FORT WORTH – Children detained at the Texas border are now being housed at a year-round Catholic Charities shelter for refugees in Fort Worth.
As of Thursday evening, Catholic Charities Fort Worth had 10 children who were detained at the Texas border. They started the day with 12, nine of which were the result of parental separations, but the charity was able to facilitate two family reunifications on Thursday.
The children being housed at the shelter in south Fort Worth range in age from 5 to 12 years old. They are all from El Salvador, Honduras or Guatemala.
Catholic Charities Fort Worth president Heather Reynolds said it has been a traumatic experience for the children. “We’ve seen plenty of tears and plenty of nightmares,” she said. “These kids have been through more than anybody should have to go through in their life.”
“At the same time, they’re kids and we’ve been able to let them be children,” she said.
“As people of charity, people of good will, we should be helping our neighbors who are in trouble,” said Pat Svacina, communications director of the Fort Worth diocese. “For the children it is a crisis, but for us it is an opportunity.”
“We’re Catholics, Christians, it’s our fellow people,” he added.
Svacina said Catholic Charities responds to requests from the Office of Refugee Resettlement, part of the federal Department of Health and Human Services. Within the last few weeks, the office alerted the Fort Worth shelter to be prepared to receive immigrant children from the border. Svacina said it is unclear whether the children were unaccompanied when they arrived or were separated from their families.
“Catholic Charities and their very qualified team opens their doors, houses them, helps get them stabilized, and reunites families when they can or finds foster families,” Svacina explained.
The charity put out a call for donations on Facebook Wednesday morning. Within an hour, Dayana Reyes, Cynthia Anguiano and Yasmin Delgado showed up with boxes of shampoo, lotion, soaps and washcloths.
“These kids need to know there are people out here that care and are willing to help,” said Delgado. “Most important is to not forget to pray about everything that’s going on.”
They work just a couple of blocks from the Catholic Charities offices, and Reyes and Anguiano see themselves in the children’s faces. Both were brought to Texas by their families when they were children.
“I came here when I was five years old with my mom,” said Anguiano. “I’m so thankful that she decided to take that big risk to give me a better life.”
Reyes said she’s bothered by those who are passing judgment.
“Who wouldn’t sacrifice a lot of stuff for a better future for their kids?” she asked. “My parents did it. I would do it for my kid if I had to. If I had to move to another country I would do it.
“The only thing they wanted was a better future for their kids.”
She and Anguiano fought back tears thinking about their own experiences.
“What if they caught us? What would have happened to my mom? What would have happened to me?” asked Anguiano. “I’m an only child. I don’t have brothers, sisters, what would have happened? Where would I be now? I don’t know.”