CARECEN Annual Report 2003

7/31/2019 CARECEN Annual Report 2003

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CARECEN is a 501(c)(3) community-basedorganization which offers legal, educational,housing, citizenship and civic participationprogramsto the Central American/Latinocommunity. It was established in 1981 to securethe rights of those Salvadorans and other CentralAmericans who fled from the wars, turmoil andhuman rights violations in their countries andsubsequently sought refuge in the United States.

CARECENs original focus was on providing legal

services to Central Americans who were facingdeportation and on organizingefforts to obtain amnesty forCentral American refugees.Today, CARECEN not only offers arange of legal services formembers of the CentralAmerican community, butalso provides community supportservices and empowermentactivities for the greater Latinocommunity. Together, theseprograms serve to promote the

comprehensive development ofWashington's Central American/Latino community by respondingto its changing needs as itdevelops roots in this country.

Today, CARECENs goals are to defend andadvance the civil and human rights of CentralAmericans/Latinos in the Washingtonmetropolitan area. CARECEN strives to facilitatethe integration of Central Americans/Latinos intothe wider community, as well as provide CentralAmericans/Latinos with the resources andleadership skills necessary to participate insuccessfully promoting the community'sdevelopment.

CENTRAL AMERICAN RESOURCE CENTER

REPORT &

2003 FINAN CIAL STATEMENT

Ins ide:

MISSION

Core Programs and Services ............................36

Citizenship and Civic Participation Program.......5

Housing and Community Action Program...........6

Contributors............................................................7

Staff Roster .............................................................8

New Building Update..............................................9

Financial Statement..............................................10


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Since its founding in the 1980s as an organization

dedicated to defending the rights of Central Americansfleeing the violence of their homelands, CARECEN hasmaintained a special focus on the needs of the CentralAmerican community in the Washington metropolitanarea while at the same time expanding its legal servicesto encompass the needs of the wider Latino immigrantpopulation.

During 2003, CARECEN remained a leader in providingservices to the low-income Central American community.Many of CARECENs Salvadoran, Honduran andNicaraguan clients are beneficiaries of the TemporaryProtected Status (TPS) program, which allows them tolive and work legally in the United States for the durationof the program. TPS for all three nationalities was set toexpire in 2003, so CARECEN launched a postcard-writingcampaign in coordination with other organizationsnationwide serving the Central American immigrantcommunity to advocate for an extension of the two TPSdesignations for Central America. The campaign was asuccess: TPS for Hondurans/Nicaraguans was extendedfor 18 months in May 2003, and in July 2003, TPS forSalvadorans was also extended for an additional 18months. TPS work permits, which were scheduled toexpire by July 2003 (Honduran/Nicaraguan) orSeptember 2003 (Salvadoran) were automaticallyextended for an additional six months to allowbeneficiaries to submit their required re-registrationforms and obtain their new employment authorization

documents.

In addition to helping 1,271 individuals re-register for thetwo TPS programs, CARECEN prepared an advisory letterfor employers informing them of the automatic extensionto ensure that no one protected by TPS would bewrongly terminated.

CARECEN also continued its successful program ofpreparing applicants under the Nicaraguan Adjustmentand Central American Relief Act (NACARA) for theirinterviews at the Asylum Office. Most NACARAapplications remain pending adjudication for an averageof two to three years, and therefore need updating priorto the interview. CARECENS paralegal staff assists clients

with this process and also informs them of exactly whatwill happen at the interview so the applicant can feel wellprepared and, it is hoped, a little less nervous. Theparalegal then accompanies the client to the interview toprovide interpretation services. In the few casesinvolving applicants with an arrest record or acomplicated eligibility issue, a CARECEN attorney alsoaccompanies the client to the interview. In 2003,CARECEN prepared 66 NACARA applicants for their

interviews and

virtually all of themwere granted legalpermanentresidence.CARECEN alsoassisted 19 clientsto complete and filetheir initialNACARAapplications.

In addition to ourspecialized workwith Central American immigrants, other legal servicespriorities during 2003 included securing the timelyreauthorization of work authorization documents toensure that family breadwinners would not experience adisruption of employment, promoting citizenship toincrease the Latino voice in civic affairs, and, reunitingfamilies long divided by immigration barriers.

