After tons of hard work and advocacy, we are finally able to serve so many new families that have suffered extreme hardships. Starting from Ken and trickling down the whole agency, we have worked very hard to make sure that this vulnerable population is not forgotten or left without support.

We wanted to share that we officially launched Todo Por Mi Familia (“All for My Family”), our nationwide initiative to coordinate mental health services for families that were separated at the border as a result of the Government’s Zero Tolerance Policy. Just two weeks ago, our hotline went live and our incredible staff have been working passionately to connect with the nearly 2,500 families who were reunified after the traumatic separations and remain in the United States. Since then, we have heard stories of how families have been working to move on, and about the difficulties the separations have caused. We have connected with over 100 families already, and nearly 70% are interested in being connected to services. Parents are welcoming the support that we can connect them to so that they can help themselves and their children.

As you know, locating families is our first uphill challenge, but we are fortunate to be working with a network of nearly 50 national and local legal advocacy organizations across the country who are helping us connect directly to their clients. We are fortunate to be working with interpretation providers who are helping us connect with families who speak various Mayan indigenous languages. We are also working with a PR firm to help us gain traction in the media, and had our first article come out in People Magazine. More interviews are being scheduled for the upcoming weeks in both English and Spanish. Next Wednesday, we will be doing an interview on Telemundo’s hit show, Un Nuevo Dia. Starting today, we have also launched a series of PSAs from Spanish-speaking celebrities who have huge social media followings (see a sample here: Dayanara Torres and Cristian De La Fuente). Some bigger names are coming out next week! Please feel free to share on your social media posts from Instagram and Facebook, using the hashtag #todopormifamilia.