Today’s blog
Lynn Murphy Mark
A fascinating world
Yesterday started out as a regular work day. My coffee helped me wake up, I got in some steps, and I fought a little traffic on my way downtown to Legal Services of Eastern Missouri, in, actual Eastern Missouri. Nothing noteworthy there. I had my early list of what to do when I got upstairs, knowing that the list would change before the day was over. I learned that lesson early in my 46 year nursing career and it’s no different in immigration work.
One phone call changed my plans. I listen to the Intake messages, to calls looking for resources It’s my job to answer the calls. One was from a Social Worker at Cardinal Glennon Hospital. I called her right back, curious about why someone from a pediatric hospital would be calling for immigration services.( I have written before about my love for Social Workers – they are the true problem solvers in so many places.). And a little adventure began.
There is a child at Glennon waiting for a transplant. What kind I don’t know, but it’s serious enough that the child will need a lot of follow up and care after the transplant. OK. I still didn’t make the connection with immigration, but it’s my responsibility to listen carefully. What came next was the surprise. The child is from Senegal, here with his mother who happens to be in the USA on a tourist visa. She knows she needs to stay here – the type of care he needs is not available in Senegal – but she knows her visa will expire and she will be here illegally.
Her only option is to find a way to extend her tourist visa, hence the call to Legal Services. As an aside, our grant for immigration is to work with victims of domestic violence, and with people who have a status in the USA, like a green card, or citizenship. This mother did not meet our criteria so it was now my job to talk with the mom and find her an immigration attorney who could do the work for her. The next surprise: mom only speaks Wolof, one of the many West African languages.
We work with an interpreter service called Language Line. I went through the steps and requested a Wolof speaker. Within minutes I was connected with Sofia, a delightful woman who had just gotten off a two hour call with another person from Senegal. We called the mom’s number and reached her right away. Then started a barrage of words well beyond my comprehension. Except for a few French-sounding words that I could make out. Apparently, Wolof combines some French from previous colonial roots. I asked my questions and Sofia passed them along. I explained the option of visa extension and that explanation took about two minutes in rapid fire Wolof.
Long story short, we found an attorney willing to do the work and not charge any fees. I called the Social Worker back with the good news and we had a little telephonic celebration in honor of people willing to step up and help another human being for no reason other than it’s the right thing to do.
Yesterday’s other interesting happening. Across the pond in Ireland, Katie, wearing a shirt that said “FEARLESS”, was learning how to be a Falconer. She posted pictures on Facebook of a magnificent looking bird swooping down to land. gently on her forearm. She was wearing a very sturdy looking glove and had some bird treats in her palm, which Jabba-the-falcon gladly gobbled. She posted pictures of the castle where the “Hawk Walks” take place. Old stone, glowing green grass, surrounded by a forest where Katie and Jabba had their adventure.
At the end of the day, I wondered about the difference between Ireland and Senegal, and was happy to have experienced a little of both on an ordinary day.