Groups collaborate to strengthen refugee work

 

In response to the executive order that suspended the U.S. Refugee Admission Program  (USRAP), Manzanita House, Thrive International, Global Neighborhood, Feast World Kitchen, International Rescue Committee (IRC), Refugee and Immigrant Connection Spokane (RICS) and World Relief Spokane joined together to form the Eastern Washington Refugee Coalition (EWRC).

They stand together to support World Relief and IRC in their continued efforts to serve refugee families in the community.

Pat Castaneda, co-founder and director of Manzanita House, and Mark Finney, executive director of Thrive International, shared recently about the coalition and the work of their agencies.

For quite a while, Pat wanted to convene organizations working with immigrants and refugees. She began to invite groups last year to form a coalition to have a unified voice for immigration and refugee issues in the country, state and Spokane.

"I believed we could be stronger together," she said.

Early this year, the U.S. resettlement process closed.

"We wrote letters to officials and asked our constituents to do the same," Pat shared. "We raised funds to help our immigrant and refugee clients. We discussed better ways to support immigrants and refugees who are here. We let our clients know they are not alone."

"Each organization offers niche services. Together, we are stronger and can do the services we can't do alone, so we can provide the wrap-around services," Pat explained.

For example, Manzanita House is the largest nonprofit immigrant legal aid team in Spokane County, offering affordable and pro bono immigration legal support and services.

"We saw a rise in hostile policies to refugees when refugee resettlement ended in January," said Mark Finney, executive director of Thrive International. "That affects each organization in different ways."

"The executive order suspending the USRAP meant that World Relief and IRC in Spokane had to let go of essential staff members," Pat said. For example, World Relief let 15 staff go but still has 50 staff working with classes and services.

EWRC groups have had to adjust their service models with the decrease in refugees arriving in Spokane, especially given that in 2024, Spokane received the highest number of refugees, 1,010, in its history, said Margaret Hinson of IRC.

"At Thrive, we serve a broad population by providing housing in the Thrive Building on 4th and Cowley in Spokane. First, we settled those on Temporary Protective Status (TPS) from Ukraine, the Middle East, Africa and Latin America," Mark explained.

"Previously we had a waiting list, but now we have some rooms open. Families still move out after six to eight months," Mark said.

A federal subcontract with Episcopal Migration Ministries was canceled and Thrive lost funds for three part-time people, but fundraising helped them keep these employees.

"We have a staff of 40 in Spokane and Tacoma, where we recently opened a former motel and house 93 families," he said.

Manzanita House lost $152,000 for legal support for unaccompanied minors.

Pat said the community has had an increasing need for immigrant legal aid and Know Your Rights education. They also offer a free naturalization citizenship class.

The mission of Manzanita House, which started in 2021, is "rooted in welcome." In 2024, they served more than 1,400 immigrants and refugees from more than 100 countries. The first quarter of 2025 saw an increase in needs from last year, said Pat.

"When we opened our doors for intakes, people line up at 4 a.m. for legal help related to removal or deportation in immigration court," she said. "Our immigrant legal aid is pro bono as well as fee based. To lower barriers to access for immigrants, we help cover fees for our four attorneys and two Department of Justice accredited representatives.

In March, the EWRC came together to host the "World's Most Expensive Bake Sale," with an offer of a match of $15,000 from the Smith-Barbieri Progressive Fund and $10,000 from First Presbyterian Church of Spokane.

Those matches continue with the goal to raise $10,000 more. Donations can be made at tinyurl.com/587xk44j.

Mark said that 20 percent of funds the EWRC receives are for education and advocacy in the community, and 80 percent goes to help each agency.

The EWRC also engages with media to raise awareness about the changing situation for immigrants and refugees.

Mark reported that some people in the community have been arrested by ICE and sent to ICE jails. Few of those arrested have criminal records, but they are treated as criminals, he said.

An African Swahili-speaking pastor who leads a church was taken to Tacoma for 45 days, Mark reported. The community raised $10,000 and hired an attorney to secure his release.

There are also many disruptions in the Latino community, he said.

"We meet monthly to support each other and share experiences of our groups and how the situation is changing," he said.

Because of efforts to rescind TPS, Mark said, many "are scared even though they have a right to be here."

He said that offers of $1,000 for people to self-deport show how little the administration understands the financial impacts and what assets immigrants bring to the country.

"Immigrants have a positive impact on the economy," Mark affirmed.

"The U.S. has a declining birth rate, so it's important to bring people to fill jobs. Health care services rely on people coming to fill job vacancies, pay taxes and start home health care services," he said.

Mark counters misconceptions that immigrants take jobs from U.S. citizens and that there are a limited number of jobs and resources.

"It's based on the idea that every American wants a job working in manufacturing," he said. "Those jobs have been outsourced for 40 years. Few Americans want manufacturing jobs. Employers report that it is hard to find Americans to fill or stay in repetitive jobs. Most want meaningful careers."

In contrast, most immigrants want stable incomes to support their families.

"The reality is that the economy grows bigger and is healthier with an influx of new participants," he said.

"If there are fewer immigrants, there are fewer people to work in agriculture, restaurants and grocery stores, hospital and home health care, and construction," Mark said.

"Immigrants create jobs and provide diverse food by starting restaurants and grocery stores," he continued. "With fewer agricultural workers, food prices will rise."

Pat, who immigrated from Venezuela in 2001, first to Florida and then North Carolina before coming to Spokane, also said immigrants and refugees add value, especially once they gain legal status and feel safer.

"Immigrants bring knowledge to communities," she said. "Many Ukrainians are doctors and nurses filling vacancies in the health industry. Many Afghans are engineers and doctors. We help support them to become legal so they can strengthen our country."

For example, Pat, who was a community organizer in Venezuela, now puts those skills into play here.

"I want to support others to be good U.S. citizens," she said. "When people have support, they flourish and become assets to the community and economy, offering innovation, teaching resilience and bringing their cultures to enrich us."

For information, contact the EWRC participants: for Pat, call 309-8404 or email pcastaneda@mhspokane.org; for Mark, call 818-0414 or visit thriveint.org; for Emily Ramirez at Global Neighborhood, call 610-8701 or email emily@globalneighborhood.org; for Ross Carper at Feast World Kitchen, call 279-8388 or visit feastworldkitchen.org; for Margaret Hinson at IRC, email margaret.hinson@rescue.org; for Kathryn Garras of RICS, call 209-2384, or for Christi Armstrong of World Relief, call 484-9829.