Lucas Orwa and Tommy Higgins form an unlikely friendship. Lucas is a 72 year old Kenyan immigrant living in low-income housing above the Artworks Downtown in San Rafael. Tommy is a 17 year old student at Branson who will be entering his senior year of high school.
Lucas has lived in San Rafael for the past 20 years. After working for 30 years at Marshalls, he stopped working in 2019 and was hoping to travel a little and possibly go back to Kenya to see his family. Instead, those plans fell through when a backpack that contained his birth certificate, immigration paperwork, his social security card, and Kenyan passport was stolen. As a result, he has exhausted his savings trying to pay rent while also following a years-long, drawn-out process to obtain new documents and access his social security.
Tommy is an avid tennis player, and in 2022 founded “2 Serve a Purpose,” (https://2serveapurpose.org), an organization dedicated to serve the community through providing tennis and pickleball clinics, and collaborating with other teen-focused groups in underserved communities. He realizes that he comes from a place of privilege and wants to make a difference in the world.
While volunteering at the Interfaith Street Chaplaincy’s Tuesday night dinner, Tommy asked Nick Morris, the Executive Director of the Street Chaplaincy, if there was a way he might be able to help someone on a more personal level in the community. Since Lucas had just been brought to Nick’s attention by a friend, Nick thought Lucas might be someone Tommy should meet.
Since I have been working with Lucas to help him stay in his housing for the past 8 months through the Network of Accompaniment Congregations, I connected Tommy with Lucas. In April, Tommy met Lucas and put together a gofundme to help raise money for his rent. He also gave tennis lessons and strung rackets and had people donate to the gofundme rather than paying him. He was able to raise enough to cover one month of Lucas’ rent.
In the meantime, Lucas had been working to get a Kenyan passport to replace the one that was stolen. To do so meant first getting his birth certificate, and then getting a Kenyan ID card. All of this was made more difficult because the nearest consulate is in Los Angeles and some of these documents had to come from Kenya then go through the consulate. Early this month, Lucas received his passport and has applied for social security, but still lacks some of his immigration forms that are required.
In June, Tommy’s dad sent me a picture of Lucas and Tommy, with Tommy holding a painting that Lucas had made of the two of them. In seeing it, I realized that the connection that started between the two of them has grown into a friendship that will hopefully continue for years to come. Tommy is continuing to offer to give tennis lessons or string rackets with his fee being a donation to https://www.gofundme.com/f/pjddt-help-support-lucas.
Lucas is just one of the many individuals who has received assistance from the Network of Accompaniment Congregations, and his predicament reminds us of how difficult being an immigrant in the US can be, even if you’ve been here for years.
The Marin Interfaith Council started the Network of Accompaniment Congregations after the 2016 election when anti-immigrant rhetoric was threatening to become policy. Congregations in Marin wanted to see what they could do locally to protect the immigrants in Marin whose families and livelihoods were threatened so they joined together, meeting monthly to see what needs were out there and how they could help. Though the needs of the immigrants in our community continue to change, members of the Accompaniment Network remain committed to helping in whatever way they can.
If you or members of your congregation would like to join us in that effort and attend our bi-monthly meetings, please email me at office@marinifc.org. You are also always welcome to make a donation to MIC and mark it for the Network of Accompaniment Congregations at: https://www.marinifc.org/donation-page.
As I continue to work with Lucas to help him get back on his feet financially, I am filled with gratitude for people like Tommy who see beyond themselves to offer what they can to make a difference in our world.
Peace,
The Rev. Lynn Oldham Robinett
Community Engagement Associate, MIC
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