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As anecdotal reports abound of families living in vehicles, unheated buildings or simply outside as winter approaches, faith communities in the Sun Valley area are having mixed results reaching out to new immigrants in need.
St. Thomas Episcopal Church in Sun Valley hosted an evening of networking and food on Oct. 25. The event, which included a clothing give-away, was part of the church’s ongoing Hispanic outreach efforts.
About 130 adults and children came and went throughout the evening, many new arrivals from Peru, according to organizers. Several nonprofit organizations were in attendance to offer services, including The Advocates, St. Luke’s Center for Community Health and the The Hunger Coalition.
Nonprofits and governments are providing assistance and brainstorming solutions. Churches and students are also helping out, including the Life Church in Hailey and the Church of Latter Day Saints.
“We wanted to communicate to our new neighbors what services are available and to find out what they need,” said Don Liebich, a St. Thomas parishioner and donor for the event. “The situation is overwhelming. It’s so big that no one organization can solve the problem.”
Leibich said questions arose about cell phone availability and transportation options for the guests.
“Getting people to the church was an issue,” Liebich said. “When transportation is an issue, food availability becomes an issue too.”
Support in the form of a clothing drive came from the Community Table, or La Mesa Comunitaria, an alliance between students at the Sun Valley Community School and Wood River High School.
“There was a huge response from the community from requests for winter boots and warm clothing,” Liebich said. “And the line for clothing was very long.”
While parents looked into local services, kids played games and made artwork at the church. A buffet dinner was served. Leibich said despite facing challenges, the new immigrants are working as winter approaches.
“Most of them already have jobs,” Liebich said.
On Wednesday, another clothing give-away took place in the St. Thomas Church parking lot.
Liebich said he believes the community is doing “everything it can,” to attend to the immediate needs of the new immigrants.
“Capacity-wise, housing will be a bigger challenge. The will is there, but I’m not sure we know the way,” he said.
Father Ron Wekerle of Our Lady of Snows Catholic Church in Sun Valley and St. Charles Borromeo in Hailey said he was surprised that new immigrants have not been showing up at his parish. The church hosted a principal religious feast, Señor de los Milagros (Lord of the Miracles), two weeks ago in an attempt to speak to that community directly.
“A lot of them are really shy about making contacts with anyone,” Wekerle said. “That is a difficult aspect of the Peruvian plight—a mistrust of people, of the church and of their own culture.”
Wekerle said the predominantly Hispanic congregation in Hailey has been asked to reach out to the new immigrants.
“They said they have approached them, but that they are fearful and ‘don’t trust us,’” Wekerle said. “I was told they are grateful for the jobs they now have.
“My hunch is that many don’t speak Spanish but Quechua, that they come from rural mountain areas, which is very different from Lima, which is a large cosmopolitan city.”
Wekerle said his church doesn’t have resources designated for a response to this kind of immigration crisis, but that there is some talk about reconstituting “Souper Supper” to provide meals. St. Charles was used before the pandemic by community groups twice a week to provide community meals. When that was closed down, The Hunger Coalition stepped up its efforts to fill the gap, Wekerle said.
Wekerle said the new immigrants could be adherents of what he described as a “popular religiosity” called Pachamama, rather than Catholicism.
“The Catholic Church is predominantly Mexican, so there is a cultural disconnect,” said Herbert Romero, a community activist with the LatinUS Leadership Task Force. He said the Life Church in Hailey and the Mormon Churches are responding to the new immigrants’ need for services by providing clothing, food and other necessities. Romero said those churches have Peruvian leadership in their Hispanic outreach and are drawing Peruvian members “old and new.” (The Church of Latter-day Saints and Life Church could not be reached for comment by press time.)
Romero said the Wood River Valley is in part a “Peruvian Valley,” with a history of multiple generations immigrating to Blaine County. He said the new Peruvians may not be coming for church services, but for other kinds of help.
“And yes,” he said, “many of them are bringing their indigenous traditions along also.”
“My number one challenge right now is to talk with them and find out what is needed,” Wekerle said. “I have yet to dialogue with them directly.
“I thought they would be knocking on the doors, but they have not. I want to be involved but am not as involved as I’d like to be. It’s frustrating. And I admire the outreach at St. Thomas Church.” 
I support bussing them to the Great Sanctuary State of California. Problem solved.
As usual, this weird liberal solution of throwing money at temporary measures isn't going to work. Focus on solving the problem. This article shows perfectly how our small community will NOT be solving the illegal immigrant problem and in fact, it is undermining the ability of American citizens to obtain food, shelter and jobs in our community. As this article states, these illegals already have jobs. How does that make you feel, working folks, as you are begging your friends and neighbors to sleep on their sofas because your legal jobs can't pay for housing costs?
I suppose the only answer at this point, since i can already hear the libtards screaming "racism" as they always do when the get called out by the truth, is to just sit back and watch the show. Mother Nature is already speaking loud and clear, and this is just beginning.
Totally agree with the comment made that home occupancy numbers in Woodside are at dangerous levels for safety.
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I support bussing them to the Great Sanctuary State of California. Problem solved.
As usual, this weird liberal solution of throwing money at temporary measures isn't going to work. Focus on solving the problem. This article shows perfectly how our small community will NOT be solving the illegal immigrant problem and in fact, it is undermining the ability of American citizens to obtain food, shelter and jobs in our community. As this article states, these illegals already have jobs. How does that make you feel, working folks, as you are begging your friends and neighbors to sleep on their sofas because your legal jobs can't pay for housing costs?
I suppose the only answer at this point, since i can already hear the libtards screaming "racism" as they always do when the get called out by the truth, is to just sit back and watch the show. Mother Nature is already speaking loud and clear, and this is just beginning.
Totally agree with the comment made that home occupancy numbers in Woodside are at dangerous levels for safety.
we need to limit the number of people that can live in one house, it ruins a neighborhood when 10 or 15 people are living in one house.
We need to limit the amount of people who are living outside. It ruins a neighborhood when there are frozen corpses everywhere.
PH- what caused the fire at the limelight ?
When is the last time a frozen corps was found in Blaine County?
Winter 2017–18 in Hailey. Another person died outside along Highway 75 near Ketchum that winter, too.
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