December 2023

Newsletter

 November was our busiest month yet, as our ministry continues to grow and ramp up! We were blessed over the Spring and Summer to have plenty of work (though not too much!), giving us ample time to dive into each case. As the Fall has progressed, though, we are beginning to reach that point where there is more to do than available time. We need prayer as we navigate this phase of our development!

For the months of September through November, we had 22 new client meetings and 8 new client engagements, with several other possible engagements pending. We now have a total of 16 active cases, including 3 citizenship applications, 2 asylees who can petition to become permanent residents, 4 family petitions, 2 fiancé petitions, 2 green card renewals, and 1 employment authorization application.

Our Mission and Services

Immigrant Hope San Leandro is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization dedicated to providing our immigrant neighbors with the HOPE of the gospel, HELP finding a pathway to legal residency, and a HOME in a church that cares for their needs. 

Our main services are:

• Naturalization and citizenship
• Lawful permanent residency (Green Cards)
• Family-based applications and visas
• Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) matters

English Language Development Classes

 As we have considered ways to expand our ministry and increase our services to our immigrant neighbors, a natural progression is to offer English language development classes (like ESL classes, but less formal) and we are pleased to announce that we plan to start classes beginning in February 2024! We’ll be providing more information about this shortly, but if you have any interest in potentially helping out, please contact Chelsea Grijalva at Chelsea.Grijalva@immigranthope.org.

Sharing our Faith



 We continue to pray with our clients, seek opportunities to share our faith with them and tell them about Creekside. Last week we had our first client (that we are aware of, at least!) attend a Sunday service at Creekside. This fall we’ve prayed with two different Muslin clients, one of whom has expressed an interest in coming to a Creekside service. 

1. Praise! Our applications for recognition and accreditation by the Department of Justice were approved! This is a major step in establishing credibility and visibility for Immigrant Hope and happened in about half the time expected.
2. As we begin to get busier, wisdom on how to balance our schedules, become more efficient, and better utilize our volunteers and resources.
3. For a successful launch of our English language development classes.
4. That in all of our interactions, we are light for Him and that our clients will be drawn to Him.

Outreach

We were busy with community outreach this fall, participating in 8 community events to promote Immigrant Hope. These events included open houses at the San Leandro and Hayward adult schools, 3 job fairs, the San Leandro farmer’s market (for Love our Neighbor), a women’s brunch at 3 Crosses Church in Castro Valley, and a health and resource fair. These events provided excellent opportunities to spread the word about our ministry and connect with other local non-profits. We handed our hundreds of flyers and business cards, leading to several client meetings.

If you are interested in supporting our ministry financially, you can do so via PayPal by clicking below.

For other methods of donating, please visit the support page of our website, located below

Contact us!

(510) 338-4025

Creekside Community Church, 951 MacArthur Blvd., San Leandro, CA 94577