Immigrant and Refugee Ministry’s accompaniment program offers practical, spiritual support
An accompaniment program through the Immigrant and Refugee Ministry is helping newcomers to the U.S. know they’re not alone.
The Immigrant and Refugee Ministry — a collaborative effort of St. Anthony of Padua, St. Cronan, St. Margaret of Scotland, St. Pius V, St. Vincent de Paul, St. Stephen Protomartyr and Holy Redeemer parishes — launched an accompaniment program in January to support immigrants and refugees as they meet with Immigration and Customs Enforcement, check in with the Intensive Supervision Appearance Program, apply for work permits or Social Security cards and more.
The program, which now has about 40 active volunteers, receives an average of four to five requests for accompaniment weekly. Typically, two or more volunteers accompany an individual to offer supportive presence, take notes on the appointment and provide translation and transportation as needed, accompaniment program coordinator Annie Aeschbacher said.
“A lot of people in the current environment are feeling nervous, and so just being able to have someone physically present in the room helps to bring a lot of reassurance, at least in the moment, to just make people feel a little less alone in the process,” Aeschbacher said.
The program has also been receiving more requests for assistance after a loved one has been detained, she said.
“So now we’re also kind of in the space of trying to figure out, what does it look like to not only accompany people to those check-ins, but if a loved one is detained, what does it look like to come alongside their family members who continue to stay here in St. Louis?” Aeschbacher said.
That could mean helping U.S.-citizen children apply for a passport, helping connect families with legal resources or just making sure they know how to give their loved one a phone call while they’re in detention, she said. Just a couple of days before, she received a call from a family where a young mother had been detained; she had a 10-month-old baby at home. The archdiocesan Respect Life Apostolate was able to help the family with diapers and other resources, she said.
Vicki Simon has been volunteering with the accompaniment program since July and has long experience serving abroad and with immigrants. As a member of the Ignatian Volunteer Corps, she regularly works as an interpreter with Catholic Legal Assistance Ministry (CLAM), a program of Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of St. Louis’ St. Francis Community Services.
Simon, a parishioner at St. Francis Xavier (College) Church and a Maryknoll Lay Missioner, saw in the accompaniment program a chance to offer her Spanish skills and serve people in need directly. Language interpretation has been helpful to the immigrants and government workers, she said. Often, offices do not have an interpreter available, she said, making it difficult for a non-English-speaking immigrant to understand the details of a problem with their Social Security application, for example.
Even if she doesn’t need to translate, it’s a privilege to just sit and get to know people for the sometimes hours they wait for their appointments, Simon said. She and other volunteers also often pray with individuals before meetings.
“You get to know one another quite well. I hear their stories, and they hear mine,” she said. “So that part I have really appreciated, and I think they’re very grateful for the help and just the accompaniment, having some support — there’s so much fear involved that it’s nice to have a friendly face with them.”
She’s not an attorney, but her work at CLAM has given her an understanding of the legal processes involved in asylum and other cases, she said. “A lot of times I’m able to help them understand the processes better and help calm their fears a bit,” she said. “They also amaze me in that most of the ones I have been with have a tremendous amount of faith and trust in God.”
Marilyn Lorenz has been working with immigrants since the 1970s, including through the Interfaith Committee on Latin America, which previously did similar accompaniment work in the St. Louis area. She started volunteering with the Immigrant and Refugee Ministry accompaniment program shortly after it launched in January.
“If you’ve ever been to a place you’ve never been before, you don’t know which clues to pick up,” Lorenz said. “We know the ropes, and we are treating the person like a human being with respect. It relaxes them. It helps them to know they’re not alone. What a gift to be able to add that little bit of goodness into their lives for that day.”
There are “all kinds of pieces to this puzzle” of accompanying people who are navigating the immigration process, she said. Earlier this year, she went to regular prenatal care appointments with a pregnant woman. She recently worked with a woman whose husband was suddenly deported, leaving her alone with young twins. Lorenz helped her apply for passports for her U.S.-citizen children, among other resources.
Lorenz’s faith in Jesus Christ is what compels her to continue reaching out.
“The simple answer is: God is love,” Lorenz said. “And this is a human being, and they are in front of me and need my love, my response.”
Immigrant and Refugee Ministry
In addition to the accompaniment program, the ministry also assists immigrants and refugees with food, clothing, shelter and other basic needs, as well as providing education and advocacy opportunities for the wider community. The Immigrant and Refugee Ministry receives funding from the Annual Catholic Appeal.
To learn more about the ministry or inquire about volunteering, visit stpiusv.org/migrantministry.
