Immigration & Border Ministry

Who We Are

The immigration & border ministries of the Rocky Mountain Synod work alongside our partners and congregations to welcome, support, and advocate for immigrants, refugees, and asylum-seekers. These ministries assist newcomers with resettlement, legal counsel, navigating the citizenship process, accompaniment—especially for unaccompanied children—and asylum advocacy.

What We Do

Refugee and Immigrant Resettlement & Hospitality — Working with partners such as Global Refuge (formerly Lutheran Refugee Service) and Lutheran Family Services Rocky Mountain (LFSRM) to help newcomers become settled and self-sufficient.
Border & Migrant Accompaniment and Advocacy — Through immersion, accompaniment at hearings, support for migrant families, and relationships with legal/advocacy organizations.
Public Witness & Sanctuary Commitment — As part of our faith commitment, we stand with migrants and refugees, offering hospitality, legal and pastoral support, sanctuary resources, and advocacy for humane policy.

Immigration Ministry Partners

Participants from the Rocky Mountain Synod Border Immersion November 2025 preparing and serving a meal for the migrants at the Papa Francisco Shelter.

Cristo Rey Border Immersion Program

The Cristo Rey Border Immersion Program invites participants into a transformative, first-hand experience at the U.S.–Mexico border–a place where cultures, languages, struggles, hopes, and faith meet. Through a week of shared learning, service, prayer, and conversation, the program offers a rare opportunity to encounter the real lives of people living at the border: hearing personal testimonies, witnessing social–justice realities, engaging in cross-cultural fellowship, and serving alongside a community rooted in solidarity. More than a typical mission trip, the program frames itself as a "reverse mission," where travelers come humbled to learn from the border community—returning home not only with stories, but with deeper insight, empathy, and an energized commitment to justice and welcome.

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Border Servant Corps

Border Servant Corps’s “Border Immersion” is a short-term, accompaniment-style trip to the U.S.–Mexico border where participants meet first-generation immigrants, visit aid organizations and shelters, learn about immigration law and border enforcement, and hear real stories of migration. It’s designed to give people a grounded, humanized understanding of border issues — so they can return home better informed, more empathetic, and equipped to engage thoughtfully on immigration and justice.

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Immigration Accompaniment Network

The RMS Immigrant Accompaniment Network connects people across our congregations who are committed to walking alongside immigrants, refugees, and asylum-seekers in their local communities. Together, participants share questions, resources, and encouragement so accompaniment is practical, faithful, and sustained. Grounded in the synod’s wider Immigration & Border Ministry, this network supports communities as they seek to welcome newcomers, advocate for justice, and offer meaningful care and support.

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Global Refuge

Global Refuge is a U.S.-based, faith-rooted nonprofit formerly known as Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service (LIRS). For more than 85 years, Global Refuge has welcomed and supported refugees, immigrants, and asylum-seekers arriving in the United States — offering resettlement services, family-unification, legal help, mental-health support, job-training and employment assistance, and community integration.

Guided by faith and a commitment to human dignity, their mission is to help “New Americans” find safety, stability, and a sense of belonging — while advocating for just, compassionate immigration policies and building welcoming communities across the country.

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Lutheran Family Services Rocky Mountain

Lutheran Family Services Rocky Mountains (LFSRM) is a faith-based, nonprofit human-services agency that has served the Rocky Mountain region since 1948. LFSRM is deeply committed to supporting refugees and asylees resettling in the Rocky Mountain region. They provide a full suite of resettlement services—from housing and initial health care to English-language help, job placement, cultural orientation, and legal/immigration support—aimed at helping newly arrived individuals and families gain stability and self-sufficiency.

Beyond the practical necessities, LFSRM offers ongoing mentoring, community-building, and support (especially for refugee youth, families, and other vulnerable newcomers) to help them integrate and thrive in their new communities.

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AMMPARO Migrant Ministry

AMMPARO Migrant Ministry is the migration-response initiative of Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) that seeks to Accompany Migrants with Protection, Advocacy, Representation, and Opportunities. In practice, AMMPARO stands with children and families forced to flee violence, poverty, or displacement—offering support whether they are in transit, arriving in the U.S., or trying to settle in safely.

It equips congregations and individuals to welcome newcomers with hospitality, offer pastoral care and practical assistance, advocate for just immigration policies, and help build communities of belonging rooted in dignity and compassion.

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The night view from Rim Road in El Paso