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CRM News / Articles
A Ride Along the Border
By: CRM Staff
January 2023
Take a few moments to "ride along" through the El Paso sector, joining Chaplain Ozzie Carrasco, CRM's El Paso Chapter Director, to understand the events unfolding at our nation's southern border.
Humanitarian Crisis
In 2019, El Paso became a flashpoint in the controversy over cross-border immigration when asylum-seeking migrants began surrendering to United States Border Patrol (USBP) agents along the U.S./Mexico border. Migrants numbering 1,000 per day poured across the border. That number quickly grew to 2,000 per day and then reached 4,000. At this writing, the expiration of Title 42, an emergency health order used since 2020 to turn away asylum-seekers at the southern border after entering the United States, is being challenged in the courts. Should it be allowed to lapse, border officials anticipate the daily number swelling to more than 5,000. A one-time political issue has become a humanitarian disaster.
Overwhelmed nonprofit organizations and social service agencies are woefully unprepared to deal with this massive influx of people. El Paso Mayor Oscar Lesser recently declared a state of emergency in response to his city's spiral into chaos as hungry, unsheltered migrants sleep on city streets in freezing temperatures with no end in sight.
Drugs and Death
Mexican cartels demand 500 pesos per person for passage across the U.S./Mexico border. Those who cannot pay become "drug mules," transporting packages of fentanyl, heroin, cocaine, marijuana, and other narcotics into the United States.
Last week, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration said it seized the equivalent of 379 million potentially deadly doses of fentanyl in 2022. That's enough to kill all 331.9 million Americans.1 Fentanyl poisoning is now the country's leading cause of drug-related deaths.2 Local and state law enforcement agents in U.S. cities and towns are grappling with increasing numbers of violent crimes perpetrated in connection with fentanyl and other drugs flooding across the border.
Border Agents Breaking
I've spent hundreds of hours working directly with adult migrants and unaccompanied minors. Yet, my focus remains on serving and supporting USBP agents and local law enforcement officers in towns and cities in the El Paso sector.
Some demonize and disparage the work of these agents and officers, but I see the sacrifice, love, and passion that mark their lives. I've seen border agents "parenting" children at processing centers, from changing diapers and serving food to cradling frightened, unaccompanied children in their arms.
A little-known fact is that after a full day's work, scores of local and state law officers pull 4- to 8-hour overtime shifts to cover for exhausted USBP agents.
Regularly pulled from day-to-day operations and assigned to process thousands of migrants, conscientious border agents recoil at the lack of adequate time to investigate those who might harm our citizens and communities. These protectors care for your safety, but the unrelenting stress of witnessing this unfolding human tragedy exacts a devastating toll on officers, agents, and their families.
The New York Post recently reported that three border agents took their lives in November, bringing the 2022 total suicides to 14, more than any year in over a decade."3
"Bringing Christ to the Crisis"
The friendly voicemail messages left on my phone are, in truth, desperate cries for help. I meet the callers--dedicated law enforcement officers and border agents. Sitting together, I listen as they confess fears, disclose troubled marriages, and cry over lost time with their children. We talk, cry, pray, and agree to meet again.
Bringing Christ to the Crisis is the mission of Crisis Response Ministry. As I've engaged in this bringing, I've seen glimmers of hope ignite in the hearts of these wearied officers and agents. It's truly a miracle that only Jesus can perform.
During these precious times of ministry, the Holy Spirit often brings the words of Isaiah 6:8 to my mind, words that best express why I began my work as a chaplain: "Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, 'Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?' And I said. 'Here am I. Send me!'".
I find refuge in these words and the power to stay strong in the fight against the principalities of darkness that threaten our nation.
FROM THE DESK OF JIM MCKEE, CRM EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Now More Than Ever
As you just read, ministry to the border patrol community is needed now more than ever. Unexpected budget cuts forced CRM to change Ozzie’s status from staff to volunteer last fall. In response, Ozzie has taken a part-time construction job to keep afloat financially. But, at the end of his shift, he heads home, grabs a bite to eat, and heads out to his second job as a full-time volunteer peace officer and chaplain.
Your generous contribution will ensure that CRM enters 2023 financially strong and help underwrite our vital work at the southern border through our faithful colleague Ozzie Carrasco.
All contributions to CRM are tax deductible.