During 2003, CARECEN helped 1,242 people to renewtheir work permits or permanent residence cards.CARECEN also provided troubleshooting services to 133individuals who had applied to renew their workauthorization documents but never received them. In thearea of citizenship, CARECEN assisted 73 people inapplying for naturalization, and actively encouraged allclients who had recently obtained their legal permanent

residence to consider applying for naturalization as soonas they were legally able to do so. During this period,CARECEN also assisted 60 U.S. citizens and legalpermanent residents in beginning the process of familyreunification by filing family petitions for their parents,spouses and children living abroad. CARECEN helped anadditional 15 clients with approved family petitions tocomplete the process for legal permanent residence. Inaddition, CARECENs legal staff provided generalimmigration consultations to 849 individuals during theyear.

Unfortunately, CARECEN cannot help everyone whocomes to us for assistance given the restrictive natureof our current immigration laws, many immigrants, even

those who have been here for many years, are unable toobtain temporary work authorization or permanentresidence. However, CARECEN believes that it is veryimportant for every individual to know the current state ofthe law in order to avoid becoming a victim ofimmigration fraud. In an effort to make it as convenientas possible for people to obtain the information theyneed, CARECEN conducts its intake hours on a walk-in

(Continued on page 4)

Our Core Program s and Serv ic es

Legal Serv ic es

Page 3CARECEN 2 003 ANN UAL REPORT

CARECENs staff gathers outside the officeson Columbia Rd. NW in Washington, DC.


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basis with no previous appointmentnecessary.

In addition to individual case work,CARECEN maintained its activeparticipation in the Capital AreaImmigrants Rights Coalition (CAIR), acoalition of direct service and immigrantadvocacy groups in the Washingtonmetropolitan area which meets once amonth to discuss current issues ofconcern to our client populations and toreceive updates on immigration policy.

The CAIR Coalition also facilitatesmonthly liaison meetings with the staff ofthe Washington District Office and theArlington Asylum Office. Individualscoming to CARECEN have commonlyspent months if not years trying to findout the status of their cases. Themonthly liaison meetings give CARECENan opportunity to bring these cases tothe attention of the appropriategovernment officials and to obtainwhatever action is needed to bring themto closure.

(Continued from page 3)

Legal Serv ic es

Comm uni ty Suppor t Serv ices

Community Support Services(CSS) seeks to bridge thelinguistic and cultural barriers thatprevent many low-income Latinosfrom fully participating in thebroader society, both in terms ofaccessing the resourcesavailable to them and theirfamilies as well as in complyingwith their legal obligations. CSSactivities include informing low-income Latino immigrants about

their rights and responsibilities astaxpayers, helping them to applyfor various benefit programs, andfacilitating communication withgovernmental and non-governmental entities.

In late 2003, as part of CSSsefforts to ensure that low-incomeLatino immigrants with limitedEnglish proficiency are aware ofand have the means to accessthe community resourcesavailable to them, CARECENstarted the SOS Soccoroproject, which helps victims ofviolent crime to seek monetaryassistance from the CrimeVictims Compensation Program

of DC Superior Court. More than200 CARECEN clients benefitedfrom the Community SupportServices program in 2003.

More than 200

CARECEN clients

benefited from

the Community

Support Services

program in 2003.


CARECEN has been a fixture in the communityfor more than 20 years.

During 2003,

CARECENhelped 1,242individuals to

renew their workpermits orpermanent

residence cards.

During 2003,CARECEN assisted

1,271 people inre-registering for

the two TPSprograms.


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The Citizenship and Civic Participationdepartment (CCP) has been moving

forward with signing up students forCARECENS citizenship courses,increasing enrollment from 15 studentsin August to a record high of 57students in September; the totalnumber of participants for 2003 was211. To facilitate our students learningprocess, a one-hour ESL componentwas added following each citizenshipclass. Approximately 60 peopleparticipated in the ESL classes.Throughout 2003, 73 CARECEN clientsfilled out their N-400 applications forcitizenship.

During the month of November,CARECEN offered five citizenshippresentations at different organizationsaround the community to helpstrengthen the focus on civicparticipation. Other outreach methodsincluded radio shows and a PSAannouncement that ran on the localUnivision channel. The push forparticipation allowed CARECEN tolaunch its voter registration drive. Bythe end of the year, 80 people hadbeen registered to vote.

CARECEN launched its TPS Campaignon April 16 with a press conference toinform the community about the needfor extending the Honduran,Nicaraguan and Salvadoran TPS. Over2,000 postcards were sent to the WhiteHouse asking President Bush to grantthe extensions. We were also able toobtain support from 17 congressionalrepresentatives, who wrote letters to

President Bush urging him to grant theprogram extensions. The campaign

ended with another press conference,in which the Bush administration wasasked to announce the extensionswithout delay.

