life was mostly stable for Andres until last December when he did his usual check-in with ICE and they locked him up in a detention facility because they said he hadn’t notified them that he’d moved to a new house. This is just one example of how even small mistakes can have devastating consequences for immigrants. Once in detention, Andres again faced fear and uncertainty.Gabe Espinal, one of our Unaccompanied Children attorneys, represented Andres at a bond hearing in February and, luckily, the immigration judge granted him bond. This meant he could go back to living his life in the free world while his immigration case progressed if he could pay the $12,000 bond. That’s a lot of money for many families, and impossible for Andres who had no significant savings and no family members who could pay it. Gabe then recruited a friend who helped Andres launch a successful Go Fund Me campaign to raise the bond money.
“I came here to work, to search for something better because in our country we had nothing. I really like working tofight wildfires so I can save nature and I can save lives. It’s so sad to see fires destroy forests and destroy homes.”
Andres was very grateful for the help he got from ICS and the support he received from generous people who wanted to see him get justice. Because of this support, he saw himself as part of the larger community and he wanted to give back by helping fight the wildfires this past September.ICS is organized to make sure that immigrants like Andres have access to high-quality low-cost and pro bono legal services. Last spring, we also launched a special fund to help our clients pay for court costs, application fees, and other legal expenses. We are excited to share this video featuring ICS staff talking about the different ways your contribution helps people like Andres.We launched the Giving Table Campaign so we can continue to support people like Andres, people who want to make a better life free from poverty and violence. Our goal is to raise $25,000 by the end of 2020. Every gift counts. You can give the gift of hope by making your tax-deductible donation today!Mil gracias,Frank GarciaExecutive Director