"It matters for the starfish that I help"
- Tony
Starting work this week at Casa Alitas was hard. As an organization that serves 200-400 people each day, it is all hands on deck, all hours of the day, seven days a week. This means that orientation was basically nonexistent.
Tuesday and Wednesday (my first two days) I was sent to work at the help desk. I was thrown into the deep end. With my little Spanish knowledge and even smaller understanding of the organizational procedures, I felt utterly unhelpful. I spent most of these two days looking over the shoulders of the experienced volunteers, asking them to translate what they were saying into English for me, and trying to make sense of the massive google spreadsheets that were in front of me.
On top of all the normal first day chaos and overstimulation, I am still on crutches so I was not really able to run errands for people. I did not feel helpful, in fact I felt in the way. Occasionally, I would swing the other way and remind myself that I am going to be here for an entire year.
I have so much time to learn.
Right now my job is to learn Spanish and how to use these spreadsheets.
Breathe Jessie.
Let me take a step back to explain what exactly was happening at the help desk... In order to gain asylum in the United States you must be on US soil. Under previous circumstances, people would request asylum from Border Patrol Agents at a formal port of entry. However, in 2020 the Trump administration reinstated Title 42 which limits the number of people from Central and South American countries that are aloud to seek asylum. For example in Nogales, a city on the border directly south of Tucson, only 20 people per day are granted asylum. The enforcement of Title 42 does not eliminate the need for asylum, however. Instead, people come over the border illegally, turn themselves in to ICE patrols, and plead for asylum. After processed by ICE, these exhausted, hungry, trauma impacted humans are loaded on buses and sent to Casa Alitas.
Before Casa Alitas was founded, ICE would leave people at the Greyhound bus station in Tucson; abandoned in a new country with only their immigration papers and a ziplock bag of personal items. In 2014 a few churches banded together to bring food to the bus station for these travelers, and within a few years the program expanded to become a full fledged welcome center and shelter.
When the guests first come they are registered in our system, take COVID tests, given a snack, and are assessed for any pressing needs (medical care, etc.). Those that test positive for COVID are taken immediately to a wing of a Red Roof that is sanctioned off. Those that are negative are given an orientation to the welcome center. They are given a change of clothes, access to showers, and food is served at meal times. Then comes the help desk.
The help desk serves two primary purposes: 1) Finding separated family members and, 2) Helping people book transportation to their sponsors. If not traveling as a family (married couple and children) it is not uncommon for ICE to separate adult siblings from each other, and children over 18 from parents, when they load travelers onto buses. The help desk enters this information into a system of which we are able to communicate with other organizations in the southwest like Casa Alitas. We also look up the lost family member's name in the ICE locator to see if they have been detained. Releasing someone from detention is a process of lots of phone calls and a transfer of $3000.
Some people that come through already have their flight booked and we just enter the information into our system to ensure that they have transportation to the airport at the appropriate time and lodging if needed. For others it is a long process of talking to their sponsor (often a family member who is already in the US) in order to pay for transportation and finding flights and buses that are economically reasonable.
There are so many moving pieces. Maybe now you understand why I was feeling a bit overwhelmed. The quote at the beginning of this blog was from a conversation I had with one of the volunteers who works at the help desk on the regular. He was referring to the parable of the child that continues to throw starfish back into the sea, even though they know there will always be more starfish to save. This is a sentiment that was helpful for me to carry through the week. Every day there are hundreds more people who need help. Before I come in at 9, there is work to be done. After I leave at 5, there is work to be done. The work will never be done, but the work that I am able to do is worthwhile.
I settled into the understanding that if the work is never going to be done, then I might as well take care of myself. This week healthy living looked like taking lunch breaks in solitude and leaving at 5pm.
On Thursday I was sent to the Red Roof location which had a completely different atmosphere. It was way less hustle and bustle and much more administrative organization; telling Red Roof which rooms needed to be cleaned, knowing which rooms were ready for guests, ensuring that everyone got food, etc.
This week I found joy laughing with native Spanish speakers at my bad Spanish and gaining wisdom from weathered volunteers.
Celebratory burritos Thursday evening after one week complete!
BONUS CONTENT!!
Friday afternoon it rained a bit at the house and we got super excited. 😊
Comments