Media Center

All the Latest

Want more details about what we do? Scroll below to find stories and the latest updates about how our work is helping make an impact. We invite you to learn more about our efforts and help spread the word about our important cause.

 Note: asylum seekers and other migrants encountered at the shelters are referred to by an initial or nickname to protect their privacy.

——————————————

4/5/26

SSF early shelter report 

¡Felices Pascuas! Happy Easter! 🐥 Rochi organized the capirotada (bread pudding), but said no caldo de res because red meat is not eaten Easter week. He approved a meal of Mexican tuna salad, saltines, applesauce, and diced peaches, so Jan St Peters and I brought the meal plus little extras (Easter candy, new socks, extra snacks, etc) to Sonoyta this morning. Jan also brought a leash and got a collar for Chiquita in case Rochi needs to smuggle her on a bus next time he goes to the oncologist in Mexicali. Chiquita did not have a high opinion of the leash…

Rochi has made arrangements for his chemo pills to be delivered, hopefully tomorrow, to a place near the shelter that receives packages. His nieces are working closely with him and his doctor. Today he was in chipper spirits and felt good. We are leaving all treatment decisions in his and his family’s hands - we are just providing the support.

After grocery shopping and Jan feeding the hungry grocery store parking lot dogs, we stayed and shared the Easter meal with 6 guests at Casa del Migrante. Danny, one of the newest guests, speaks unaccented English. While we were eating, he told us a little about himself. He was deported about 8 years ago after growing up in the U.S. He tried to cross alone and walked over a week, carrying not enough water and not enough food. He had blisters on his feet when he found himself on the Barry Goldwater bombing range north of Ajo. When border patrol found him, he told them he was a U.S. citizen and that his truck was not far away. He was almost let go, but one agent wanted to take his fingerprints, and that was when they found he’d super glued his fingertips. Well, the agents got the superglue off and took his prints, then deported him. He has not wanted to try to cross again because the experience was so awful Luckily he’s been able to find work in construction in various parts of Mexico. Right now he’s working on a local church. He says everyone at the shelter has morning chores. His job is to water the flowers and pick up dog 💩!

Gallo says he is coming to Yakima, Washington to pick apples this fall. He has a passport and hopes to see Jan when he is up there working. He is full of surprises. I know he’s in his 70s, but he is one tough vaquero. He always opens and closes the gate for us when we arrive and leave, carries the heaviest grocery bags, and, like most of the other guests, he wants a little hug or a fist bump - some kind of human contact. 

The manager has still not tied the knot with Bertha. Each time I ask, the date is further in the future instead of closer! He still hopes to visit his home country of El Salvador, but his girlfriend is against the idea of the trip. If he marries her, he will be able to get papers in Mexico that allow him to work legally and also to travel in Mexico. Those papers would make it possible for him to pick up a passport in Tijuana and then make the trip back home to visit his mother and family. So he’s in between a rock and a hard place, with Bertha (the girlfriend) being both rock and hard place!

Jan and her husband, Rick, head back up to Washington state this week, so she said her goodbyes to all of the guests. They will spend the next 6 months asking me when she’s coming back.  Today was a little more bittersweet parting than usual, with Jan’s impending departure and Rochi’s dire medical status. 

Hug someone hard and don’t let the bastards grind you down. 

Carol

Recipe for Mexican tuna salad

Serves 4

Ingredients 

1 Roma tomato, diced

1/4 c red onion, diced

1 Serrano or jalapeño, seeds removed, diced

1/4 c fresh cilantro, finely chopped 

1/2 c sweet corn (canned/drained or fresh)

2 5 oz cans tuna packed in water, drained

1/3 c mayonnaise 

2 Tb sour cream

Juice of 1-2 limes 

1 avocado, diced

Mix the tuna and veggies, mix the dressing (mayo, sour cream, lime juice) and stir into the tuna mix. Chill 30 minutes. Serve with saltines.

3/31/26

SSF Shelter Report

There’s a lot to unpack here, and my writing may be a bit disjointed. 

Rochi came back from Mexicali today. One of his sisters and 2 of his brothers brought him to Casa. They wanted to see where he lived so they can return to visit him. I think after so many years without contact, they were a little reluctant to let him go. One brother (a half brother) he hadn’t seen in 40 years.

Jan St Peters and I asked Angel Chevrestt, with his excellent Spanish, to accompany us this morning. We wanted to be sure we understood, as much as possible, what the next steps are in Rochi’s treatment. He has rectal cancer that has metastasized to his lungs, liver, and intestines. When he sent us that awful news yesterday afternoon after his CT scans were read, he said he had to stay strong. 

Jan had printed and framed the phone pics Rochi sent us of his family, and Hollister David at The Copper News did a wonderful job retouching a photo of Rochi’s sister who had passed away - we had those, plus lots of garden seeds from Patricia Denaranjo of New Mexico (thank you!), deodorants from an anonymous donor, sleeping bags, shorts, undies, and nasturtium blossoms and strawberries for Señor Pequeño the tiny tortoise. We had no problem crossing the border and were soon at Casa del Migrante, where Rochi and his siblings were waiting. 

We met everyone, plus a new guest who was recently deported from California after spending most of his life there. D spoke unaccented English and kept expressing his gratitude for the generosity of everyone at the shelter. “Everyone has shared all their food with me!” he said several times. “The manager has been so nice!”

