Thursday, November 17th, 3:30pm-5:30pm, Milton Library, 121 Union St, Milton, DE 19968
La Esperanza and La Colectiva de Delaware invite you to a discussion about immigration in our state. In the wake of the recent threat of migrants being transported from Texas and Florida to Delaware Coastal Airport in Georgetown, we wanted to take the opportunity to discuss the reality of immigration today in our state. While the prospect of a large group of people landing in our state does demand a caring, welcoming and decisive response, we also see new arrivals every day who are living and working in our state. Immigration encompasses a complex web of processes, actions and policies that we can’t begin to cover in one panel. However, we hope to start a conversation that builds understanding and creates opportunities to meet the needs of people as they go through the immigration process and integrate into our communities in Delaware. We invite you to join us at Irish Eyes in Milton following the panel for more conversation.
Our knowledgeable panel will share what they do, the challenges and opportunities for migrant families in our state, and the reality of the legal and support systems in place.
Moderator:
Dr. Jennifer Fuqua
Dr. Fuqua currently serves as the Executive Director of La Esperanza, Inc. in Georgetown, and teaches in the MPA Program at Delaware State University.
Confirmed Panelists:
Jwana (Smith) Adebiyi, District Community Relations Officer in the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) Philadelphia Field Office
Jwana began her 20-year career with Legacy Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) in Lee’s Summit, Missouri. Mrs. (Smith) Adebiyi has held positions as an Applications Adjudicator working LIFE Act cases, a member of the National Benefits Center (NBC) Training Team, Supervisory Immigration Services Officer and Acting Section Chief in the NBC Background Check Unit, supervisor over the NBC Congressional Team, and Acting NBC Community Relations Officer. Community Relations Officers act as liaison between stakeholders and USCIS. Stakeholders include immigrants, but also community-based organizations, educators, faith-based groups, businesses and educational institutions, other law enforcement entities, local, state and foreign governments, and U.S. Citizens. The goal is to provide accurate and timely information and feedback regarding USCIS programs and policies.
Bryant Garcia, Associate Director of La Esperanza, Inc.
Bryant Garcia is the Associate Director of La Esperanza, Inc. in Georgetown, DE and has worked at La Esperanza for 8 years. Bryant previously worked as the Immigration Program Coordinator at La Esperanza and is a Department of Justice Accredited Immigration Representative. As an Accredited Representative, he has advised and supported Delaware and Delmarva immigrants through the immigration process for the last 7 years. In that time, Bryant has represented and counseled yearly hundreds of immigrant clients before the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services and the National Visa Center to help clients obtain immigration benefits. Bryant received his BA from the University of Delaware in Latin American Studies with a minor in Anthropology in 2013 and is a 2018 Metropolitan Wilmington Urban League, James H. Gilliam, Sr. Fellowship Program graduate. Bryant was born in New Jersey and grew up in Jersey City, NJ and is of Salvadoran and Ecuadorian heritage. He lives in Georgetown with his wife and daughter and two dogs.
Rossana Arteaga-Lopenza, President of Casa de Venezuela Delaware and Vice-President of Casa de Venezuela Greater Philadelphia
Rossana is a Venezuelan-born American, community advocate, and a proud mother of three boys. She seeks to effectuate positive change in the lives of others and the community at large. Prior to transitioning to the role of a stay at home mother, she had a career in banking. Rossana co-led the Northern New Castle County chapter of Moms Demand Action, and volunteered as the President of the Home & School Association and as the Chair of Multiculturalism at Wilmington Friends School. She is currently the President of Casa de Venezuela Delaware, a non-profit founded in 2004. The organization’s mission is to promote Venezuelan heritage in the United States, however the social and political environment decline in Venezuela has evolved its work to include the promotion of human rights and restoration of democracy in Venezuela.
Paco Hernandez, Director for Premier Staffing Solutions
Paco Hernandez is an immigrant from Mexico. After moving to the U.S. in 2000, he earned a business degree from Delaware Technical Community College and worked for a staffing firm in Georgetown, Delaware as the national sales representative for locations in North Carolina, Indiana and Delaware. Since 2015, he has worked at Premier Staffing Solutions in Georgetown, Delaware where he now serves as director. As director, Paco is highly invested in the success of every job candidate. Paco has served on the board of directors for La Esperanza as board treasurer and the Greater Georgetown Chamber of Commerce as personnel committee chair. He is also an investor in YummySessions, a YouTube series featuring bilingual recipe tutorials of multicultural comfort food.
Gabriela Pedroza Sanchez, Senior Paralegal, Lupton Law LLC
Gabriela is originally from Almoloya de Alquisiras, Estado de México, México. She relocated to Southern Chester County, Pennsylvania at the age of 5 with her family. Gabriela graduated from Kennett High School in 2005 and from Marywood University in 2009 with a Bachelor of Arts in English and Spanish and a minor in Journalism. She currently serves on the Board of Directors of The Garage Community & Youth Center. Prior to joining Lupton Law, Gabriela worked at Sweet & Paciorek, LLC as a Legal Assistant and St. Rocco Parish as Director of Social Services. Gabriela has seven years of extensive experience in immigration law as a legal assistant, working with diverse families from all over the world. Gabriela has experience working with DACA, Family-Based immigration petitions, Adjustment of Status, Naturalization, Waivers of Inadmissibility, Humanitarian Visas, Fiancé Visas, and Consular Processing. Gabriela also has done extensive work in removal defense including Asylum and Cancellation of Removal. Gabriela is bilingual in English and Spanish.
Emily Houde, Staff Attorney at Community Legal Aid Society, Inc.
Emily works in both the Immigration and Medical Legal Partnership programs in Kent and Sussex Counties. The bulk of her work is assisting victims of crime with a variety of legal issues. Emily received her Bachelor’s Degree in Anthropology from the University of Pennsylvania, and went on to obtain her Juris Doctor from Boston University School of Law. She is licensed to practice law in both Delaware and Massachusetts. Prior to her work at CLASI, Emily interned and volunteered with Greater Boston Legal Services, working with asylum seekers from Africa and the Middle East.
The parking lot for the library is currently undergoing construction. Please use the alternate lots indicated on the map below.
