Attending to mental and emotional needs is a vital part of self-care and overall health. For those living under extreme stress and/or processing traumatic experiences, mental health care can be a true survival issue. Often, the experiences which prompted an immigrant or refugee to flee their homeland in the first place, combined with other traumas …
Native Language Counseling for Survivors of Trauma Read More »
AMIS is pleased to announce its new slate of officers, elected at its September 9, 2022 board meeting. Installed as president is Euclid resident Pam Turos; as vice-president, Cleveland Heights resident Anne Hill; as treasurer, Shaker Heights resident Dale Winsberg; and as secretary, Cleveland resident Barb Clint. Pam has been active with AMIS since 2018. …
Featured image credit Joan Lederer, Freshwater Cleveland The near-constant smile on Jonas Nsongi Mbonga’s face belies the arduous, heartache-filled journey which brought him from his original homeland in the Democratic Republic of Congo to his current home in Cleveland Heights. Jonas’ story has been well recounted in a June 30 Freshwater Cleveland story, available through …
In recognition of the many AMIS donors who have so generously supported our work since its inception in 2019, the Board of Trustees hosted its first Donor Appreciation Night on Saturday evening, June 25, 2022. The event was hosted at the beautiful Guilford Road home of AMIS Trustee Sue Dyke and her husband, Steve. AMIS …
Gratitude & Hope at AMIS Donor Appreciation Event Read More »
AMIS supports many individuals through the difficult and long process of seeking asylum in the US. Most of those immigrating here don’t realize how broken the system is nor the process and length of time it takes to obtain legal status.
Before we met Ansly Damus, my wife Melody and I were not involved in immigration issues except as concerned voters. Like many people, our concerns grew as we watched the last administration spiral down to more and more cruelty.
Meet Pat, a founding donor and ongoing supporter of Americans Making Immigrants Safe (AMIS). She attributes her commitment to immigrant support and advocacy to her family history, with Irish Catholic roots and two parents who immigrated to America, facing danger and discrimination in the 1920s. We are so grateful to Pat and donors like her …
Dear Friends of AMIS, As the year 2021 comes to a close, we lift our glass to you — our donors, our friends — and toast to a kindness that knows no borders. AMIS provides financial support for immigrant friends in Ohio who are facing critical financial difficulties and who fall outside traditional support services. …
We are so excited to announce that Baby Aisha Lara is here! On her due date, November 18, Habibou was surrounded by support, including a French speaking physician and a Birthing Beautiful Communities doula as the couple welcomed a healthy baby girl into their family and our community. As is their custom, the family organized …
In October 2016 Ansly Damus entered the USA from Mexico and was promptly jailed simply because he wanted asylum. He wanted asylum because one and a half years earlier he had been threatened with death in his home country, Haiti, by a political gang. He left home, his wife and two children, one of whom …