September 2024
MIGRANT MINISTRY UPDATE: Need help with asylum applications
It’s crunch time for many of the migrants we serve. The migrants enter this country legally as asylum seekers, protected under international law. They have one year to submit their asylum application. For many migrants who crossed the border during the surge last fall, their time is running out and many have sought assistance from Centro San Edmundo.
If you are an attorney willing to volunteer a few hours once a month with our migrant brothers and sisters, we could use your help. A specialty in immigration law is not required. We can provide an interpreter. There are two ways you can help:
- Thursday morning Legal Assistance Clinic which consists of 15-minute consults to help migrants understand their legal documents and the next steps. A bilingual support team assists with interpretation and translation of documents.
- Once-a-month Asylum Application Workshops. This is a traveling team headed by a bilingual immigration lawyer from Ascension-St Eds. A team consisting of the immigration lawyer and support personal help migrants who have completed their application in Spanish finish the process by having the lawyer review the application and then get it translated.
A week ago we hosted an Asylum Workshop at CSE. We had more than 20 applicants attend with about half of them completing their asylum application. With a second attorney we could have doubled that number. If you are able to help, contact us at [email protected].
MIGRANT MINISTRY UPDATE: MIGRANT MINISTRY POWER FORCE???
There’s always a surprise in the Migrant Ministry! This time it was a large donation of men’s clothing from a Chicago film production company that outfitted the cast of the cable show Power Force. The show was not renewed for a 4th season so the production company was looking to donate its large inventory of mostly men’s clothing used in the filming. The donation was divided up among various charitable organizations and veteran’s associations, including the Migrant Ministry.
What a blessing for the volunteers who run the men’s and older boys’ donation room and often struggle with limited inventory. It seems that men don’t buy themselves new clothes and so have less to donate :-) This donation of high quality, little-worn, youth-oriented pants, jeans, shirts, jackets, and shoes absolutely hit the mark. The room volunteers reflected that the migrants were not only thrilled with the selection, but also commented that their self-esteem seemed to be boosted as the men looked in the mirror to see how good they looked in their new clothes. What joy!
One of the volunteers shared some photos of the donation with family members who regularly watched the series. They recognized outfits that the series actors had worn! Another fun note- the truck driver hired to drive the donations from one site to another had attended St. Ferdinand and remembered playing basketball against St. Edmund in the upstairs gym. Reconnecting!
Thank you for the donation of school supplies. We were able to pass out school supplies to about 125 children. Yay!
Migrant Ministry Update
Once again we want to share some stories from the families resettled by the Migrant Ministry of Catholic Parishes of Oak Park:
Having come to us only last August, all of the families (there were 3 sharing a house) are just about independent, and all of them express such gratitude for helping them get to this point. One couple found a new place all on their own, negotiated the lease and got utilities hooked up with virtually no help, and managed their move. The two other families will continue to share the house they all were in and can cover rent because all the adults are working. The little girls are learning English at a fast clip and the baby boy is happily in a childcare setting and thriving. Everyone is moving forward with their immigration cases. These families are a testament to what an enormous difference the Migrant Ministry support can make in a very short period of time as well as the ripple effect these investments make.
One family member starts Morton Collège this week. He took a tour and was offered ESL and GED classes at no charge and two years of credit classes at no charge after completing GED.
One mother shared with us a photo of her son on his way to kindergarten. When he arrived in Chicago he was having trouble with speech and Migrant Ministry was able to find housing for the family and then provide speech therapy sessions for the son. His mom says in a text: “I am very grateful to you because without you, none of this would have been possible. God bless you all. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts for what you are doing for us.”
If you would like to help with resettling a family, email us at [email protected] You could help by paying for all or part of the rent for a year, or you could help by mentoring a family. To donate online through GiveCentral use the link below OR send donations to St. Catherine-St Lucy and St. Giles Parish, 1025 Columbian, Oak Park, IL 60302. Include a note that the donation is for the “Migrant Ministry”. Thank you for your generous heart!
https://www.givecentral.org/customizable-online-giving/580/event/38694
Monday, Sept. 2 is Labor Day and Centro San Edmundo will not be open for donations. We will start Fall donations on Monday, Sept. 9. Spring/Summer donations have stopped but we still need the essentials such as new underwear, new socks, school uniforms, shoes (no sandals), linens, blanket and personal items.
We are in particular need of coat racks for displaying the coats we will be providing the migrants with for the upcoming winter months. Thank you!
August 2024
MIGRANT MINISTRY UPDATES: Making the Shift to Winter Clothing
The last day to donate summer items to the Migrant Ministry Program at Centro San Edmundo will be Monday, August 19. It is time to shift to cold weather items especially winter coats, boots, hats, and gloves. The people we serve come from warm climates, and weather we think is mild seems quite chilly to them. There is the added fact that many of them are sleeping in less-than-ideal spaces.
We will also continue to collect school supplies and clothes. Because the children we serve will be attending diverse schools, we are collecting generic school supplies to supplement what children may receive from local drives. Likewise, generic school uniforms such as tan, blue, white, or maroon polo shirts and tan, black, or blue school pants. Email us if you have any questions.
Donations are taken on Monday mornings at Centro San Edmundo (previously St. Edmund School at 200 S. Oak Park Avenue, Oak Park, IL).
Thank you so much for your ongoing support of the Migrant Ministry. We welcome your donations. Please consult the UPDATED DONATION FLYER
MIGRANT MINISTRY UPDATES: CELEBRATE THE CHILDREN!
