Sharing here a fundraiser created by my daughter, Sheela Jane Menon and her husband, John Fournie, in hopes of bolstering the efforts of those who are helping the thousands of children cruelly separated from their parents at the southern border, and held in detention under appalling conditions that violate the values we say we hold dear. Even the smallest of donations are welcome to let the children know they are not forgotten.
Dear family and friends,
As we continue celebrating the holiday season surrounded by loved ones and precious kiddos, it’s impossible not to think of the over 69,000 children who’ve been separated from their families and held in deplorable conditions at detention centers across the United States.
Happy Birthday John!
If you’re able, please join me and John in making a small donation to Kids In Need of Defense. Through collaborations with 600+ partners (including the American Bar Association), KIND strives to “ensure that no child appears in immigration court without high quality legal representation.” They also aim to “advance, policies, and practices that ensure children’s protection and uphold their right to due process and fundamental fairness.” The organization has received high ratings from charity watch organizations, and has been featured on multiple lists of places to donate to support children at the border.
We’ve created a fundraiser on Facebook (all proceeds go directly to KIND), or you can donate via the KIND website. We’re hoping to raise $500 by the end of January, and we’ve already received over $300 in donations (thanks, Mum and Dad, for being the first to donate!). We’ll be running this fundraiser
through the end of January 2020 to mark Christmas, John’s birthday (Dec 28), and the New Year. We’d be grateful for a donation of
any amount, and
John would especially appreciate a donation in lieu of a birthday gift.
For recent coverage on the effects of the child separation policy, you can refer to
this New Yorker article, published earlier this month. In it, Jonathan Blitzer opens with a brief snapshot of the work that KIND does to advocate on behalf of children and separated famili
es. He goes on to outline how the “the Trump Administration…never made arrangements to keep track of the families it was separating. By late June, when a federal judge ordered the Administration to reunite the families, it couldn’t figure out how.” He concludes by noting that, “since June 2018, D.H.S. has already separated an additional eleven hundred children from their parents.”
We’re grateful for all that you already do to bring a little extra light and love into this world, and we appreciate you considering this request in the midst of so many other obligations.
With many thanks and much love,
Sheela Jane Menon
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Dawn Morais 
Thanks for this opportunity. Donated at the website. May 2020 be better for the kids and for all of humankind (animals too!)!
How kind of you, Bob. Entirely in character.
Uncle Justin and I also made a contribution to the fund, Sheela Jane. Hope you and John reach the desired target. The children in detention certainly deserve our support. Many thanks for your initiative in this matter.