Yet, how many of us actually know a person who has come to this country in an effort to make a better life and is being persecuted for doing so? There is such a family in our midst, and they need our help now! Your Board of Trustees has given its whole-hearted endorsement of this project as an extension of our NMD Ministry.

This family was chosen because they live here in Tucson and only a few short months ago were in their own home living lives similar to ours. We could have been next to them in line at the grocery store or their children may attend school alongside some of our children. That all ended for them when the father, Gustavo, was charged with a felony for using someone else's social security number while working part-time as a cook. He was picked up by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and has been detained at the immigration facility in Eloy for almost 4 months and all requests for bail have been denied. Although he is appealing to the court to be able to stay with his wife and two citizen sons in the U.S., it may be months before his appeal is heard. His only other alternative is to take "voluntary" deportation to Mexico, but because of the felony, he would be banned from applying for re-entry...ever. If he attempted to cross into Tucson and he was caught, he could face up to 20 years in prison for "felony re-entry". Therefore, he has decided to stay in detention and fight the legal battle alongside Margo Cowan, a lawyer and NMD volunteer.

His main concern has been for his family. His wife, Myrna, and his 13- and 10-year-old sons, have been left with no way to support themselves and nowhere to live. As Gustavo said to his wife, "In Eloy, I eat three meals a day and I have a roof over my head, but what about my boys?" We hope that as a community we may be able to help Gustavo's family until he can. Kat Sinclair, a regular volunteer for NMDs and a friend to our church, is temporarily taking them into her home, and we, as a church, could also provide support to help the family through our donations. As school starts this month, the most immediate need for physical items is back packs, school supplies and new school clothes for the boys.

Here's how you can provide immediate help: Purchase gift cards at Walmart or Target so the boys can pick out their own clothes and school supplies. Leave them in the church office in a sealed envelope with "Family Support" on the outside; Continue to donate to our Food Bank, as we will provide the family with food bags. If you have a guest house or apartment you would be willing to offer the family during this time of crisis, or would like to provide financial assistance for housing, contact me or Kat Sinclair.

Thank you for your generous support. Contact Rhonda Walker or Kat Sinclair for more information.

"We are so grateful to the UUCT congregation for organizing this tour, setting up all the meetings, events, tour guides and English-Spanish interpreters on both sides of the border for us, and opening up their homes to house us the past three nights. We want you to understand that everything you did for us has really made a huge difference in how we understand border enforcement and immigrant rights."

The two-day border tour on Jan. 17 and 18 included a trip to Nogales, Sonora, to hear migrants' and deported immigrants' stories of forced family separation in the internment and deportation process, a campaign to prevent the force separation of immigrant parents from their U.S. born children in the deportation process, to learn about "Operation Streamline," and to meet with UUCT congregation members to hear our views about what should happen at UUA General Assembly (GA) 2012, which will be held in Phoenix.

What Would YoUU Do?: What I Learned as an Allied Prisoner

6:30p-8:30p (UU Church of Tucson, 4831 E. 22nd St. 85711 in the Awareness Room.)

Katerina Sinclair will continue her discussion from the October 10th service with a more in-depth look at the (potential) UU roles in both local and national immigration movements. She will field questions regarding the July 29th Day of Non-Compliance in Phoenix, the ways in which UUs embodied the Seven Principles during their incarceration, and conditions in the Maricopa County Jail. Finally, she will provide detailed information about current initiatives in Tucson to support migrant or undocumented families.