2019 by the Numbers
Bus Backpacks: 18,447
Airport Backpacks: 7,130
Total: 25,577
We have also sent many backpacks to shelters in Nuevo Laredo.
At the end of the year, IWC had 866 volunteers,
3418 followers on our Facebook page,
And 1,850 “subscribers” to our mailchimp mailing list.
Travis Park Church sheltered 22,376 people during the seven months between March 28 and October 20.
At least 32,379 migrants passed through San Antonio.
The food bank served 85,521 meals.
Besides the Food Bank, volunteer groups from churches and
Mobil Loaves and Fishes made 350 double lunches a week for families to take with them on their bus trip.
2,842 received medical care at the pop-up health clinic.
City volunteers served 40,341 at the Migrant Resource Center.
City Council voted unanimously, 11-0, to fund the MRC.
IWC in the News
Only God’s hand has kept us safe
Asylum seekers living in Nuevo Laredo wrote heartbreaking letters telling of kidnapping and death. The envelopes are handmade. (Rosa Flores, CNN) Maximo, an asylum seeker, fled his native Honduras with his son to seek a new life in the United States. But while waiting for their cases to be heard he says they have…
WATCH: Horror stories at the U.S. southern border
IWC Volunteers, consider this your homework before your next shift! This mini-series gives us a better understanding of how much trauma our asylum seekers have gone through. Series made by Anne Lewis and stories are told by Jennifer Harbury, who recounts her encounters with asylum seekers and border patrol. Anne Lewis, the documentarian,…
San Antonio Officials: Migrants From Congo With Ebola Were Not Sent to City
“San Antonio officials were forced to hold a press conference on June 11 to dispel false reports from right-wing figures and conspiracy theory websites that migrants from Congo with Ebola had been sent to the Texas city. San Antonio has seen an influx of Congolese immigrants seeking asylum in recent weeks, and officials did put…
Trump Dumped Thousands of Immigrants in San Antonio. The City’s Response Was a Lesson in Kindness.
“When it’s up close and personal, people do a better job separating the politics from the people.” “Catholic Charities USA and Interfaith Welcome Coalition had been assisting migrants at an average of about 50 a day. This was different. “We had surges of 150, then 250 and 300 people coming in one day,” Bridger said, “and (the…
Network of local churches opening home shelters to support migrants
“A network of local churches that make up the Interfaith Welcome Coalition are helping shelter the influx of migrants traveling through San Antonio. We spoke with a woman from Honduras who used to make and sell her own tortillas. We’re not revealing her identity to protect her safety. She says business was going well, when…
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Here is a lovely article about one of our wonderful Prayer Flag team, Alice Moreno, written by another of our volunteers, Mary Lance: www.satodayscatholic.org/one-guadalupana-is-passionate-about-asylum-seekers/.
Finally reunited!!🎉
Migrant parents deported without their children make historic return to the U.S.
When the U.S. separated thousands of migrant families in 2018, it deported hundreds of parents without their children. Nine of them were allowed to return to U.S. to see their children once again.
Trump Moves to Block Visas for Pregnant Women on ‘Birth Tourism’
www.nytimes.com
The Trump administration granted visa officers more power to block pregnant women from visiting the ...No pregnant women will get visas to US unless it is clear their baby won’t be born in US. The question remains about pregnant women coming to the border.
U.S. to impose visa restrictions for pregnant women
www.nbcnews.com
The Trump administration has been restricting all forms of immigration, but the president has been p...From our Board Member Pastor John Garland:
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