Mi Casa, Su Casa

Las Cruces

Aconvoy of motorcycles sure can make a lot of noise. There’s the roar of the engines, of

At refugee shelters near the southern U.S. border, neighbors help neighbors. course. But when 25 bikes showed up unannounced at the U.S. Army Reserve Center in Las Cruces one day in May, it was the sound of a statement that echoed far and wide. At a time of crisis, the Reserve Center has become a way station for thousands of asylum seekers from Mexico, about an hour away. The bikers, all from local clubs, had arrived to offer their services to unload and deliver 30,000 donated meals to hungry refugees.

Thrilled by the gesture, the refugees eagerly stood shoulder to shoulder with the bikers to get the food to the people who most needed it. “It was an awesome thing to see,” emergency management coordinator Amanda Bowen told the Las Cruces Sun News.

There are plenty of Las Crucians who disagree with the government policy of accepting asylum seekers, and the U.S. Customs and Border Protection has dropped more than 17,000 refugees in Las Cruces since April for initial processing. But from the start, Las Cruces has seen its role in purely humanitarian terms. “We’ve all focused on doing one thing: Let’s take care of the needs of these people right now,” says Fred Espinosa, a pastor at the Las Cruces First Assembly of God church.

Residents have hosted their own donation drives, and they open their homes and businesses to people needing a place to stay. They also volunteer as interpreters, medical and legal advisers, and guides.

“I’m very proud to be a resident of the city of Las Cruces, to see this community come together, from nonprofits to volunteers to the city of Las Cruces, Doña Ana County, and faith-based organizations together as one,” says fire department chief Eric Enriquez.