Other achievements of CARECEN duringthis time period include our involvementin a number of events and coalitions.Organizing CARECEN members toparticipate in the Mayors Summit wasa huge success. This not only broughtthe percentage of Latinos participatingin the summit to 14 percent of allparticipants (thus exceeding the shareof DCs population that is Latino, whichis 8 percent), but presented a collectiveLatino agenda of pressing issues andrecommendations from over 100participants. The organization alsoplayed a leadership role in the CapitalArea Immigrants Rights Coalition forthe Freedom Ride that took place inSeptember. CARECEN also worked witharea organizations to found the DCLatino Coalition during the Latino CivilRights Project. This project wasorganized around a two-day retreat thatincluded 38 Latino organizations.Lastly, the CCP started a new project

called the Youth Community ActionGroup made up of two youth actiongroups from the area. The groupsinclude young people between the agesof 14 and 25 who are working onimproving communication betweenyouths and their parents aswell as encouraging others to

join the groups.

Cit izenship and Civ ic Part ic ipat ion

CARECEN

enrolled more

than 200

students in

citizenship

classes during

2003.


Citizenship classes meet once aweek for two hours, over thecourse of ten weeks.

Citizenship students review material fromthe 100 questions that might be askedduring their citizenship exam.


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CARECENs tenant organizing project

has formed 24 new tenantassociations this past year, and theyhave been successful in protectingtheir families from displacement fromtheir rental units. Including the newgroups, CARECEN has been able toprovide assistance to a total of 59tenant associations. This initiativerepresents a scope of 1,200 low-income families that are organized intenant associations to secure theirtenants rights and are now pursuingone of the following options:

Four tenant associations have

purchased their buildings.

Five tenant associations arecontinuing the process ofpurchasing their building.

Thirty-two tenant associationscontinue to fight to securetenants rights and repairs in theirhousing units.

Nine tenant associationsrelocated after accepting buyoutagreements arranged withowners.

CARECEN continues to facilitate the DCLatino Tenant Coalition, made up ofofficers from the 59 tenantassociations. The coalitions purposeis to allow members to share tenantsinformation on repairs and on dealingwith landlords and city officials, toadvocate for their housing needs, andto coordinate on a unified agenda torepresent their interests to housing

authorities, lenders and landlords. Thisyear they mobilized over 124 tenantsto attend and participate in theMayors City Summit held by themayor of Washington, DC. They meetquarterly and also have workshops totrain tenants on their rights, on tenant/

landlord court proceedings and fairhousing laws.

CARECEN also brought a full-timehousing counselor on staff to assistassociations and/or individuals whowant to purchase a home. Thecounselor also provides training onfinancial literacy. More than 80CARECEN clients have benefited fromthis program.

Hous ing and Comm uni ty Ac t ion Program

CARECEN has

been able to

provide

assistance to a

total of 59

tenantassociations.

This initiative

represents a

scope of 1,200

low-income

families that are

organized in

tenant

associations to

secure their

tenants rights.


CARECEN staff members display information at a Fair Housing Fair

regarding the various housing services offered to the community.


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Archdiocese ofWashington, DC

Cafritz Foundation

Catholic LegalImmigration Network(CLINIC)

Community Foundation

District of Columbia BarFoundation

Fannie Mae Foundation

Inter-AmericanDevelopment Bank

Jewish Fund for Justice

Jovid Foundation

Naomi & NehemiahCohen Foundation

Public WelfareFoundation

Tides Foundation

Spring Creek

United PlanningOrganization

United Way

The city of Washington,

DC:

Office of Latino Affairs

Department of Housingand CommunityDevelopment

CARECEN thank s t he fo l low ing foundat ions and agenc ies :


We hope you will continue tosupport the work of CARECEN in

any way you can as we continue toface the ongoing challenges of

helping Central American and

other Latino immigrants to

maintain legal status in thiscountry, reunite with loved ones,

provide for their families and

become fully engaged in the civiclife of the wider community.

Saul SolrzanoExecutive Director

CARECEN thanks the fo l low ing ind ividua ls:

Matt Abrams

Eva BaerJanet and Norman Brown

Michele and ThomasClancy

Rosemary Coffey

Elizabeth Dahl

Robert and Nancy Doan

Cornelius de Stigter

John and Carol Gegner

Barbara Gerlach

Michelle Hannahs

Eleanor and FrancisHofkes

Ernest Kaiser

Vivienne and Ray Kell

Theodore Konen

Jonathan and JenniferKusmik

John Mack

Joseph Matelis

Bruce and Mara Mayor

John D. Moore

Ann R. Mulrane

Robert and DorothyPohlman

Nancy Polikoff

Peggy Porder

Manuel Rivera

James and LorraineRogers

Michael Samuelson

Erich F. Schimps

James and Betty Schmitt

Mitchell Singal

Saul SolrzanoFred Solowey

L. William and KathleenStaudenmaier, Jr.

Bessie K. Stensky

Myron F. Steves, Jr.

