On Friday morning, July 31, our friend Marcelo was taken by ICE from the day labor hiring corner in Shoreline, WA where he was seeking work—just as he has done regularly for the past two years. He now sits in an ICE detention center with an uncertain future, no income stream, and a family who is terribly worried about him

A softspoken, gentle man, Marcelo is the primary breadwinner for his wife and 3 children. He is one of the regulars at his day laborer corner, and he has no criminal record. He simply shows up each day looking to earn a living to take care of his family. The Friday he was abducted should have been like any other—but instead, several ICE vehicles surrounded him and snatched him out of his life, out of his livelihood, and out of our community.

Marcelo’s oldest daughter suffers from a complex medical condition, and it is Marcelo’s work that pays for her treatment. His being detained presents a unique and urgent level of hardship for his family.

Please give whatever you can to fund his daughter’s medical needs, to help replace the lost income stream for Marcelo’s family, and to help cover legal expenses as we seek an attorney to represent his case from within detention.

Amidst so many ICE abductions happening in our country, it can be overwhelming to know what to do. And when it is one of our friends like Marcelo, a day laborer we’ve accompanied for the past year through our Adopt a Corner group, it strikes particularly hard. We can help this one. And so we are, and we invite you to join us.

Thank you for giving whatever you can.

(Please note: I am organizing this fundraiser on behalf of Marcelo, his wife, and their children. Donations will be received by me as the organizer and then provided in full to the family.)