Rochi’s family was hungry after the long drive, so we took them to lunch at Yesi’s where we talked and laughed and shared phone pics of children, grandkids, and dogs. After they left and headed back to Mexicali, we went to the pharmacy to get help deciphering the doctor’s orders. None of the medications are available in Sonoyta, it turns out, and some of them have to be administered in ivs. The pharmacist wrote down the number of someone in Mexicali who might be able to help, and Rochi had the number for a pharmacy in Mexico City that could provide the medications wholesale, but the bottom line, with this being Semana Santa (Easter week), is that there will be some lag time before he can start the chemo meds. Angel is going to call Rochi’s niece in Mexicali this afternoon (she works at the hospital and is studying to be a nurse), and maybe the doctor, to see what can be done about getting the medications to Sonoyta. 

Rochi was exhausted- horrible news, long trip, too long away from Chiquita, and so much family time after years of isolation. He insisted on grocery shopping with us, but was ready for a nap when we got all the groceries stowed away at CDM. 

And it is Easter week. This year capirotada (a special bread pudding) and maybe caldo de rez (a meat and vegetable soup) will be the meal on Sunday, if Paola, the wonderful cook who lives a few blocks away, can be asked at this late date to prepare something. If you pray, please pray for Rochi, and if you are not a praying person, please send healing thoughts his way. The doctor was impressed with how well he looks considering the seriousness of his illness. 

Don’t let the bastards grind you down.

• Carol

Update:

Rochi spoke with the oncologist in Mexico City that sells the meds.  They are about 1/4 the price of the same meds in Mexicali

Rochi is going to call the Mexico City source again to place the order. They will be mailed to Sonoyta. 

——————————————-

2/19/26

SSF Shelter Maintenance Report

Rick Weibel and Tom Wingo brought supplies and tools to Casa Del Migrante this morning for a work day. They replaced shower valves and a urinal valve, hung 2 smoke detectors (one in dorm #3 and one in the outer office area), wired a new light and switch over the cooking area, and set up a work station so the guests could build/replace the window screens in the dorms. 

More wiring remains to be done and more screen spline needs to be added, but today was a pretty good day. 

———————————————

1/5/26

Hello Everyone! I hope all of you are well and enjoying time with loved ones. Here in Ajo, we are enjoying the quiet after the holidays and balancing news-viewing 😬 with trips out in the beautiful Sonoran Desert. 

2025 was a busy year for Samaritanos Sin Fronteras. Thanks to our supporters, SSF provided funds for ultrasounds, removal of a benign cyst in a CDM guest’s shoulder, dental extractions for 3 guests, dentures for 2 guests, treatment for amoebic dysentery, antibiotics for an extensive infection of the manager’s upper jaw and sinus, treatment for prostate issues, and over-the counter and prescription medications.

We were also able to purchase a new hot water heater and a new toilet for Casa Del Migrante, essential for health and comfort. 

With our weekly grocery runs, accompanied by CDM’s cook who made a list each week of needed items, we were able to buy food to supply approximately 5,840 meals, including special meal celebrations for Easter, Mexican Independence Day, and Christmas Eve. As part of the Christmas Eve celebration, due to generous donations, each guest received a complete set of new clothes in appropriate sizes: a warm jacket, pants, long-sleeved t-shirt, button-down long-sleeved shirt, underwear, socks, shoes, warm gloves, and a knitted hat, plus there was a fun raffle where each guest won a prize of his choice from food items and extra clothing. 

Animals: as of December, there are 9 dogs at CDM and 1 desert tortoise. SSF, vía Karla Vásquez and Clinica Esperanza, has had 8 of the 9 dogs spayed or neutered. The dogs have also had their shots, and SSF provides their food. If you’re looking for a good dog…..

SSF helped the shelter at the beginning of the year with an invasion of ticks and at mid-year with an invasion of bedbugs, providing chemicals and applicators to rid the shelter of creepy-crawlies. We also provided fly strips and mouse traps for ongoing pest control.

When a former CDM guest needed to return to his home country of Honduras to care for his ailing brother, SSF was able to help him with travel funds, and when a former resident of Casa San Pedro migrant shelter (now closed) whose family entered the US legally seeking asylum had a family member deported and subsequently murdered, SSF supporters raised funds to transport the body from Guadalajara to Guerrero, his mother’s home town, bringing a sad closure to an awful and unnecessary tragedy. 

We are continually amazed at the resilience and kindness of those we encounter at Casa Del Migrante, and at the generosity and support of good people all over the world. You are truly making a difference in the lives of folks who, for whatever reason, can’t reach home. People eat healthy food because of you, they have a comfortable place to stay, clean clothing, medical and dental care, and canine companions (and a tortoise!) to give them affection while they are deciding what to do next. Life is better for guests at Casa Del Migrante because of your support. Thank you.

Attached is our revenue statement for 2025.

Happy New Year, everyone, and don’t let the bastards grind you down. Together we can affect change❤️

- Carol​

———————————

Note: If you are able, please consider a donation either via our website donate button, via Zelle [Samaritanos Sin Fronteras (413)695-9571], or as a check made out to Samaritanos Sin Fronteras/121 Rocalla Ave/Ajo, AZ 85321. Thank you for your continued support.

—————————————————

Checks can be made out to 

Samaritanos Sin Fronteras 

c/o Doug Schnare, treasurer 

121 Rocalla Ave

Ajo, AZ 85321

Or we can accept Zelle (National Bank of Arizona) or PayPal on our website www.samsinfront.com) 

—————————————————

Samaritanos Sin Fronteras Amazon wishlist:

https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/6SDJCN1N0XMX?ref_=wl_share

or if you’re in Ajo and have donations, contact one of the members of SSF who will be glad to deliver them. We all make a difference.

​

We have the 2026 Candid Gold Seal of Approval:

https://app.candid.org/profile/15337525/samaritanos-sin-fronteras/?pkId=f10ec1df-6f76-48ce-8507-b32c69ef7ce7&isActive=true