Reunite a mother with her daughters

Betty* is an asylum seeker who has been locked up in immigration jail and separated from her daughters for almost two years. On July 5, 2018, a judge granted Betty an immigration bond but set it at $17,500. Betty could finally be free from jail if only she could afford to pay the bond. Our goal is to raise $17,500 by July 15, 2018 so that Betty can pay her bond and reunite with her daughters.  

In September 2016, Betty and her three daughters fled their home in Honduras after gang members targeted their family, inflicted serious harm against them, and threatened to kill them. Betty’s daughters now live safely in the United States, but border patrol detained Betty when she crossed the border and put her in a private immigration prison in Arizona. Betty has been separated from her teenaged daughters for almost two years. 

Betty receives pastoral care from Shalom Mennonite Church in Tucson, AZ, and a support group that has grown out of the Shalom Mennonite Church community in Indianapolis, IN, has provided housing and support to her daughters. The National Immigrant Justice Center represents Betty pro bono in her asylum case. Though the church and broader community have surrounded them with love and support, Betty is struggling in immigration jail and the girls are deeply distressed to be separated from their mother.

Please contribute what you can to help free Betty so she can finally reunite with her daughters. Shalom Mennonite Church in Indianapolis is facilitating the collection of these funds so that a single payment can be made to a bond guarantor. If and when the bond money that we collect through this campaign is returned to our church, we will donate all of the proceeds to the RAICES, another nonprofit organization organization very similar to the National Immigration Justice Center, who is also helping with the bond. God bless you!

*Betty’s name has been changed to protect the privacy of her family.