I started volunteering with AIDNW because I felt heartbroken by stories of the immigrant experience and wanted to actively help people caught up in a dehumanizing and often deliberately cruel system. 

I don’t think we’ll see improvement to the immigration system anytime soon, but as a Welcome Center volunteer and driver, I can make one small part of an immigrant’s journey easier and friendlier. For context, detained immigrants are released from the for-profit detention center run by GEO Group into an industrial part of Tacoma. There is no one around, there are no shops, services, or transportation anywhere nearby, and people arrive at our tent disoriented, sometimes not even aware of what part of the country they’re in. Often people are released wearing inadequate clothing, carrying their belongings in a plastic garbage bag. 

We provide immigrants immediate access to a phone and internet so they can connect with their families. We help make travel arrangements to their next destination and, when necessary, connect them with host families. We also provide snacks and warm beverages, warm clothes, toiletries, and backpacks so that they can carry their belongings with more dignity. We provide shoelaces to replace those confiscated in detention. We often personally escort travelers through the airport, including helping them through security, since there are language barriers and TSA agents are not always familiar with ICE-provided ID.  

Just as importantly, we are the first people that immigrants see upon their release from ICE custody. We get to share their initial euphoria of freedom. We also have the privilege of hearing their stories, which are laden with trauma and sadness once the initial excitement of being released wears off. I’ve met people fleeing violence who have trekked by foot and bus across several countries seeking asylum. I’ve met homesick young people, barely out of their teens, and grandmothers who have lived in the US for 30 years who are eager to get home and resume their role of family caregiver. I’ve helped fathers who haven’t yet met their newest children and carry tremendous guilt for not being able to provide for their families over many months of detention. We get to witness the joy of reunification when immigrants are picked up by their families. 

The system is pretty unpredictable. Some shifts, no one is released. Other shifts, we scramble to take care of 20 people released at once. Our work complements other wonderful community organizations, specifically the impressive legal representation provided by NWIRP lawyers, the bond release and travel funds provided by WAISN, and host families organized by World Relief. 

AIDNW also has programs to help people while they are detained. We provide phone cards that give detained people access to the payphone system, sometimes their only lifeline to the outside world. We provide books, games, and puzzles to help break up the tedium of detention and also connect volunteer visitors to detainees, which, anecdotally, has a huge mental health benefit and has led to some deep friendships. 

I encourage anyone who cares about refugees, asylum seekers and immigrants to get involved. If you are unable to volunteer your time, consider donating warm coats, backpacks, or funds to support phone cards and travel funds. Active service has been, for me, an antidote to despair and helplessness in the face of our broken immigration system.