719-587-3225 (phone)
719-587-0045 (fax)
irc@slvirc.org

The San Luis Valley Immigrant Resource Center

program services

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Due to the COVID-19 (Corona Virus) outbreak our office hours are changing, please call the office to make an appointment. If you’re feeling sick, do not come to the office. If you have an appointment please come by yourself, do not bring any other family members or children. Call (719) 587-3225 to schedule an appointment.

The San Luis Valley Immigrant Resource Center currently has three areas of focus:

Immigration Legal Assistance Program 
The Immigration Legal Assistance Program has been serving the San Luis Valley since 1987, when it was formed under the auspices of San Luis Valley Christian Community Services. This program was formed to provide immigration legal assistance to the growing immigrant and refugee population who were located in the San Luis Valley. The San Luis Valley Immigrant Resource Center is currently recognized and accredited as an Immigration Service Provider by the Office of Legal Access Programs (OLAP) and has been accredited for the past ten years. It is
overseen by the Colorado Lawyers Committee Immigration Task Force.

The Immigration Legal Assistance Program provides, for a nominal fee, legal assistance and consultations for low-income persons needing assistance.The program uses its limited resources to:

  • Provide immigration legal advice for U.S. citizens, immigrants, and undocumented people needing assistance.
  • Prepare immigration and naturalization forms, which include Adjustment of Status, Family Petitions, Conditional Residency, Naturalization, Renewing Resident Cards, Visa packets, and Affidavits of Support.
  • Translate, certify, notarize, and copy documents.
  • Make referrals as appropriate.

For more information please contact Accredited Representative Flora Archuleta at 719-587-3225 ext. 11

 

Por Ti Misma-Assisting Battered Immigrants 

The Por Ti Misma – Assisting Battered Immigrants program helps domestic violence victims/survivors in seeking legal residency under the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA). This program assists women and men who would otherwise be eligible to apply for legal immigration statuses through their spouses, but whose abusive partners have refused to help them. Through VAWA, we guide the applicants during the process of petitioning for residency, while effectively putting control of the immigration process in the hands of the victim/survivor. VAWA offers the opportunity to request legal permanent residency status for battered spouses and children, without the help or knowledge of the abuser. This process allows victims/survivors to gain much greater control of their own lives.

VAWA offers the opportunity to request legal permanent residency status for battered spouses and children, without the help or knowledge of the abuser. A battered immigrant may be able to:

  • Self-petition with USCIS to request permanent residency
  • Suspend deportation proceedings
  • Obtain deferred action
  • Change conditional residency status to permanent residency status
  • Request a work permit

The decision to stay with or leave the abuser is a decision the victim/survivor makes on her/his own. The petition allows the victim/survivor to make this decision freely, without pressure from the spouse. In addition, the whole process is completely confidential. USCIS will not contact the applicant (victim/survivor) directly. Also, the abusive spouse will not be notified and the victim/survivor’s choice to petition will not affect the abuser.

We also assist crime victims who qualify to apply for the U-visa. The purpose of the U-visa, which is a nonimmigrant visa, is to give victims of certain crimes temporary legal status and eligibility in the United States for up to 4 years. Family members may also be included in the petition including spouses, children, unmarried sisters and brothers under 18, mothers, fathers, as well as stepparents and adoptive parents. An approved U-visa petition will automatically grant the applicant work eligibility in the United States. 10,000 U-visas are issued every fiscal year. Each case is considered individually.

For more information, please call Immigrant Advocate at 719 587-3225 ext. 13.

Crime Victim Housing Program    

The Housing for Crime Victims Special Project that helps victims increase access to and retain safe, long-term housing and provides some of the support they need to rebuild their lives. The program helps with housing assistance, and utilities assistance.

A staggering 92 percent of women who are homeless reported having experienced severe physical and/or sexual assault at some point in their lives. The goal of the Project include, among others, assisting crime victims in meeting their long-term housing needs, enhancing and expanding community support, and providing low-barrier survivor-driven mobile advocacy by meeting survivors where it is safe and convenient for them.

For more information, please call Maricela Lucas at 719-587-3225 ext. 12

Counseling Services

Since 2017, the San Luis Valley Immigrant Resource Center has been contracting with Caminos a la Dignidad to provide free and confidential counseling services to the immigrant community. Counseling services are offered in English and Spanish. The San Luis Valley Immigrant Resource Center understands that many immigrants and their families are experiencing many stressors given the current immigration environment that exist today.

Carmen M. Gutiérrez, NCC, LPCC is a counselor who provides services through the San Luis Valley Immigrant Resource Center. She specializes in Relational and Cultural Trauma. Ms. Gutiérrez received her Master’s in Clinical Mental Health at Adams State University in Colorado.

Ms. Gutiérrez offers expertise in Mental Health Status evaluations that focus on the emotional impact of both separation and re-location of immigrants and their traumatic experiences. Her passion is working with lawyers on immigration cases, in a mental health therapist capacity, such as extreme hardship (waivers, provisional waivers and cancellations of removal cases), domestic violence (VAWA), and victims of crime (U-Visa). Furthermore, she has proficiency with specific types of political asylum and humanitarian cases. 

 Understanding “what was done to us” is not a blaming game, nor is it an avoidance of personal responsibility. Personal responsibility lies in taking an active approach to discovering and understanding our true self and how early life experiences formed our relational foundation that we live by today. Personal interactions during our early developmental years determine how we respond to present day relationships, whether they are professional or personal.

Our hope is to provide a safe and confidential space where immigrants can have access to culturally appropriate counseling services. If you or someone you know has experienced anxiety, depression, trauma or any other mental health related issues, please contact Flora Archuleta for more information and services, 719 587-3225, ext. 11.

Punto de Vista Education/Outreach Language Project 
This project provides English as a Second Language (ESL) classes to adult immigrants in the San Luis Valley. The focus of this project is to serve as many adult ESL students as possible by coordinating times and places in order to eliminate the barriers of work, transportation, and other challenges. Depending on available funding, we also offer citizenship classes as often as possible. Through ESL and citizenship education, immigrants are empowered to become active participants in their community.

The Punto de Vista program also provides tutoring services to approximately 20 school age children four days per week at the Alamosa Migrant Housing complex Tierra Nueva, where they are assisted in completing their schoolwork during the school year.

For more information, call Mr. Phillip Archuleta at 719-480-4318.

 

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Mission Statement

To connect and empower immigrants with resources to achieve legal documentation, fulfill their economic needs, and integrate into the community.

Board of Directors

Michelle Salazar

Nicolas Sarmiento

Marisol Cristobal Lucas

Eric Carpio

Anna Osterhout

Ivan Garcia

Samuel Maestas