As part of our UU Social Justice work we have chosen to support the migrant shelter, Tierra del Oro, in Palomas, Mexico, less than 2 hours south of Silver City. What started as a small shelter for asylum seekers waiting to head north, has become a transit stop that ICE and the Border Patrol use to expel 100+ detainees every night. These guests at the shelter may only stay 2-3 days but most are in dire need of food, sleep and first aid before they decide where to go next. At our UU building we have a weekly collection of supplies for the shelter every Wednesday afternoon. These supplies are transported to Deming, NM and then sent across the border by officially sanctioned individuals. You can read below the last three weekly posts with updated information on the shelter as well as the current needs for the migrants. If you would like to personally receive these posts, or volunteer to help with the collections or driving to Deming, contact Barbara Gabioud at bgabioud@gmail.com.

 Additional note to our UU listserv: If you would like to help us on a collection Wednesday or be a driver to Deming, please let me know.  The generosity of our community will warm your heart. 

Note:  Driven by the hope for a better future, many migrants who are being expelled from the US will continue to try to re-enter, regardless of the dangers and hardships they face.

2/21/2021

So my Tuesday morning started out with a What’s App text “Good morning! PALOMAS HAS NO WATER OR ELECTRICITY! Please help!” Texas electricity failures affected not only Texas but a good deal of Mexico. Without electricity, neither water nor gasoline pumps work. For the next two days Sandra and Ariana stayed busy on the US side; and Juan, Pastor Sosa and others on the Mexican side, to get water not only for the shelter but the town too. A truck and trailer that could be loaded with a water tank hauled water from Columbus and later pallets of water. Of course, getting across the border was slow even with prior notice that they would be coming. Your donations helped support some of this effort.

More exciting news! On Friday the first 25 (yes 25 only) asylum seekers were admitted from Tijuana into San Diego https://www.dvidshub.net/video/784167/b-roll-processing-individuals-with-active-mpp-cases. They were treated with dignity and respect by Border Patrol. 25 per day will continue to be admitted there; tomorrow 25 per day will be admitted from Matamoros into Brownsville; and Friday 25 per day from Juarez into El Paso. This rate will be maintained for a couple weeks to test the new database site that was opened Friday by the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR). All asylum seekers are registering there to begin admission to the US. The rate is expected to increase to 300 per day at each port soon. That is when Deming is likely to see its first guests.

Locally, by tomorrow we will have packed 400 GoBags to be ready for the Deming families. If you would like to help pack them, please reply to this email for more information.

To pack the bags we need small cans (4.6 oz)VIENNA SAUSAGES, JUICE BOXES (100% juice), COOKIE AND CRACKER PACKS, Welch’s FRUIT SNACKS, DISPOSABLE MASKS, GRANOLA/BREAKFAST BARS, and 16 OZ BOTTLES OF WATER. We will also need PEDIALYTE, small (1lb) PLASTIC JARS of PEANUT BUTTER AND JELLY, and SMALL TOYS/COLORING BOOKS with CRAYONS/STUFFED ANIMALS or PLAYING CARDS.

If you are bringing any of the above items please let the crew unloading your car on Wednesday know about them. We will put them in the building for packing rather than send to the Deming armory.

Nothing has changed for the Palomas shelter residents yet and supplies are still needed there. Food: VIENNA SAUSAGES and CUP-OF-NOODLES. Clothing: WINTER JACKETS (all sizes for children and Small/Medium for women and men), GLOVES, HATS, 40” SHOELACES and BELTS, ADULT WALKING SHOES (up to size 9), and new WOMENS UNDERWEAR. Supplies: WASHABLE PLASTIC CUPS, CLOROX, DISH SOAP and LAUNDRY DETERGENT.

Bring your donations on Wednesdays, 3:00-3:30, to the UUFSC building, 3845 N Swan (not our mailing address) in Silver City. You will be directed to drive straight down on either side of our delivery vehicles. HAVE YOUR DONATIONS POSITIONED IN YOUR VEHICLE SO THAT OUR VOLUNTEERS CAN REACH THEM WITHOUT YOU GETTING OUT. We will get you unloaded and then you can drive out easily. PLEASE WEAR A MASK.

To contribute financially you may mail checks made out to UUFSC (Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Silver City) with Border in the memo line to UUFSC, PO Box 4034, Silver City, NM 88062. Thank you ~ Barbara

2/14/2021

Today is Valentine’s Day, a day that is celebrated by carefully chosen or handmade gifts of love and kindness. So today’s the perfect day to say thank you for all the handcrafted gifts that have been contributed by so many donors. We have received slippers, socks, mittens, toys/dolls, scarves, lap quilts in homemade bags, afghans, money in handmade cards, Christmas ornaments, belts and hand-dyed or crafted shoelaces and other wonderful items. All made with the hope that these items will bring joy and warmth to people they will never personally meet; sent with prayers for a better tomorrow to those who receive their gifts.