Undoubtedly, the happiest place in Centro San Edmundo is the children’s playroom. Retired CPS teacher Lynn Mathis oversees the playroom and is assisted by dedicated volunteers who get down on the floor to play with the children. It is so special, so beautiful, because children who still carry the trauma they experienced in their home country and on the dangerous trip up north can be children.
They dress up as princesses, play with trucks, crawl through tunnels, and sculpt with clay. In the toy kitchen, they prepare delicious meals of plastic food which they feed to the volunteers. At the end of the morning, each child leaves with a stuffed animal and a small bag of toys. Children can play, create, and imagine. What a beautiful space.
School will be starting soon and the children we serve will be entering mostly Chicago Public Schools. A school supply drive has been started to supplement whatever the children might receive from their schools or local organizations. We are requesting generic school supplies such as pencils, pens, folders, crayons, markers, notebooks, glue sticks, colored pencils, rulers, pencil sharpeners, child-safe scissors, and backpacks.
Thank you for your ongoing support of the Migrant Ministry. In addition to school supplies, we are seeking white, blue, and maroon shirts and black, blue, and tan pants that can serve as school uniforms.
Thank you so much for your ongoing support of the Migrant Ministry. We welcome your donations. Please consult the UPDATED DONATION FLYER
For more information, email us at
[email protected] If you would like to help by donating money toward the purchase of items needed, or if you would like to help defray expenses to provide meals and clothing items for the migrants, you can donate online through GiveCentral using the link below, OR send donations to Ascension and St. Edmund Church, 808 S. East Avenue, Oak Park, IL 60304. Include a note that the donation is for the “Migrant Ministry”. Thank you for your generous hearts!
July 2024
MIGRANT MINISTRY UPDATES: Thank you from a Migrant Family
Whenever we welcome a new migrant family for resettlement our one wish and goal for them is that they will achieve independence. On July 12th we moved a family of 6 into an apartment, with that same prayer. It is our 13th family, plus two single men. That week we received this text from a family we had resettled less than one year ago. They have reached that goal. This is all because of your help and support. Thank you.
Buenas noches, disculpe la hora, quería escribirle para decirle formalmente que ya no necesitaremos los apoyos económicos y de comida de la iglesia, quería agradecerle grandemente por todo su apoyo. Mil Gracias a usted, a la iglesia y todos los voluntarios de la iglesia que nos regalaron parte de su tiempo, de su cariño y de su atención. Gracias por querer a mi familia y espero no perder contacto con ustedes que le abrieron la puerta a mi familia en el momento que más lo necesitamos. Un abrazo fuerte.
att: Familia Guerra Mieres
Good evening, sorry for the late hour. I wanted to write to you to tell you formally that we will no longer need the economic and food support of the church, I wanted to thank you very much for all your support. Thank you, to the church and all the volunteers of the church who gave us part of your time, your affection and your attention. Thank you for loving my family and I hope I don't lose contact with you who opened the door to my family at the time we needed it most. A big hug.
Att: Guerra Mieres family
Thank you so much for your ongoing support of the Migrant Ministry. We welcome your donations, especially light summer clothes. We are very short on athletic shorts for men and boys, and leggings for women . Please consult UPDATED DONATIONS FLYER 5/9/24 For more information, contact us at
[email protected].
If you would like to help by donating money toward the purchase of items needed, or if you would like to help defray expenses to provide meals and clothing items for the migrants, you can donate online through the GiveCentral using the link below, OR send donations to Ascension and St. Edmund Church, 808 S. East Avenue, Oak Park, IL 60304. Include a note that the donation is for the “Migrant Ministry”. Thank you for your generous hearts!
MIGRANT MINISTRY UPDATES: WHAT A YEAR! So much to celebrate!
On June 27, we celebrated our first anniversary of the Migrant Ministry Mornings. It was on Tuesday, June 27, 2023 that we welcomed our first group of asylum-seeking migrants sleeping at the District 15 Chicago police station to the closed rectory of St Catherine-St Lucy so they could take showers. We served a simple breakfast and provided new underwear and socks.
One year later, we are working out of the former St Edmund School (now called Centro San Edmundo) with three large classrooms operating as “free stores.” Another classroom is a delightful playroom for children. We serve a hot breakfast and provide social services, ESL classes, health care, spiritual accompaniment, and immigration support services. The third floor has been restored into an art room and we are sponsoring a clinic at the end of the month with a volunteer immigration lawyer to help 15 migrants complete their asylum application.
We serve approximately 250 migrants/week and estimate that in the past year we have served between 15-16,000 migrants. And of course, our HOUSING MINISTRY has resettled 11 families and has agreed to settle another family of six.
All because of your generous support and the amazing dedication of the volunteers. THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!
Thank you so much for your ongoing support of the Migrant Ministry. We welcome your donations, especially light summer clothes. We are very short on summer clothes for older girls and pants for boys.
July 7, 2024
Migrant Ministry Update: Immigration Support Services
These posters began to appear around Centro San Edmundo this week announcing the latest program beinning there. A few months ago our volunteers at Migrant Ministry Mornings told us that there were getting many questions about immigrantion that they were not able to answer. With the help of trained volunteers we have started Immigration Support Services on Thursday mornings from 9:30 -11:30. The services by the trained voluteers include:
• Assistance to start the asylum or TPS application
• Translation of birth certificates or other documents
• Change of venue for immigration court dates
• ITIN Applications
Later in the summer we hope to also include a visiting immigration attorney on a rotating basis.
If you would like to volunteer to help with this important new service please contact us at the email below.
Our Migrant Ministry Mornings on Tuesday and Thursday mornings continue providing breakfast, clothing, blankets, toiletries, and now even more. The Housing Program is working to provide a home for a family of six. We are looking for an apartment and volunteers to accompany them.