Volunteer Spotlight: Kaitlyn G.

When our volunteer Kaitlyn learned three local moms were about to give birth within a month of each other while their husbands were detained, she took action.

Kaitlyn began sourcing diapers and formula, baby clothes, and other newborn essentials. She also reached out to the St. Louis chapter of Women of Welcome and the group responded, hosting a virtual baby shower for the new moms.

Kaitlyn, who works full-time at a marketing agency, serves as a Family Advocate and leads our Mom and Baby team and our Home Country Resources team. She also supports Abide in Love STL’s Marketing team and serves on our Community Outreach team, speaking at churches and community groups.

Awareness and change

Kaitlyn’s background is in sociology and she holds a Masters in International Relations.

For several years she led an international nonprofit that supported single moms experiencing extreme poverty. “In that role, I was constantly thinking through how to help donors understand the root causes of global inequality and global imbalances of power,” she explains. “Politics matters when it comes to caring about vulnerable people.”

Those conversations helped prepare her for the work she does today, speaking in front of mixed audiences at churches and community groups about the work Abide in Love is doing.

These conversations have really highlighted for Kaitlyn how little understanding there is – even among those with the best intentions – about why people migrate, and the United States’ responsibility and culpability in creating some of the power imbalances that have led to mass migration.

“There are so many assumptions and false narratives,” she explains.

Kaitlyn says one of the biggest misconceptions she had was in thinking that St. Louis wasn’t really impacted by immigration enforcement in the way that other big cities were.

“I thought that I could be so much more involved if I lived in L.A. or Chicago. What I know now is that it’s happening here… it’s just happening quietly. The stories just don’t make the headlines.”

Kaitlyn sees a big part of her role as helping educate: “With awareness comes real change.”

“People really don’t understand the fact that when dads are detained, the moms are left behind with little to no resources or support. Almost all are facing eviction. Oftentimes they want to go back to their home country, but they can’t.”

Kaitlyn describes the complexities these moms face, sourcing documents for children that are sometimes born in a third country. “It’s complex and risky and these moms are just so vulnerable.”

A different kind of future

Kaitlyn says her work with Abide in Love STL has impacted her in a way she didn’t expect.

“Both of my daughters are adopted from Latin American countries and both have complex medical needs.”

Kaitlyn talks about how meaningful it has been to bring one of her daughters along with her to meet with families or speak at churches.

“I have entered the U.S. with kids born in Latin American countries – kids I brought here in order to change their quality of life,” Kaitlyn notes. “My oldest daughter is of an age that she’s beginning to understand what’s happening to people from countries like hers, here in the U.S.”

“The only difference between me and these moms is that I was born two hours north of the border. I can give them any kind of future I want.”

“It’s profound in a way I hadn’t expected.”

“I thought that I could be so much more involved if I lived in L.A. or Chicago. What I know now is that it’s happening here… it’s just happening quietly. The stories just don’t make the headlines.”