October is Domestic Violence Awareness month. Domestic violence affects people in every community, regardless of age, economic status, race, religion, nationality or educational background. Domestic violence results in physical injury, psychological trauma, and sometimes death. The consequences of domestic violence can cross generations and truly last a lifetime. But those living in situations of domestic…
DetailsBy Sr. Sheila O’Brien How inspiring last week was to hear Pope Francis repeatedly encourage us to minister to the least amongst us. How refreshing to have an entire week where our airwaves weren’t filled with constant messages from wealthy politicians denigrating the weakest, calling us to deport them. In Madison Square Garden, Pope Francis…
DetailsI recently had the pleasure of accompanying a client through the process of becoming a U.S. Citizen. A partner agency assisted Ricardo in preparing the paperwork at a citizenship workshop and then referred him to Taller de José for accompaniment to his citizenship test with USCIS (United States Customs and Immigration Services). When I first…
DetailsBy Joan Stopka Luisa came into our office seeking the repayment of an outstanding substantial debt. She had not been able to get her money for years. She had loaned the money to a gentleman to help him rehab his house. The only proof she had that the transactions had taken place was a booklet…
DetailsBy Hillary Buzaid From my side of the desk, I sit facing another individual, or maybe a couple, a parent and their child, a parent and their children, parents and their children, a parent and their adult child, friends. From my side of the desk, I ask “So how can I help you today?” but…
DetailsOne afternoon, while helping out at Taller de Jose’s front desk, I answered a phone call from one of our clients. While I had accompanied this particular client to previous appointments and knew her to be a friendly, outgoing and jocular individual, Raquel sounded a bit frantic on the phone. She told me that she…
DetailsBy Laura Camarata, summer intern With school out and summer in full swing, the number of kids we see come in our doors with their parents has increased dramatically, enlivening our small office quite a bit. But before the end of the school year, I accompanied Claudia to court. As we made our way to…
DetailsRecently, Taller de José received a call from a partner agency, asking if we could accompany an individual from the far north side of Chicago to the far south side to offer support in the process of resolving an issue of child custody. The individual was a survivor of domestic violence and worried about returning…
DetailsBy Katie Poplawski When Leticia walked into Taller, she was frantic. Her son, she explained, was turning 18 the following week, and her application for a certificate of citizenship for him had been rejected several times. She was afraid that if his birthday passed before he received the certificate, it would be too late. The…
DetailsBy Laurie LaMarca Juana wandered into Taller de Jose after hearing about our services from a friend of her church. She was not sure Taller de Jose could be helpful, but decided to try anyway. Juana’s son was having trouble completing his immigration application for residency. Her son lived far away, in rural Illinois, and…
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