George Summers

Louise Tarr

John R. Welton

Carol Wolchok

Doris Wright

Evelyn and Robert Wrin

Barbara and Philip Young

Tycko Zavareei, LLP


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Rafael Alfaro Housing Specialist

Elmer Campos Citizenship and Civic Participation

Coordinator

Daisy Castellanos Community Organizer

Kathy Doan Director of Legal and Community

Support Services

Julia Hedlund Office Manager

Christy Hogan Non-Profit Business Manager

Ivette Iraheta Director of Citizenship and Civic

Participation

Norberto Martnez Immigration Paralegal

Rina Reyes Immigration Paralegal / CSS Case Worker

Rosa Rivas Receptionist

Virginia Showalter Housing Paralegal

Saul Solrzano Executive Director

Katharine Zuga Development Officer

And, last but not least

Thanks to our many dedicated volunteers!

Our Dedic ated Staf f

Citizenship students havelisted the following as majorbenefits of attending classes

at CARECEN:

Improved learningthrough weekly examsand homework

Improved confidence inEnglish comprehensionand writing

Improved confidence inanswering thecitizenship testquestions in English

Good textbooks andwell-prepared handouts

Students trust in theprofessors, many ofwhom volunteersignificant portions oftheir time

Translation is providedas needed.


Citizenship students study the Constitution,the Bill of Rights, the Revolutionary War,Civil War and both World Wars along withtheir basic rights and duties as citizens inone of CARECENs ten-week citizenshipcourses. The course often includes a trip tothe American History Museum.


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Construction of the new CARECENoffices and nine apartment units at

1460 and 1464 Columbia Road,NW is now in its final phases. Finalinspection and occupancy permitsare expected to be approved by theend of June 2005. As reportedearlier, the construction has beenfinanced by loans from the Bank ofAmerica, the National Council of LaRazas Raza DevelopmentFund,and funds raised throughCARECENs capital campaign.Contributions to the capitalcampaign include grants from theMeyer Foundation, the Public

Welfare Foundation, the CafritzFoundation, the Phil GrahamFoundation and CitiBank. Inaddition, we have receivedcontributions from board members,staff and other supporters in thecommunity.

This is a mixed developmentproject which includes commercialspace for the CARECEN offices and

residential condominiums which willbe named after Monsignor Oscar A.

Romero, the Salvadoranarchbishop who was slain in 1984because of his support for humanrights, civil rights, democracy andsocial justice for the Salvadoranmajority during the eighties. Ninepotential buyers have been pre-qualified to purchase units, whichwill be sold at affordable prices;seven of these buyers are in thelow or moderate income category.

Permanent financing to pay for theconstruction loan will come frombuyers, who will obtain theirindividual mortgages, and fromCARECEN, which will pay rent for itsoffice space. The new facilities willallow CARECEN to set up acomputer literacy training programand better facilities toaccommodate its citizenshipclasses and other communityeducational activities.

CARECEN s New Home! !!

Construction of

the new CARECEN

offices and nine

apartment units at

1460 and 1464

Columbia Road is

now in its final

phases.


CARECEN looks forward tomoving into new offices inthe near future.

Rear view of the construction site.

Saul Solrzano and Kathy Doan reviewplans for the new offices layout.


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Financ ia l Sta tement 2003

Page 10 CENTRAL AMERICAN RESOURCE CENTER

LIABILITIESANDNETASSETS

2003

Current Liabilities:

Accounts payable $11,836

Accrued vacations 12,296

Total Current Liabilities 24,132

Net Assets:

Unrestricted 635,601

Temporarily restricted 104,271

Permanently restricted NONE

Total Net Assets 739,872

Total Liabilities and NetAssets

$764,004

STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL POSITION

ASSETS 2003

Current Assets:

Cash and cash equivalents $336,745

Certificate of deposit, Bank of America, 1%, due June 13, 2004 101,100

Contracts, grants, and other receivables 33,370

Receivable from CUS 5,251

Accrued interest receivable 91

Employee advances -0-

Prepaid expenses 8,854

Total current assets 485,411

Noncurrent Assets:

