ChesMRC was recently awarded a $3,000 grant from The Mid-Shore Community Foundation (MSCF) for FY 2018. This grant will help contribute to ChesMRC’s initiatives for 2018 with the Immigration Clinic and Resource Center.

Since the center became fully accredited in May 2016 to provide immigration legal assistance and translation services to our Clients, ChesMRC has provided nearly 500 unique immigration services to individuals throughout the Mid-Shore and Delaware– paving the way to obtaining US Citizenship. By assisting the immigrant community, all citizens of the Mid-Shore benefit by having a community that is more informed, educated and connected to services and resources.

The amount of work needed to maintain the ChesMRC Resource Center and a BIA Accredited Legal Clinic for the Eastern Shore is expanding as Maryland’s Eastern Shore is rapidly increasing with an immigrant population that is in dire need of these services. With little promotion of our services or accreditation, we have become overrun with applications and consultations. By providing free Legal consultations, which typically cost between $100 and $2000 with private attorneys on the Western Shore, we will generate over $25,000 in immediate savings for our immigrant families for the current year alone; and our direct services, which cost anywhere between $350 -$1,500, will provide an additional savings of at least $50,000 for this community, savings that will be spent in the local economy of the Eastern Shore.

The main objectives for FY 2018 are to outreach to 2500 immigrant community members, provide consultations to at least 250 families, process at least 100 applications and refer at least 50 complex cases to partner organizations.