Thanks to all who have submitted their NWIRP story through the Story Project form here! Below are some of the most recent submissions. Add yours to the project today!

Senay Kargaci

Client in 2009-2010
Well, when my father was put into deportation proceedings, we didn't know what to do, especially since we could not afford a lawyer. The Border Patrol recommended NWIRP, and we called them right away. A couple of weeks later, we started going to appointments, and the staff started to look for a reason that my dad should receive a green card. NWIRP gave my father and I hope that something could be done that would result in him being allowed to stay in the U.S. Mozhdeh Oskouian, our lawyer, found the Hernandez Act and she submitted a cancellation of removal application. Basically, the premise on why my dad should stay in the U.S. was that as a U.S. citizen, my dad needs to stay in the U.S. to take care of me, and my mom, a U.S. citizen, could not do that because she was abusive and neglectful when I was in her care therefore my only option is my father. On June 18th, 2010, after a year of waiting, my dad was awarded a green card. Mozhdeh, I'd like to say thank you for the countless of hours you spent on the case, I will be forever grateful. Yes, thanks for tolerating my dad too! NWIRP is very important because it gives people a chance to live the American Dream, and keeps a family together, like my father and I. NWIRP helps so many lives for the better, and I can see that there are truly many great people in the world that help others, for free. Thanks for all the positivity in the world that you create, NWIRP! The NWIRP organization is a great addition to the many organizations that assist people and because of NWIRP, my father won't be deported to another country, which would crush my world because I would also move with him, to a country that I have never known. NWIRP has forever changed my life, and I can continue to live in the U.S. while pursuing my dreams.

Martha Enriquez

Client in 2002
This is my opportunity to say thank you to the NWIRP for all the support I had from you guys in a very hard time. I got married in a good faith with an American man in 2001. He brought me to the U.S.A. in a fiancee visa from Mexico City where I had a good job, my family and a happy life. Once married here he was an abussive violent man, so that I looked for help, I found the NWIRP and they help me to get my green card through a Pro bono Attorney and under the VAWA. Now I am happily living in California, I've already got the American citizenship and I have been useful to the American and Latino society working as a Parent and Health Counselor. So Thank you so much for all your help and for all the help and work you do every day for the people in need.

Anthony Ravani

NWIRP Pro Bono Attorney

Anthony (Tony) Ravani won asylum for a young woman living a torturous existence in her home country and reunited her with her mother in Seattle. He took the pro bono case when approached by the woman’s mother, who had come to the United States seeking asylum from religious persecution because she was a converted-Christian in a Muslim country. She applied to bring her daughter to the United States in 2005, but the young woman’s Muslim father found out and imprisoned her for nine months. She was barely alive when the father came back after and took her to serve her stepmother, who beat her. After much abuse, she finally escaped in October 2008 and made her way to a U.S. Embassy. It took Tony more than a year and much work, including traveling to the woman’s home country to meet her and gather evidence, but the woman was granted asylum and arrived at Sea-Tac Airport to meet her mother on Oct. 7.

Grace Huang

Volunteer 1992-1996, staff member in 1996, Board Member 2001-2005

I began volunteering at NWIRP in 1992 with Samantha, doing screening and intake, when I was a first year law student, as I wanted to learn more about the law and use my language skills. I talked to numerous individuals on the phone, and people who walked in off the street, who were looking for assistance with their legal status. I spent hours asking people personal questions, trying to sort out if they might have some route to legal status. Those first several months opened up my eyes to the depth of the problem we are still trying to solve today, that there are very limited opportunities for immigration relief for the vast majority of people seeking it, no matter how compelling their life stories, and that there really is no other avenue for individuals seeking legal help in this arena if they are of limited means. Those first few months sparked my passion for working in the arena of immigration law, both at NWIRP for a little while, and since then as an attorney and as a policy advocate.