Recently I went on vacation to San Diego with my family. The visit was sort of a multipurpose trip. My husband and I recently celebrated thirty years of marriage, my son Daniel was invited with South Shore Children’s Chorus to perform in Balboa Park AND an additional performance at University of California San Diego, and we wanted to visit our daughter Allison who moved out to San Diego two years ago with her boyfriend Evan.
We all had a wonderful time. We went to the San Diego Zoo and we went to the beach. Allison showed us some local places that were good to eat including her home where Evan cooked for us. We also took a salsa dancing class.
Another thing some of us did was some volunteer work. Allison has a heart for trying to help those who arrive at the border looking for a better life. Some of these people are families fleeing poverty and dangerous circumstances in their countries of origin. The groups she is involved with do what they can to provide food, water, medical assistance, clothing and shelter to those in need. Sometimes helping means bringing rice and beans or sandwiches to those in need. Sometimes they leave water at checkpoints for people who have gone through some very hot and dry places to get here. Occasionally it may mean handing out blankets because nights in the desert can be cold. I wanted to help while I was out there in any way I could. I knew I couldn’t do anything huge but I could do something. I informed Allison that while we were out there in San Diego, I would like to help a little if I could.
Allison let me know that we could in fact help a little if we wanted to. She made arrangements for me, Christopher, and Julia to assist in building a shade structure to shade detainees while they wait for border patrol to provide court dates for their applications for asylum. When migrants are seeking to present themselves to border patrol for intake into the American immigration system, border patrol frequently makes them wait in the desert for anywhere between a few hours and a few days, often with no food, water, or method of transportation to their court appearance.
While we were making arrangements to go and help, I was a little nervous. Where were we going? How are we getting there? Who was in charge? How many people would be there? What should we bring? How long would we be there? What would we be doing?
Allison handled making the arrangements like a pro. The group we were assisting to build a shade structure was small, and they were willing to “go with the flow.” Someone in our little group asked, “Would we be interacting with Border Patrol?” The answer - maybe. “Would there be any guns present?” Answer - border patrol carries them.
I must admit that made me a little nervous hearing guns might be present. As we drove to the location, passing segments of our border wall along the way, I worried a little about what could transpire. I have heard tell of Border Patrol being less than kind to anyone that may be present.
When we arrived in Jacumba, we passed through a Native American reservation on the way to the site. There were vast tracts of land that looked dry. There were some scrubby bushes, mobile trailers randomly dotted the area and the truck’s thermometer read 107 degrees Fahrenheit. The site we arrived at looked desolate. There were neither immigrants nor Border Patrol present. All we were able to see for miles was a large container for water, some rocks, some trash, and a port-a-potty. “What if our cars break down?” I thought. Describing to AAA or my husband where we were would be interesting, to put it mildly.
After parking our vehicles, we began to find a flat area to erect our shade structure. Allison explained that this was the “slow season” as it was often too hot in the desert for people to survive the trip. It was probably why no one was currently there.
Clearing a flat area up on top of a small rise in the ground, a gas-powered auger was used to drill four holes into the hard-packed ground. One of the volunteers had brought four posts made from eucalyptus. He worked at a lumber mill and had cut these himself from a tree he had salvaged. Christopher, Julia, Allison and I helped carry the lumber and the other volunteers placed the posts in their corresponding holes. After the posts were secure and black fabric was secured over the top our task was complete. While we remained, we cleaned up some trash and stacked some rocks that might be useful to anyone who happened upon the site to make a firepit or hold down equipment brought during windy periods.
On the hour long trip back to the hotel I found myself thinking about what we did. Would anyone benefit from our efforts? Would the small structure we erected protect anyone from the elements or would Border Patrol force immigrants, as they are known to do, to tear it down? I realized that even if it is torn down it is possible that the structure is at minimum seen and at least some of those hot and weary travelers will understand that some of us welcome them. Some of us in this country appreciate what they are willing to endure to provide a better life for their loved ones.
If you are one of those people, looking to contribute even some small bit of help or resources (God wants us to contribute our time, talent and resources to help others, right?) then please check out borderkindness.org or www.immdef.org. If you are interested in receiving more information, please reach out to me at 508-472-4812 or ssturner@mindspring.com.
