For Immediate Release: Wednesday, January 9, 2019
More than 500 refugees are being served daily at the Sister Norma Seni Pimentel’s Humanitarian Respite Center in McAllen, Texas
ROCKVILLE, Md., Jan. 8, 2019—This weekend, Councilmember Gabe Albornoz joined a group of community and civic leaders along with more than 75 volunteers in San Antonio, Texas, to gather supplies, pack and deliver care packages with food, clothing, and other necessities to refugee families at the Texas-Mexico border.
“My visit to Sister Norma Seni Pimentel’s Humanitarian Respite Center in McAllen, Texas was a deeply moving and humbling experience,” said Albornoz. “I believe that there is more that we can do here in Montgomery County to support these families and provide assistance to Sister Norma and her team. I hope to explore ways to do so in the near future.”
At the center, families arrive from detention and immigration court proceedings, with few supplies and facing emotional and physical exhaustion. This weekend’s effort by the respite center provided the refugee families with basic items such as clothing, toiletry items, food, toys, diapers, and help coordinating travel to their destinations across the country. The center is now averaging 500 people per day and operates with a full-time staff of four people. It is expected that the truck load of supplies that was brought for the families will mostly be gone by the end of the week.
It is reported that the families at the respite center are on their way to North Carolina, Florida, Houston, and Maryland.
“My heart is full of love for these families and I have made new friends during this trip that I look forward to working with,” Albornoz said.
Councilmember Albornoz self-funded this trip.
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