Restricted cash, capital campaign (note 5) 12,821

Due from Msgr. Oscar A. Romero Assoc. (note 5) 248,925

Office furniture, computer equipment and software at cost, less depreciationtaken of $17,218 ($19,432 for 12/31/02)

13,194

Leasehold improvements, at cost, less amortization taken of $2,337 ($5,217 at12/31/02) 2,153

Rental security deposit 1,500

Total noncurrent assets 278,593

Total Assets $764,004


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Financ ia l Sta tement 2003 (cont inued)


STATEMENT OF ACTIVITIES AND CHANGES IN NET ASSETS

Unrestricted Net Assets: 2003

Revenues

Client fee income $177,250

Contract income 192,221

Grants 134,143

Development fund contributions and settlement 166,578

Contributions 15,043

Rent Virginia office -0-

Interest income 2,291

Membership 470

Miscellaneous 500

Total Revenues 688,496Net assets released from restriction

Expiration of time restrictions 102,700

Building payments from capital campaign 216,520

Total Revenue and Net Assets Released fromRestriction 1,007,716

Expenses

Program Services

Legal services 153,842

Community support services 87,075

Housing 29,099

Citizenship and civic participation 96,557

Fair housing 21,024

CBSP 115,364

Development expenses 1418 W Street, N.W. 125,954

Total Program Services 628,915

Supporting Services

Management and general 64,134

Fund raising 35,927

Total Supporting Services 100,061

Total Expenses 728,976

Increase/(decrease) in unrestricted net assets 278,740


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Financ ia l Sta tement 2003 (cont inued)

Page 12 CENTRAL AMERICAN RESOURCE CENTER

Temporarily Restricted Net Assets:

Grant income 130,400

Capital campaign 6,193

Interest income capital campaign 2,548

Less: Net assets released from restriction

By expiration of time restrictions (102,700)

Building payments from capital campaign (216,520)

Net increase/(decrease) in temporary restricted net assets (180,079)

Permanently Restricted Net Assets NONE

Increase/(decrease) in Net Assets 98,661

Net Assets at Beginning of Year 641,211

Net Assets at End of Year $739,872

CARECEN staffmember Rafael Alfaro takes notes on site at one of the manybuildings where CARECEN has been instrumental in creating and strengtheningtenant associations.


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We can always use volunteers and interns for both one-timeand ongoing projects.

Our current needs include:

Mock interviews (in English) for citizenship classparticipants

Helping individuals fill out applications for citizenshipon Saturdays

Leading/assisting citizenship class field trips to theAmerican History Museum and/or monuments.

Leading education discussions or lectures on topics

relevant to Central Americans.Ongoing:

Citizenship class instructors (training and materialsprovided). Classes meet Tuesday nights or Saturdaymornings. The Tuesday night classes are from 5:30 -7:30pm. Saturday classes meet from 10am - noon.Classes are given over a 10-week period.

ESL class instructors (training and materialsprovided). ESL classes can be offered toaccommodate the schedule of the instructor.Tuesday evenings or Saturday afternoons followingcitizenship classes work best.

Working one-on-one (in Spanish) on a weekly basiswith elderly individuals who are preparing forcitizenship. These individuals are exempt from theEnglish requirement for citizenship and need specialprogramming.

Special projects for example, creating newmaterials for distribution in the Latino community,contacting clients, updating databases, etc.

Assisting clients to apply for immigration benefits.

Helping develop an outreach/educational program forvictims of crime.

Internet research on Latino issues.

Assisting with the departmental projects listed on ourwebsite.

Both experienced and inexperienced volunteers arewelcome.

CARECEN Welc omes Volunteers! !!

We can always

use volunteers

and interns for

both one-time

and ongoing

projects.


Volunteers assistCARECEN in many ways,such as teaching ESL

and citizenship classes.


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DID YOU KNOW?

CARECEN is located in the heart of the Latinocommunity in Washington, DC, providing directservice to Latinos in the Washingtonmetropolitan area (Maryland, Virginia and theDistrict of Columbia).

Latinos make up 8 percent of the totalWashington, DC population.

Central Americans form the majority ofWashington, DCs Latino population.

DC has the second-highest concentration ofSalvadorans in the United States, coming afterLos Angeles.

CENTRAL A MERICAN RESOURCE CENTER

Carecen 2003 Annual Report

1459 Columbia Rd. NW

Washington, DC 20009

Phone: 202-328-9799

Fax: 202-328-0023

www.carecendc.o rg

Were on the Web!

www.carecendc.org

Documents

CARECEN Annual Report 2003