Southwest Detroit Immigrant and Refugee Center

In 2023 we provided 4,952 client appointments at our daily, free legal clinics. One hundred andforty-two (142) of our clients won asylum, sixty-seven (67) removal cases were closed, ninety-fourclients (94) were granted permanent residency, and nearly three hundred received EmploymentAuthorization Documents. Further, fIfty-three (53) clients were approved for TPS, sixteen (16)DACA recipients renewed their status and more than two hundred (200) filed family reunificationpetitions on behalf of relatives left behind in their home countries. No other Detroit-based,not-for-profit organization comes close to matching these numberseither in the number of clientsserved, or positive case outcomes. Besides our daily, free legal clinics, SWIRCs activities include twice-weekly Afghan Clinics thatserve the growing Afghan population in metro Detroit; a New Arrivals program that servesresidents of City of Detroit-sponsored shelters; Special Immigrant Juvenile (SIJ) services onbehalf of 48 current clients; U-Visa/VAWA Visa services focused on victims of domestic violenceand crime; and Probate Court services that help Black and immigrant families retain their homesand help children and disabled persons receive suitable guardians. SWIRC funds its programs through a variety of sources as indicated in the attached budget.Federally-funded grants support two of our programs: the Afghan Arrivals Programadministered by the Office of Global Michigan (State of Michigan), and the New Arrivals Clinicwhose funds come from the City of Detroit and is administered by Freedom House. Our staff pushes forward our mission. Led by Kevin Piecuch, executive director and ClarisaPiecuch, our associate director, we have assembled a first-class team that supports our continuedgrowth. Genevieve Lonski, our staff attorney, and paralegals Jose Davila, Jose Cabrera, andDavid Lopez are highly trained and staff our legal clinics. Translator Sayed Azami is fluent in Pashto, Dari, and Urdu, and provides in-clinic translation and support for our Afghan Clinic.Finally, our bilingual call center has been staffed by Amelia Piecuch, who represents SWIRC incommunity partnership and directed SWIRCs recruitment and volunteer services. Furthersupporting our work has been a committed corp of 10 volunteers who provide translation servicesand assistance at our five weekly clinics. It takes a growing team to support our growing outreach. Finally, our success as an organization has been fueled by partnerships with organizations basedin and around Detroit. Thanks to the generous support of Ford Philanthropy SWIRC hosts ourfour, weekly Detroit-based legal clinics in clean, attractive, easy-to-find locations at no cost toSWIRC. Our long-time partnership with Ford Philanthropy also means we enjoy closerelationships with the other Ford partners that include: Gleaners Food Bank, Accounting AidSociety, Ser Metro, La Sed and Living Arts to name a few. Freedom House Detroit, the onlyemergency housing provider for non-English speaking Detroit residents has grown into a majorcooperating organization. All Ford Philanthropy partners receive programming support thatincludes transportation of clients, shared resources, and referrals. SWIRC is also allied closelywith local faith communities primarily the Presbytery of Detroit, who provides funding and thelocation of our Pontiac clinic, and Strangers No Longer, a Catholic-based group who also refersclients and sends SWIRC volunteers. SWIRC is especially skilled in providing culturally sensitive services. Eighty-two percent of ourclients are native Spanish speakers, which is why our entire staff is bilingualand most areimmigrants or the children of immigrants themselves. We serve sizable populations of Afghans,Middle Easterners, and Africans, which means we also provide in-clinic translators for French,Pashto, Dari, Urdu, and Arabic speakers. At SWIRC clients hear their language spoken by legalprofessionals or translators who look like them and share their experiences. SWIRCs successreflects our outstanding reputation in the immigrant community. After 10 years of providingconsistently excellent services, referrals from existing and former SWIRC clients fuels ourexplosive growth.