Casa Alitas

The Alitas Program serves migrant men, women, and children who have left their home countries to escape violence and poverty. We provide care, short-term shelter and help to reunite with family members in the U.S.

In Arizona, the Border Patrol turns migrants over to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). ICE provides them with documentation and orders to report to an immigration hearing.

Then ICE drops them off at our Hospitality Center. Up to 13 travelers arrive at our Hospitality Center each day.

Volunteers greet the travelers and help them contact family members in the U.S. They may also help them to get a confirmation number for a bus ticket, which family members have purchased.

We provide a safe place to rest, rehydrate, eat, and care for their children. We also provide a change of clothes, hygiene items, and a chance to wash up.

Women and children receive travel bags before they leave. Bags may include food, water, toiletries, hygiene items, diapers and baby food, if necessary. We also provide blankets and small toys for the children for the bus ride. Bus rides typically last 2 to 3 days.

Travelers who are unable to leave immediately spend the night at the home of a trusted volunteer or at Casa Alitas, a small home in Tucson staffed by volunteers and Catholic Community Services.