NOTE: We will continue to support Beberly's family with this fundraiser after our transition is complete and this website is down. After December 2024, you can still make a donation by contacting Mary Lynn: marylynn_crandall@yahoo.com

​UPDATE AUGUST 2024 

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It has now been more than 7 years since a young mother from Guatemala came to the U.S. fleeing domestic violence and seeking asylum in this country with the dream of living in safety with her children. She eventually settled in San Luis Obispo County with her two boys. 

 A grassroots group of local community members came together to support the family, and in the spring of 2018 the group started this ongoing fundraiser to help with living expenses.

Beberly has had an asylum case open with the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) since summer 2017, which opened the door to more independence: her driver’s license, a social security number, a work permit, and eventually a job with Apple, where she provides assistance to Spanish-speaking customers internationally by phone. 

UPDATE NOVEMBER 2024: Like many others since the November election, Beberly is now making a plan for the possibility that the family may not be allowed to have their day in court and may instead be deported under the incoming.  We will continue to support the family as they navigate this most recent challenge.

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THE CHILDREN

The little boy who came with her to the U.S. is now 11 years old and starting 6th grade. He is kind and compassionate. He loves art and graphic design, more recently focusing on sketching and digital art. Astronomy is a growing interest for him, and for his last birthday the family visited the Space Center in Oakland.

The child who was born in the U.S. is 7 years old now. He is starting second grade, and he loves spelling and word play. He enjoys building with blocks, magnet tiles and Legos and is also interested in gymnastics and dance. He recently has been writing love notes to his mom and brother - he’s very sweet!

A BLESSING

Beberly has been very blessed to have the job with Apple for almost six years.  She began working for them from home during the pandemic, and has continued working remotely since then. When she or the boys have been too sick for her to work, Apple has made many accommodations. They have articulated to her “It’s ok to ask for help.” This has been especially helpful given her health issues and her responsibilities as a single parent. 

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THE CHALLENGE OF FINDING LEGAL REPRESENTATION

As with many families seeking asylum, this family faces many challenges. 

Statistics show that people have a higher chance of succeeding with their asylum case if they have legal representation. However, the need for legal representation for asylum seekers far exceeds the supply. It is a difficult job emotionally and financially for immigration attorneys, and many choose not to take it on.

 

In November of 2022, Beberly moved her family to the Bay Area in the hopes of receiving free legal representation through a non-profit organization, the Tahirih Justice Center. She was required to be living in that area in order for them to review her case, which was a risk she was willing to take because of their successful litigation record. Unfortunately, when they reviewed her case in August 2023, they were unable to take it due to limited capacity. This was a huge disappointment, and currently, she does not have legal representation. 

 

Beberly’s next step is to look into different non-profits in her area, but capacity is very limited right now. Her other option is to look for a private lawyer. The cost for that can run between $8,000 and $10,000. 

Beberly is able to monitor her case status on the USCIS website, where it says that her “next step is an interview”. 

The family has remained in the Bay Area, living in a small house that they are renting.

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HEALTH CHALLENGES

In addition to the trauma that asylum seekers and refugees experience from the act of fleeing violence in their home countries, the impact of living with the chronic stress of survival needs, as well as the uncertainty and fear about the future, has been well documented. The stress of this situation has deeply affected the family’s health. When Beberly arrived in 2017, she had some chronic health issues but was able to function very well with day to day activities. Over time, her health has declined significantly. She was diagnosed with an autoimmune disease in spring of 2020.  She was on medical disability for a period of time, but that has ended. Both boys are also seeing specialists for severe chronic health issues. 

 

One piece of very encouraging news: Beberly was able to find a therapist who gave her a discounted rate. She can no longer pay, but has been allowed to attend several support groups for free. She is finding this support to be invaluable in helping her to cope with the stress concerning the survival needs of her daily life.  

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WORK PERMIT EMERGENCY SITUATION August 2024

The USCIS is experiencing huge backlogs, exacerbated by the pandemic, that have resulted in delays for tens of thousands of people in the processing of their paperwork, including the renewal of work permits. Beberly has been caught in this system's failure for 27 months. Her efforts and those of Apple’s legal team have been unsuccessful in resolving it. 

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Beberly recently filed a request for assistance with the Office of the Citizenship and Immigration Services Ombudsman, an independent office that serves as advocate and liaison between the immigrant and the USCIS and she has been reassured that this will speed up the process.

In the meantime, Beberly finds herself in the critical situation of being a single parent caring for two children with minimal means of financial support. 

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Many of the challenges this family faces attest to how broken our immigration system is. When we started out as a group to support Beberly, none of us could have imagined how long this asylum process would take. While many people have their cases decided within weeks or months, there are others who are caught in the system. In 2018, USCIS began using an approach called "last in, first out", and we suspect that Beberly's case became one of those that is caught in the middle of that change. Some estimates now have gone up to as long as 8-10 years for an asylum case to be heard. 

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UPDATE NOVEMBER 2024: After submitting her request for assistance to the ombudsman's office, the issue with Beberly's work permit was cleared up in two weeks. ​She is back at work with Apple! While we are celebrating this development, the financial stress remains high due to the debt accrued during the period that she was unable to work.

 

A HEARTFELT REQUEST FOR YOUR SUPPORT

We are deeply grateful for ALL the generous donors who have come in and out of our ongoing fundraiser over the past six years. Although many of us will never meet, and although we may come and go in and out of the fundraiser, we are a community. We are bound together by our values of equity, respect, responsibility to our neighbor, generosity, and care. 

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If you are touched by this family's story, please consider joining this caring community of donors by supporting them with a donation. Whatever amount you can give, even once, will make a difference in this family’s life. Recurring donations would be especially appreciated at this time.

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Heartfelt thanks in advance for any support that you can give!

Allies for Immigration Justice, SLO County