I’m sure many of you have read that next Friday is the target date to start processing legal asylum seekers. If not, here’s a fairly quick read. https://www.huffpost.com/entry/some-asylum-seekers-waiting-in-mexico-to-be-allowed-in-us_n_602676bac5b6f88289fb028f

Please help us with some of the following needed items:
Our trial run for packing GoBags is this week. We are aiming to pack 1000 bags in the next 2-3 weeks, to be ready for Deming guests.(If you have offered to help with this, you will be contacted separately) We need VIENNA SAUSAGES, JUICE BOXES, COOKIE AND CRACKER PACKS, DISPOSABLE MASKS, GRANOLA/BREAKFAST BARS, and 16 OZ BOTTLES OF WATER.

We will also need PEDIALYTE, 1 LB PLASTIC JARS OF PEANUT BUTTER AND JELLY, and SMALL TOYS/COLORING BOOKS WITH CRAYONS/STUFFED ANIMALS or PLAYING CARDS.

If you are bringing any of the above items please let the crew unloading your car on Wednesday know about them. We will put them in the building rather than send to the Deming armory.

These items are still in need for Palomas: VIENNA SAUSAGES AND CUP-OF-NOODLES. Clothing needs include WINTER JACKETS (all sizes for children and Small/Medium for women and men), GLOVES, HATS, 40” SHOELACES AND BELTS, and adult WALKING SHOES (up to size 9).

Bring your donations on Wednesdays, 3:00-3:30, to the UUFSC building, 3845 N Swan (not our mailing address) in Silver City. You will be directed to drive straight down on either side of our delivery vehicles. HAVE YOUR DONATIONS POSITIONED IN YOUR VEHICLE SUCH THAT OUR VOLUNTEERS CAN REACH THEM WITHOUT YOU GETTING OUT. We will get you unloaded and then you can drive out easily. PLEASE WEAR A MASK.

To contribute financially you may mail checks made out to UUFSC (Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Silver City) with Border in the memo line to UUFSC, PO Box 4034, Silver City, NM 88062. Thank you ~ Barbara

2/7/2021

Alejandro Mayorkas has been confirmed as the first Latino and first immigrant head of the Department of Homeland Security. This is seen by many as a good sign that changes are coming for ICE and Border Patrol culture. I wonder if he had his shoelaces taken away from him when he arrived from Cuba in 1960...

Also in the news, Mexico has started rejecting some U.S. expulsions of non-Mexican families. This began before Joe Biden’s inauguration, in response to a November law in Mexico mandating that Mexico’s immigration detention centers must no longer hold children and families. Another good sign for asylum seekers?

As border shelters along the border ready for an influx of migrants into the US, Deming is starting to gear up…and that means we are too. We again plan on packing GoBags of food and other necessities (including masks) for legal asylum seeking families as they ride busses north to their sponsors. We will be COVID safe packing this year. Have no fear if you volunteer! (ooo, that rhymes)

So some of these ask items will be going to Palomas and others will be part of the GoBag stash we are starting to build up. APPLE JUICE, SPAGHETTI NOODLES, CANNED SPAGHETTI SAUCE,16 OZ BOTTLES OF WATER, PEDIALYTE, 1 LB PLASTIC JARS OF PEANUT BUTTER AND JELLY, and SWEATSHIRTS.

These items are always in need, both for Palomas and Deming: VIENNA SAUSAGES AND CUP-OF-NOODLES. Clothing needs include WINTER JACKETS (all sizes for children and Small/Medium for women and men), GLOVES, HATS, 40” SHOELACES AND BELTS, and adult WALKING SHOES (up to size 9).

Bring your donations on Wednesdays, 3:00-3:30, to the UUFSC building, 3845 N Swan (not our mailing address) in Silver City. You will be directed to drive straight down on either side of our delivery vehicles. HAVE YOUR DONATIONS POSITIONED IN YOUR VEHICLE SUCH THAT OUR VOLUNTEERS CAN REACH THEM WITHOUT YOU GETTING OUT. We will get you unloaded and then you can drive out easily. PLEASE WEAR A MASK.

To contribute financially you may mail checks made out to UUFSC (Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Silver City) with Border in the memo line to UUFSC, PO Box 4034, Silver City, NM 88062. Thank you ~ Barbara

 https://www.borderreport.com/hot-topics/immigration/border-towns-struggle-with-the-thousands-of-migrants-immediately-deported-under-cdc-order/