Task Force on United Methodist Immigration Ministries of Ohio

06/14/2026

We loved getting to connect with so many of you during the West Ohio and East Ohio Annual Conferences this year, and we hope you will join the Task Force on United Methodist Immigration Ministries of Ohio!

The Task Force is a United Methodist community of citizens and noncitizens who are committed to migrant justice. We seek to build community, share resources and support, and extend God’s compassion and justice to migrants in our communities. All United Methodists in Ohio (and friends) are welcome to join us. Sign up here: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeEKhUHtI80aEQo_hn8jlw6tutW7MVmRdFhIchGJPVIx-uHvA/viewform?usp=header.

Throughout the past year, we have distributed Know Your Rights materials to local churches, mailed postcards to our policymakers to share what the Church believes about immigration, and led Bible Study, panel discussions, and an interfaith prayer vigil.

We have also invited local churches and communities to join together to care for detained asylum-seekers in Ohio. We have mailed Birthday cards and letters of encouragement to detained asylum-seekers, contributed to their ICE commissary accounts, covered legal fees, offered a supportive presence during immigration court hearings, and prayed for asylum-seekers and their families.

Last year, the West Ohio and East Ohio Annual Conferences voted to support our resolution on immigration, empowering the Task Force to take the next steps toward establishing an Immigration Law & Justice Network site in Ohio. We are excited to share that we are almost ready to launch our nonprofit organization, the Alliance of Methodists for Immigration and Grace in Ohio / Alianza Metodista de Inmigración y Gracia en Ohio (AMIGO).

AMIGO will provide free immigration legal services to low-income noncitizens, advocacy for migrant rights, and education about the immigration system to the church and the public.

Before we can launch AMIGO, we need your help. There are two main ways that you can support AMIGO right now. First, if you are passionate about migrant justice, you can apply to join AMIGO’s Board of Directors: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeeMaCUEDW_A7eE2pzy7kQtHGj3GqJ6X0gW9F_nJMwWDbCFYA/viewform.

Second, you can donate to our Advance at any time or during the Task Force’s Special Offering, “Welcoming Migrants Sunday,” which will take place this year on September 13, 2026, and next year on September 10, 2027: https://secure.myvanco.com/L-ZEAN/campaign/C-15MZ6.

It is amazing what God can do through the Church when we pool our resources together and stand in solidarity with the oppressed. We hope you will join us. Thank you!

06/14/2026

Thank you SO MUCH to everyone who sent us birthday cards for the detained asylum-seeker from Peru! So far, we have collected 34 cards.

The asylum-seeker was separated from his US Citizen wife and detained in the Butler County Jail. His wife shared: "My husband is detained, and it has severely taken a toll on me, as well as my two children. We have lost our home, my job from depression, my husband's new vehicle, and the security my children and I had. We miss him and pray every moment for him to be released. I have been praying about helping families going through the same thing. It's unbearable, and the thought of having your family member—especially your husband—possibly deported is a constant feeling of grief I wish on nobody. My husband had his work permit and was working hard as a chef, and now he is detained and separated from our family. I am a believer in God and prayer, and I am truly hoping that my husband will be able to come back home."

It's not too late to send him a Birthday card! You can scan and upload your card here before we mail them tomorrow (6/15/2026): https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeJ1MOqNTkGezRvxR-h8lfA0b4zL9m9vBMRetmd5cPbIEZULg/viewform. Thank you!

06/10/2026

Every person inside immigration detention and the Butler County Jail is a human being with sacred worth. That includes every ICE detainee — every asylum-seeker who fled persecution or torture, every neighbor who was ripped from their home, every mother who is separated from her children, every domestic violence survivor who is being retraumatized right now — as well as the sheriff and other leaders who are upholding systemic sin. Our faith in Christ calls us to love our neighbors, pray for our enemies, and stand in solidarity with the poor and the oppressed, including all migrants, asylum-seekers, refugees, and immigrants who are being targeted, terrorized, and detained right now.

06/02/2026

Can you help us send Birthday cards to a detained asylum-seeker?

The asylum-seeker is a husband and father from Peru, and he is married to a US Citizen. He was separated from his family and detained in the Butler County Jail.

His wife shared: "My husband is detained, and it has severely taken a toll on me, as well as my two children. We have lost our home, my job from depression, my husband's new vehicle, and the security my children and I had. We miss him and pray every moment for him to be released. I have been praying about helping families going through the same thing. It's unbearable, and the thought of having your family member—especially your husband—possibly deported is a constant feeling of grief I wish on nobody. My husband had his work permit and was working hard as a chef, and now he is detained and separated from our family. I am a believer in God and prayer, and I am truly hoping that my husband will be able to come back home."

Review the detailed instructions and upload your Birthday card here by June 15, 2026: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeJ1MOqNTkGezRvxR-h8lfA0b4zL9m9vBMRetmd5cPbIEZULg/viewform. Thank you!

05/31/2026

05/29/2026

Two hours to go at the West Ohio Annual Conference Connections Fair table!

Stop by and make a sign for the interfaith prayer vigil at the Butler County Jail on 5/30, 3-5pm! https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSepshkcVdY9G1RBl37_k6EK3Eiue7sn9jVEz8ej-3--kqHqfg/viewform?usp=publish-editor

Thank you!

05/29/2026

Find us at our West Ohio Annual Conference Connections Fair table!

Can you help us make 50 signs for the interfaith prayer vigil at the Butler County Jail on 5/30, 3-5pm? https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSepshkcVdY9G1RBl37_k6EK3Eiue7sn9jVEz8ej-3--kqHqfg/viewform?usp=publish-editor

Thank you!

05/29/2026

See you on Saturday @ 3pm!

05/28/2026

Today, May 28, 2026, the Task Force on United Methodist Immigration Ministries of Ohio held a roundtable discussion on the immigration system, "Ministry with Noncitizens Amid Rapid Immigration Policy Change."

Panelists shared stories about immigration and why people migrated to the United States, explained how current immigration policies are harming noncitizens in their churches and communities, described how they engage in ministry with noncitizens, and offered theological perspectives on why church and community members should support noncitizens. Thank you so much to our moderator and panelists!

To learn more and join the Task Force, visit: https://linktr.ee/UMCImmigrationMinistriesOhio.

05/28/2026

Find us at the West Ohio Annual Conference Connections Fair!

Can you help us make 50 signs for the interfaith prayer vigil at the Butler County Jail on 5/30, 3-5pm? https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSepshkcVdY9G1RBl37_k6EK3Eiue7sn9jVEz8ej-3--kqHqfg/viewform?usp=publish-editor

Bring your lunch and join us at the Brown Bag Roundtable on Ministry with Noncitizens Amid Rapid Immigration Policy Change TODAY, 5/28, 1-2pm, Troutman Hall, Room 112, https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeOCSPSbsM-K5WZpzMwsHhOm4s36BxTKNTZh3MSJaUZXgJT2w/viewform.