The temporary shelter for asylum seekers in northwest Detroit is looking for volunteers to help with a variety of tasks.

Click here for an update on the shelter and ways you can help.

BANQUET NEWS: Strangers No Longer's Annual Banquet on Sunday, April 14th at 1:00 at the Ukrainian Cultural Center on Ryan Road in Warren - Special keynote speaker -Dylan Corbett - Executive Director of Hope Border Institute and a key player in the U.S. and Vatican's pastoral work with immigrants (click here for more about Corbett) - Only a handful of tickets are left so act now! Email strangersnolonger11@gmail.com.

The Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity’s (LEO) Office of Global Michigan has awarded grants to support 17 ethnic and community-based organizations in their programming, collaboration, and outreach efforts. SNL is proud to be one of these organizations! We have been awarded $50,000 to help in our outreach efforts in the northern lower peninsula of Michigan.

“The success of our state depends on making sure that all Michiganders feel welcome and have access to resources they need to succeed here in Michigan,” said Susan Corbin, LEO Director. “Newcomers contribute significantly to Michigan’s vibrant communities and economy, and we look forward to ongoing investments to build a more inclusive state where everyone has equal opportunity for prosperity.”

Click here to read the full press release from the Office of Global Michigan.

Annunciation House in El Paso, TX has been serving migrants for almost 100 years. Over its long history, it has managed to form partnerships with the Catholic Church in El Paso, local government, and federal law enforcement--including U.S. Border Patrol.

But recently the shelter has been pressured by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton to release information about its clients. The Attorney General sued Annunciation House for failing to comply with the demand and has suggested the religious nonprofit of “worsening illegal immigration” and that Annunciation House is “facilitating illegal entry to the United States, alien harboring, human smuggling, and operating a stash house."

Bishop Mark Seitz of the El Paso Diocese has come out strongly against the actions of the state of Texas. SNL members were also outraged by the unfairness of the AG's actions and wanted a way to communicate their support of Bishop Seitz. SNL leadership decided to provide a way for them to do that. A letter of protest was written and SNL members were asked to sign it. Over 400 signatures were collected in only 36 hours and on February 28th the letter was sent to the AG by express mail.

Click here to read the letter.

March 12, 2024 - Update to this story: In a sharply worded decision, a judge has ruled against Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton in his ongoing legal battle with an El Paso nonprofit that helps migrants.

“The Attorney General’s efforts to run roughshod over Annunciation House, without regard to due process or fair play, call into question the true motivation for the Attorney General’s attempt to prevent Annunciation House from providing the humanitarian and social services that it provides,” Dominguez wrote in the court ruling.

Click here to read entire article from CNN.

Strangers No Longer’s high school committee, Youth in Action for Immigration (YAI), held their fourth annual Youth Conference on Friday, March 1st at St. Francis Cabrini Parish in Allen Park, Michigan. Students from seven Catholic High Schools and one parish youth group attended the Conference, hosted by the Circle of Support at Cabrini High School. The student-chosen theme was Ardent Love for our Neighbors: Following in the Footsteps of Immigrant Women.

Students from the YAI leadership team planned the Conference and facilitated all the activities. They began with icebreakers, prayer, and an overview of our host’s patron: St. Francis Cabrini, herself an Italian immigrant to the U.S., and a patron saint of immigrants.

Anj Anatalio from the International Institute of Metro Detroit delivered the keynote address, and three students shared their own personal immigration testimonies. Paul Stankewitz from the Michigan Catholic Conference and Kaylee Razo, Detroit Cristo Rey student, YAI Advocacy Chair discussed the Drive Safe Bills, and led students in writing letters of support for the bills to their state representatives and senators.

Students were also invited to sign a letter to Oakland and Wayne County sheriffs, Bouchard and Washington, requesting to meet with them about the Drive Safe Bills.

The afternoon of the conference was filled with students sharing myriad ways to get involved in YAI, planning upcoming activities, community building, and designing paper butterflies to raise awareness about immigration in their schools, with lawmakers, and the Diocese of Saginaw.

The Drive Safe bills are on hold until the fall and the wage theft bills are still being written so we have decided to cancel our trip to Lansing on April 23rd. Instead, we will meet in person to strategize. See below!

SNL teams are scheduling and meeting with their county sheriffs to impress upon them the importance of the Drive Safe bills and to ask for their support by writing a letter.

Several months ago Board President Rosemary Insley and Treasurer Jim Russo decided to step down from their positions as officers after their hard work organizing the Board from scratch. Rosemary supervised the creation of our vision and mission statements and our by-laws. Jim was instrumental in creating a system to track our income and expenses. We thank them for their guidance and leadership and are grateful that both will remain on the Board.

On February 17th the Board voted on a new President and Treasurer. SNL is proud to announce that two long-time Board members were voted in as officers--Judy Brooks as President and Angelica Ledesma as Treasurer. Our thanks to both for taking on these leadership positions.

Click here to read their short bios.

Sr. Martha de la Torre of our staff sees the impressive growth of our immigrant circles as evidence that the work the members are doing--both personal work and work for their community--is like seed that has fallen on fertile ground. But it has not been easy. Members have sacrificed time and rest to attend meetings and build community over the last four years. And now, twenty-two of the members have agreed to even more leadership training.

Sr. Martha and Executive Director Bill O'Brien will lead this training process. "It is about providing the necessary elements to develop leadership in community organization to advance in becoming agents of change in their families, in society and in their ecclesial communities. The impact that this group of leaders could have in their circles will make it possible for immigrants to come out of the shadows and for their contribution to be a source of motivation for non-immigrant circles in their commitment to support and advocate for the immigrant cause."

Click here to read Sr. Martha's complete commentary.

The parishes of St. Charles Borromeo and Nativity formed one of SNL's first Circles of Support. Over the years, their Circle has been a model for other Circles. They showed us all what love and support of immigrants means when they befriended Luz Ramos and her two children, Yoselin and Johnny. Since the death of Luz in January of 2023, they have continued to help and guide her two children. They have also helped other families and participated in SNL Advocacy efforts.

Click here to read Circle Leader Jackie Parisi's update of the Circle's activities.

Gregoria Garcia is a member of an SNL immigrant Circle at Ss. Peter and Paul parish in Ionia, Michigan. When Gregoria first came to the U.S. she was an undocumented immigrant. Gregoria says, "I know first hand the feeling of injustice that comes from not having the right to well-paying jobs and not having the right to have a driver's license. This affects our emotional state."

Click here for more about Gregoria's life and the book she wrote on surviving domestic violence.

The memorial for Marie Schimelfening, one of SNL's founding members, will be held at Ss. Peter and Paul Jesuit at 438 St. Antoine St. in Detroit on May 11th at 1:00 p.m.

Click here for more information.

United States Conference of Catholic Bishops will present a series beginning April 1st that will delve into the critical issues of migration. The aim of the series is to shed light on specific challenges within the U.S. immigration system and the issue of migration generally that warrant a closer look.

Click here to learn more and to sign up to receive the monthly series.

With service providers stretched thin, families opened their homes for new arrivals, and the city added beds for newcomers and unhoused Detroiters.

Click here to read article by Koby Levin in Outlier.

You have the power to become a beacon of safety and hope for a child in need.

Click here for more information.

The next Board meeting is scheduled for Saturday, May 18th at 10:00 a.m. on Zoom. If you would like the link, please email strangersnolonger11@gmail.com.

The ideal candidate would have experience as a community organizer, preferably working with institutional leaders at some level (e.g., pastors, principals, civic leaders); skilled in social media and other forms of digital organizing; facility with English and Spanish preferred.

Click here for complete job posting.