SNL’s Advocacy Task Force held a Drive Safe Advocacy Week from May 19th through May 25th continuing the fight to reinstate the right of all Michigan residents to get a driver's license or state ID regardless of immigrant status. The goal of the week was to contact our legislators in various ways, remind them of our commitment to getting these bills passed, and offer our assistance.

Of course, the fight is far from over. The bills have not yet been debated in committee and we don't know when they will be.

Click here to register for the meeting.

You didn't get a chance to participate during Drive Safe Advocacy Week? It's not too late! Click here for all the instructions and materials you will need. It's easy!

You know people across the state, in your county or city, or down the street or at the parish. Your Michigan friends and family members. We are asking you to make a list of your contacts in Michigan – people who care about human dignity and the treatment of vulnerable people.

Once you make your list, ask each of them for their permission to add them to our Advocacy mailing list – so that we can expand our reach into the corners of your parish, neighborhood, county – and across the state.

(Click here for a flyer you can forward to friends and relatives.)

This fall, we will be re-igniting our DRIVE SAFE ADVOCACY campaign, so that the Michigan legislators know where we stand as the Drive Safe bills get closer to a vote on the floor of the House and Senate. For more information email strangersnolonger11@gmail.com.

Guided by our theme, “Building Community Together,” members of “Strangers No Longer” and their families and friends attended our second annual banquet on April 23rd at the Ukrainian Cultural Center in Warren.

The three-hour event was attended by a sellout crowd of 400 SNL members and friends.

The program included entertainment by the children's choir Amoris Lingua from St. Clement parish in Romeo under the direction of Santos Alvaros, and the Kolomejka Ukrainian Dance Ensemble under the direction of John Zaryckyi.

A delicious buffet lunch was enjoyed by all. Mr. Christopher Lynch, President of Detroit Cristo Rey High School, and Mr. Oscar Ocampo were masters of ceremony. Prayer and grace before the meal was delivered by Sr. Valerie Knoche, IHM, and Sr. Martha de la Torre, SMR. Board president Rosemary Insley introduced our guest speaker, Ms. Cindy Estrada, former UAW leader and currently Strategic Advisor to AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler for the Center for Transformational Organizing. She praised our work, and talked about strategic alliances around human dignity between working people and the Catholic Church. We celebrated all our leaders and parish circles who were in attendance that day.

Many parishes and individuals provided beautiful gift baskets which were raffled off during the afternoon. St. Michael (Sterling Heights) parishioners made sure everyone got a copy of the Banquet Ad Book which raised $16,000 in ads for our work – from businesses, unions, friends. Call 313-549-0421 to get a copy mailed to you.

Closing words were given by banquet chairperson Pat Watanabe, who presented our chaplain Fr. Dave Buersmeyer with a gift of appreciation as he retires from his ministry at St. Regis Parish in Bloomfield Hills. Fr. Dave then led us in closing prayer.

Strangers No Longer was pleased to welcome 70 high school students to our third High School Youth Conference, hosted this year at Divine Child High School in Dearborn, MI.

The students came from 8 area Catholic high schools and 1 parish youth group. The Conference was held on March 31, officially Cesar Chavez’s Day, so students learned about and celebrated his devotion to the rights and dignity of farmworkers.

The Conference opened with a warm welcome from Divine Child Principal, Tony Trudel, and the school’s Campus Ministry department. Divine Child teacher and SNL liaison, Gina Delgado emceed the event. The keynote speaker was Gladys Muñoz, Director of the Justice and Peace Advocacy Center, SNL board member, and lifelong advocate for immigrants – especially migrant farmworkers. She travelled from Traverse City to spend the day with the students. Several students shared their personal testimonies.

The Conference was planned and facilitated by SNL's Youth in Action for Immigration committee made up of teachers, campus ministers and students.

At the end of last year’s Youth Conference, some of the students signed up to participate in a regional youth coordinating committee with Strangers No Longer. In inaugural meetings in the fall of 2022, these students gave their committee the name Youth in Action for Immigration.

These young leaders have been meeting monthly via Zoom with SNL staff Amy Ketner to share ideas and updates from their schools and collaborate to plan for regional events like the Youth Conference.

Over the past three weeks, the students have been in the process of determining leadership positions for their committee for the 2023-2024 academic year. Candidates hailed from Cabrini, Detroit Cristo Rey, Marian, Notre Dame Prep, and Shrine high schools. Every Youth in Action for Immigration member was then invited to vote for their preferred candidates. The winners were announced at their May 11 meeting.

In March, Strangers No Longer celebrated International Women’s Day with women from Ss. Peter and Paul parish of Ionia, Michigan. At the invitation of Pastoral Associate, Fr. Oscar Lodoño, parishioners organized a potluck meal and invited their fellow female friends and family.

Strangers No Longer staff members, Sr. Martha de la Torre, SMR and Amy Ketner attended the gathering and invited the women to reflect on the value of the diverse gifts and leadership of Martha and Mary, friends of Jesus, sisters, and leaders in their communities. At the end of the event, the women decided to meet again.

In an April follow-up meeting, a hybrid Zoom and in-person gathering, the women of Ss. Peter and Paul continued to share in communal reflection. The women decided together to begin their own Circle of Support of Immigrant women of Ss. Peter and Paul, Ionia.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, SNL’s Health Promoters surveyed the state’s Spanish-speaking community not only about COVID, but also about their other health needs. The primary challenge named by those surveyed was mental health problems (ie. anxiety, depression, addiction).

