The Clinic is thankful for our partnership with both attorney volunteers and general volunteers. Today we interview Amy Koons, a volunteer at the Clinic.

A Valentine’s Day greeting from Community Engagement Manager Lydia Bronner

In 2009, Richard VanRheenen felt a moral tugging within himself. “I decided that I needed to be more intentional about pro bono legal work,” he says, “which I had not really given much attention to before.” Richard spent his days representing business and industry on environmental aspects of real estate transactions, litigation, and regulatory matters. This type of litigation includes lawsuits over who will pay how much of an environmental cleanup. He always knew this was the kind of legal work he wanted to practice. “I was drawn to the combination of law and science,” he tells me.

“It has been my experience that the Internal Revenue Code is extremely complex and not everyone can afford counsel when they have an issue,” he says. He began looking at alternatives for those who could not afford their own counsel and learned about the history of Low Income Taxpayer Clinics (LITC) through the IRS website. Dave was intrigued. He immediately searched for the nearest LITC, which just happened to be part of Neighborhood Christian Legal Clinic.

Long before he volunteered with Neighborhood Christian Legal Clinic, Jerry Kelly had a relationship with Exodus Refugee, even serving on their Board for a period of seven years. After stepping down from the Board, he continued to serve as a regular volunteer in their offices. “In doing that, I got exposed to some of the immigration services that Exodus provides, like green card applications.” Soon, through this work, Jerry was introduced to the Legal Clinic.

Dr. James Skill spends most of his day staring at a petri dish waiting to see what cells grow. An oncologic biochemist employed by IU, James researches recurrence rates and effects of immunosuppression on cancer.

When work at his day job was a little slow, Phil Zimmerly contacted Neighborhood Christian Legal Clinic to see if there were any volunteer cases he could take. That’s how he met Artis.

Bible verses like, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself,” and “I was a stranger and you welcomed me,” provide Jack with clear guidance about what he is supposed to do. “These aren’t just nice words, but are rules of conduct,” he explains.

Volunteer Attorney Fatima Skimin understands the experiences of the immigrants she serves through the Clinic. Born in Casablanca, Morocco, as a girl, she received a French education, and later attended Law School in Montpellier, France. In the mid 1990s, however, Fatima chose to come to the U.S. as an international student.

After studying in Mexico and other Spanish-speaking countries for several years, Katie Bailey returned to Indiana knowing one thing: She wanted to meet and support her immigrant neighbors living in the Indianapolis community. With prior experience translating and interpreting for legal issues through an internship, Katie sought out an organization to utilize her many skills. Soon, she began to volunteer for Neighborhood Christian Legal Clinic. 

Waiting with the others in court that morning, Phil was fascinated by the eclectic mix of people and their reasons for being there. Everyone had a story. There were those who were divorced, wanting to rid themselves of the name they had taken on as a newlywed. There were children who were being adopted, now bestowed with new names to match their new family. Phil marveled at the ceremony and power as the judge declared for each person, “You will forever be known as—” before christening them anew. “It felt like a religious moment,” Phil says to me now.

Every Wednesday morning at our main office, new potential clients have an opportunity to speak to an attorney about a pressing immigration or tax issue. While they sit in the waiting room, if they choose, they can fill out a prayer request card, which is then given to our volunteer prayer team. This team is currently comprised of two people: April Ervin and Grant Sellers.

Jim Foltz’s father owned a bakery where Jim mopped floors and washed dishes after school when he was just a boy. Down the road lived a prominent, local attorney who was friends with his father and grandfather. Over the years, Jim observed this man’s work, and he dreamed of one day becoming an attorney as well. “I thought that I could mediate and help people reach a fair and agreeable solution when they had difficulties,” he says. “That was my main motivation for becoming an attorney.”

“One of the biggest successes of spiritual direction is helping people interpret their past, their present, and their future through the lens of God’s loving gaze. And that’s not easy,” says Peggy. “But for those who are open to it, I think it can bring a sense of not being alone in their life.”

In 1994, the Legal Clinic finally opened its doors to the public, but it was slow going at the start. “I don’t know how many people we helped that first year,” Lynn says, “But you probably wouldn’t have to take off your shoes to count them.” Since that time, the Clinic has expanded to serve more than 10,000 low-income people annually, with over 35 staff members, a satellite office in Ft. Wayne, numerous intake sites around the city of Indianapolis, and a team of committed volunteers.