My Yoder ancestors immigrated to the United States in the 1700’s and settled in Ohio. I know very little about their immigration story, or what motivated them to leave home. The people I visit at Clay County Jail, who have been detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), have come for a variety of reasons. Some of them, like many of our European ancestors, came here looking for opportunity, but many have come fleeing violence in their home countries. S. left Congo after she was kidnapped and beaten and threatened with death if she did not leave. M. left Honduras after five of his brothers were murdered by drug-trafficking gangs. H. fled political violence in Iraq. Some were detained after committing a crime, but over 60% of ICE detainees have no criminal charges.

Indiana AID (Assistance to Immigrants in Detention) was started by three people, one of whom was Shalom Mennonite Church’s pastor Brian Bither. While Indiana AID extends beyond Shalom, Shalom has become its fiscal sponsor and a number of people at Shalom support it financially. Three of us at Shalom are regularly involved in the work of Indiana AID.

Once a month we visit Clay County Jail and are allowed to go into some of the eight cell blocks (each housing up to 32 detainees) to visit and to lead a Bible study. We visit some of the detainees weekly by video call on the jail’s communication system. We order books upon request; most of the requests are for Bibles, but we also order fiction, romance, history, immigration law, or whatever the detainees request that is paperback and not too expensive. As funds permit, we offer a little assistance with commissary, which allows detained people to buy stamps and envelopes or ibuprofen or socks as well as to supplement their meals. We help connect people with resources like the National Immigrant Justice Center and the Midwest Immigration Bond Fund. Sometimes we send messages to family members or attend virtual court. We send out a newsletter every few months that includes information on immigration legislation, stories of people in detention (either first-person or summarized by a volunteer), and sometimes poetry or art from detainees.

When we started this work there were about 50 people detained by ICE. Clay County Jail then built a new wing just for ICE detainees, which now houses about 250 detainees. In addition to the Latin American folks there are immigrants from India, Rwanda, Ireland, France, Haiti, Burma, Egypt, Tanzania, Poland, and more. We can’t keep up with the work and would love to have more volunteers join us. Since we do video visits remotely, anyone with a computer could join in the work. People with languages other than English are especially invited, but English is useful too.

To read our newsletter https://www.indianaaid.org/newsletter. Visit our website at https://www.indianaaid.org/ to learn more about us, to volunteer, to contact us, and to donate.

The work can be rewarding but can sometimes be wrenching. Please pray for us as volunteers and for the many people who are detained simply because of where they were born.

Submitted by Martha Yoder Maust, Shalom Mennonite Church

Back in 2021, IMMC put together an Intercultural Working Group that brainstormed recommendations for how we could grow our intercultural competence as IMMC. This group met for a year and made recommendations for both our Missional Leadership Team and our congregations.

One of those recommendations was to form “Sister Churches.” There is a lot of liberty regarding how “Sister Churches” could be defined, but a broad definition was discussed at length by our Leadership Enhancement Team. We hope to pair up congregations that are willing to have relationships outside their community. Ideally, churches would be paired with a congregation “different” from their own. This could mean “different” in regards to racial ethic makeup, socioeconomic status, age, size, theology, or other factors that make congregations who might not otherwise connect join in relationship with one another.

There are many ways this could happen, and we hope to let congregations define what that means for one another. The IWG recommended pulpit sharing, mutual Bible or book study, combining a worship service, or celebrating together, among other things. We are blessed to have a rich diversity in our conference from which to draw upon in helping one another see the world in a different way.

To date, there is one Sister Church pairing in what they refer to as a “birthing process.” This pairing is between Waterford Mennonite in Goshen and Belmont Neighborhood Fellowship in Elkhart. BNF had asked some time ago to be paired with another IMMC church, but at the time, no program or structure existed. Sister Churches gave the perfect opportunity for congregational connection.

According to pastor Kevin Yoder, BNF has as their goal in 2025 to “look outside of themselves.” In this, they hope to see the world from another congregation’s perspective.

In an initial meeting, Pastor Cindy Voth of Waterford said that as churches, we can easily become self-sufficient.  A sister congregation helps us realize that God’s kingdom is best when we are inter-dependent.

This does not come without challenges. For instance, Waterford is a large congregation and BNF is a smaller congregation. However, they are finding a way through.

Some ideas they have in walking together include special activities, events, and worship services that could involve the other congregation. In this way, there is no need to create unique, outside-of-the-norm events. Both congregations can join in on what the other congregation is already doing.

We are hoping more IMMC churches become interested in being paired with each other. No matter your congregational size or demographic realities, we are committed to finding congregations that fit well with one another. In pairing with one another, regardless of difference, there are opportunities to grow spiritually and interculturally. As is the case between Waterford and BNF, there is no need to reinvent the wheel if you don’t want to. Congregations can be in fellowship with events and worship services your congregation already has in place.

If you’re interested in being paired with a Sister Church, please reach out to the IMMC office or contact Joanne Gallardo directly at joanne@im.mennonite.net.

By Joanne Gallardo, IMMC Conference Co-Minister