This 4th of July, we celebrated three different clients who recently became U.S. citizens. We also commemorated the 20th anniversary of the Low Income Taxpayer Clinic (LITC) Program by releasing a video with stories of how it benefits the community.

This 4th of July, we are celebrating the stories of three of our clients who recently became citizens and the unique circumstances that led them to choose to become American.

This June, we released our most recent episode of our Courting Justice podcast on Community Development Corporations. And Executive Director Chris Purnell shared his thoughts on the difficulties and necessity of building a community of trust. 

Refugee. What a loaded word these days. As we celebrate “World Refugee Day” on June 20th, it feels appropriate to unpack that word a little. So let’s start with the basics: What is a refugee? 

One day, Marta returned from work to find him and their baby missing. When he finally came home, he didn’t have the baby with him. “He was super drunk and just kept saying, ‘She’s gone,’ over and over again,” says Erica. Desperate, Marta contacted the police, and a search began—but they never found the baby. Marta’s abuser was charged with the murder of their child. “They interviewed him multiple times and his story kept changing,” Erica says. “[Marta] cooperated with the police and testified against him.” He was eventually convicted.

This January, we shared Executive Director Chris Purnell's thoughts on what it means to walk alongside those in need and to receive such care well when we ourselves are in need. This whole year, we will be exploring the theme of Belonging through our social media and blog posts. And, as the year goes on, we hope to learn more about how you participate in this community as well.