In February, a team of SNL leaders from around the state met with the office of MDHHS Director Elizabeth Hertel to discuss these mental health concerns. Hertel’s top staff suggested that SNL start a pilot program in just a few counties to begin addressing these needs for Spanish-speakers. The team chose to begin in the Grand Traverse region of the Diocese of Gaylord and has begun work to draft a plan for a network of Spanish-speaking Mental Health Promoters.

Leading this effort are Health Promoters and SNL board members Angelica Ledesma (Mujeres Soñadoras) and Gladys Muñoz (Director of the Justice and Peace Advocacy Center, JPAC). They are being supported by the SNL coordinating team of the Diocese of Gaylord--Catholic leaders from local parishes who meet monthly at the Our Lady of Guadalupe Chapel in Traverse City.

Catholic leaders of the Grand Traverse region (Diocese of Gaylord) held two high-profile meetings in March at the Our Lady of Guadalupe Chapel in Traverse City (location of the Diocese of Gaylord Hispanic Ministry).

The first meeting was with Senator John Damoose’s Deputy Chief of Staff, Dakota Baker. The SNL team urged Senator Damoose to support the Drive Safe Bills and the team’s draft plan for Spanish-speaking Mental Health Promoters in the Grand Traverse and Leelanau County region.

The second meeting was with Dr. Isabel Montemayor-Vazquez, Exec. Director of the Hispanic/Latino Commission of Michigan, and Commission member Anthony Rubio (Wexford County). At this meeting, the Diocese of Gaylord team was joined by the local Migrant Resource Council (MRC). Together these local leaders shared the realities and challenges of Latinos living in the northwest lower peninsula, and strengthened their relationships with each other and with the Commission.

These meetings were a result of the hard work of the SNL coordinating team of Catholic leaders of the Diocese of Gaylord. They have been meeting monthly at the Our Lady of Guadalupe Chapel, together with Strangers No Longer staff member, Amy Ketner. These leaders come from the Guadalupe Chapel, St. Francis of Assisi (Traverse City), and Our Lady of the Woods (Kalkaska), and hope to soon be joined by leaders from other regional parishes as well. These leaders also represent an array of non-profit and volunteer initiatives in the region, including the Justice and Peace Advocacy Center (JPAC).

The Diocese of Grand Rapids’ Hispanic Ministry invited Strangers No Longer to make a presentation during the final event of their Lenten series on Mental Health and Spirituality.

The event took place on the eve of Holy Thursday, with about 25 participating leaders from across the Diocese. The presentation and dialogue centered around the importance of community in the face of our own sin, noting the different reactions of Judas and Peter to their betrayals of Jesus--one running off in hopeless isolation and the other seeking forgiveness and support from his trusted community.

Then SNL Circles of Support were presented as a way to support each other in all of life’s challenges and joys. Attendees were invited to consider starting a Circle in their own parish.

SNL Executive Director Bill O’Brien presented “Spirituality in Ministry” at the Spring gathering of the Saginaw Diocese Office of Parish Life and Evangelization. 40 parish leaders attended – Befrienders, Grief Support Facilitators, Lay Ministers, and Parishioners Walking with Moms. To assess how SNL can best serve the Saginaw diocese, Bill will be conducting follow-up one-on-one meetings with conference participants, pastors, civic and business leaders this summer.

The immigrant women circles of support began during the time of the COVID-19 pandemic. This pandemic strongly affected the economy of immigrant families due to the lack of benefits to which U.S. citizens are entitled. A group of women began meeting via Zoom in June 2020 to talk about their experiences of how the pandemic was affecting their families, not only economically but physically and mentally. The conversation spaces proved to be a source of support through empathic listening and prayer that encouraged them to look for ways to improve their lives.

Thanks to the reflection on the Bent-Over Woman in Luke's gospel that this group offered in January 2021, the number of immigrant women's circles of support grew over the next few years and circles of support continue to expand throughout the state of Michigan. Currently, Strangers No Longer has eight immigrant women's circles: Women Under the Protection of God, Women of Faith and Hope, Women Bearers of Light, Dreaming Women, Flowers of Mary, St. Andre Bessette, St. Matthias, and one recently formed circle in Ionia. Very soon, we hope to have a new circle in Saginaw. Since the women live all around the state, the meetings are virtual. Only two circles have face-to-face meetings in their parishes.

The women, being aware of the personal growth they have achieved, have encouraged their husbands to have an experience like theirs, to create a space that gives them life and hope, a space that they can feel is their own where they can share their life experiences. And now, thanks to the enthusiasm and dedication of the women in the Circle of Support at St. Andre Bessette parish, the first circle of support of immigrant men has been formed.

Thanks to the spiritual and psychological training received, women have strengthened their self-esteem and that has motivated them to come out of the shadows. Some of them have decided to share their story in churches, high schools, and universities. Sharing their story not only helps them heal from painful experiences but has also informed the minds and hearts of their listeners.

By feeling valued and empowered, they are being agents of their own transformation. They took on the difficult task of talking and making known the problems that arise in daily life due to the lack of state identification. This information was the raw material for the creation of the Platform for Human Dignity which was ratified by the membership of Strangers No Longer and its allies on December 9, 2022. They have also been present during Drive Safe Advocacy Day in Lansing to talk to the legislators and support the Drive Safe bills so that immigrants can obtain a driver's license again.

Sr. Martha de la Torre J, SMR

The next SNL board meeting is scheduled for Saturday, August 19th, from10:00 – 11:45 on Zoom. Contact strangersnolonger11@gmail.com if you would like to attend. All are welcome!