$50K Grant, Endowed Funds Boost $360K+ Lifeline to Families in Dire Need
A man was detained by federal immigration (ICE) officers in eastern Massachusetts, leaving his wife and young daughter behind with immigration paperwork due and no source of income.
After another father’s detention, the mother worked practically nonstop to house and feed their children. Two other immigrant families in similar situations face eviction.
In these and more than 130 similar crises, the Immigrant Legal Emergency Fund of the Episcopal Diocese of Massachusetts helped pay for urgent legal fees and other emergency expenses.
“I don’t think I’m exaggerating when I say this fund is saving lives,” said the Rev’d Max Sklar, who serves as clergy at Trinity Haverhill and St. Anne’s in Lowell.
Launched at the diocesan convention nine months ago by Bishop Julia E. Whitworth, the fund swelled to more than $368,000 through the generosity of more than 450 individual donors and 25 parishes. Bishop Whitworth recently secured a $50,000 grant from the Boston Episcopal Charitable Society, and the Diocese has secured an endowed funding source to help sustain the Immigrant Legal Emergency Fund.
“The fund has provided housing assistance, food, medicine, and legal counsel right when everything was falling apart,” said The Rev. Ginger Solaqua, priest-in-charge of St. Anne's and St. John’s in Lowell. “For our immigrant brothers and sisters, this fund is a tangible message from the diocese: You are wanted, loved, and valued.”
Immigrant Legal Emergency Fund at a Glance
- Total Raised: $368,000+
- Additional BECS Pledge: $50,000
- Donors: 450+ individuals and 25 parishes
- Total Disbursed: $316,000
- Applications Met: 132
- Parishes Facilitating Funds: 23 across Eastern Massachusetts
- Primary Relief Provided: Legal fees and emergency living assistance
What Clergy are Seeing
The goal of the fund is not to help people avoid the law, but to assist neighbors whose lives have been upended suddenly. For one, they can’t count on municipal heating and food assistance programs, because of stricter documentation rules. It’s much harder now to qualify for help, even for mixed-status families with U.S.-citizen children.
They also may suddenly be out of work. Thousands of long-term residents, for instance, lost their legal work authorization overnight after federal decisions discontinuing TPS. Massachusetts is home to 45,000 Haitian TPS holders, the country’s third-largest such population.
The rise of enforcement is also sweeping up innocent people, including people with legal status. The fear of encountering law enforcement makes them fear traveling across state lines or in some cases, even leaving their home. When a family member is detained, the family may have no means to get them out or replace their income. Or now their asylum case is blocked.
“ICE casts a net, reeling in whoever is in front of them, and innocent people are caught in the fray,” said Rev. Nathan Ives, rector of St. Peter’s / San Pedro in Salem. “Legal defense filings cost $3,000 to $6,000 a pop. The diocesan fund has been an absolute blessing so families don't wind up on the street.”
In the Merrimack Valley, Sklar sees the grants protecting the most basic human needs.
“Families have lost access to basic bill assistance,” he said. “We’ve used the fund for legal counsel, emergency rent, electric bills, and more.”
While many funding recipients are active parishioners, others are members of the broader community around congregations. “Every time I deliver a check, it becomes a pastoral conversation,” Sklar said. “It’s not just charity; it builds real bonds of love.”
How Diocesan Funding Helps Immigrants
Requests for funds have poured in from the North Shore to the Cape and Islands. Local clergy vet the requests then submit them to the Office of the Bishop, for review by the Rev’d Dr. Jean Baptiste Ntagengwa, Diocesan Director of Indigenous and Immigrant Ministries. An advisory committee provides guidance.
Once approved, the finance office releases funds within two business days directly to immigration attorneys or landlords, said Ntagengwa. Almost as quickly as donations are received, those funds are disbursed to immigrants who need help fast.
“People have contributed from thousands to hundreds of dollars to the fund, and that communal effort shows the heart of this diocese,” Ntagengwa said.
Clergy across the diocese shared examples of how the fund is making a difference.
A mother of three from the Dominican Republic was forced to move into a single basement room with only a hot plate after her husband was deported and she could no longer afford rent. She faced total housing displacement and living in extreme instability with her young children. The fund provided emergency rental assistance to keep this mother and her three children under a roof.
A mother of four from Guatemala was left in an immediate financial crisis when her husband—the family’s sole breadwinner—was suddenly detained by ICE. With a critical court date approaching, the family faced the imminent threat of losing their home. The fund covered immediate rent to prevent the family from being evicted.
After fleeing active death threats and extortion in Guatemala, a local resident's brother entered the U.S. seeking asylum, only to be immediately arrested on local misdemeanor charges that threatened his legal safety. Without immediate legal intervention, he faced losing his chance at asylum and being returned to life-threatening danger. The fund covered his preliminary legal defense so he could clear these charges and safely pursue his life-saving asylum claim.
A single father of four from Haiti lost his work authorization, leaving him unable to legally work to support his children. Relying only on spotty delivery work, he faced an imminent inability to cover basic rent and keep food on the table.
The fund provided vital emergency housing assistance to keep this single father and his four minor children safely housed.
An immigrant from Ecuador was released from eight months of ICE detention on an ankle monitor with no family in the area and only the single outfit he was detained in. Having lost everything during his prolonged detention, he faced immediate destitution and homelessness. The fund provided immediate re-entry assistance to help him secure shelter, basic necessities, and a safe start.
A church member and musician from Malawi was abruptly detained by ICE, transferred out of state, and left at imminent risk of deportation after an initial lawyer missed critical deadlines. His community was racing against the clock to retain proper counsel before he was removed. The fund helped bridge the legal fee gap so an experienced attorney could file a proper petition to defend his rights.
Sustaining the Lifeline
The Immigrant Legal Emergency Fund depends on parishes and individual donors.
“Causes of migration will always be there,” Ntagengwa noted. “And at times like these, when administration policies actively disrupt and separate families, we must stand firm. We need our allies to stand with us.”
Donate online: Visit https://www.iatspayments.com/saaura/PA23CD72F566BC524E to make a one-time or recurring gift.
Parish appeals: Encourage your vestry or outreach committee to designate a Sunday offering or special collection for the fund.