Gratefully,
Jim
CRM News / Articles
A Ride Along the Border
By: CRM Staff
January 2023
Take a few moments to "ride along" through the El Paso sector, joining Chaplain Ozzie Carrasco, CRM's El Paso Chapter Director, to understand the events unfolding at our nation's southern border.
Humanitarian Crisis
In 2019, El Paso became a flashpoint in the controversy over cross-border immigration when asylum-seeking migrants began surrendering to United States Border Patrol (USBP) agents along the U.S./Mexico border. Migrants numbering 1,000 per day poured across the border. That number quickly grew to 2,000 per day and then reached 4,000. At this writing, the expiration of Title 42, an emergency health order used since 2020 to turn away asylum-seekers at the southern border after entering the United States, is being challenged in the courts. Should it be allowed to lapse, border officials anticipate the daily number swelling to more than 5,000. A one-time political issue has become a humanitarian disaster.
Overwhelmed nonprofit organizations and social service agencies are woefully unprepared to deal with this massive influx of people. El Paso Mayor Oscar Lesser recently declared a state of emergency in response to his city's spiral into chaos as hungry, unsheltered migrants sleep on city streets in freezing temperatures with no end in sight.
Drugs and Death
Mexican cartels demand 500 pesos per person for passage across the U.S./Mexico border. Those who cannot pay become "drug mules," transporting packages of fentanyl, heroin, cocaine, marijuana, and other narcotics into the United States.
Last week, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration said it seized the equivalent of 379 million potentially deadly doses of fentanyl in 2022. That's enough to kill all 331.9 million Americans.1 Fentanyl poisoning is now the country's leading cause of drug-related deaths.2 Local and state law enforcement agents in U.S. cities and towns are grappling with increasing numbers of violent crimes perpetrated in connection with fentanyl and other drugs flooding across the border.
Border Agents Breaking
I've spent hundreds of hours working directly with adult migrants and unaccompanied minors. Yet, my focus remains on serving and supporting USBP agents and local law enforcement officers in towns and cities in the El Paso sector.
Some demonize and disparage the work of these agents and officers, but I see the sacrifice, love, and passion that mark their lives. I've seen border agents "parenting" children at processing centers, from changing diapers and serving food to cradling frightened, unaccompanied children in their arms.
A little-known fact is that after a full day's work, scores of local and state law officers pull 4- to 8-hour overtime shifts to cover for exhausted USBP agents.
Regularly pulled from day-to-day operations and assigned to process thousands of migrants, conscientious border agents recoil at the lack of adequate time to investigate those who might harm our citizens and communities. These protectors care for your safety, but the unrelenting stress of witnessing this unfolding human tragedy exacts a devastating toll on officers, agents, and their families.
The New York Post recently reported that three border agents took their lives in November, bringing the 2022 total suicides to 14, more than any year in over a decade."3
"Bringing Christ to the Crisis"
The friendly voicemail messages left on my phone are, in truth, desperate cries for help. I meet the callers--dedicated law enforcement officers and border agents. Sitting together, I listen as they confess fears, disclose troubled marriages, and cry over lost time with their children. We talk, cry, pray, and agree to meet again.
Bringing Christ to the Crisis is the mission of Crisis Response Ministry. As I've engaged in this bringing, I've seen glimmers of hope ignite in the hearts of these wearied officers and agents. It's truly a miracle that only Jesus can perform.
During these precious times of ministry, the Holy Spirit often brings the words of Isaiah 6:8 to my mind, words that best express why I began my work as a chaplain: "Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, 'Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?' And I said. 'Here am I. Send me!'".
I find refuge in these words and the power to stay strong in the fight against the principalities of darkness that threaten our nation.
FROM THE DESK OF JIM MCKEE, CRM EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Now More Than Ever
As you just read, ministry to the border patrol community is needed now more than ever. Unexpected budget cuts forced CRM to change Ozzie’s status from staff to volunteer last fall. In response, Ozzie has taken a part-time construction job to keep afloat financially. But, at the end of his shift, he heads home, grabs a bite to eat, and heads out to his second job as a full-time volunteer peace officer and chaplain.
Your generous contribution will ensure that CRM enters 2023 financially strong and help underwrite our vital work at the southern border through our faithful colleague Ozzie Carrasco.
All contributions to CRM are tax deductible.
Gratefully,
Jim
Helping Victims
Helping Victims
Mailing Address
PO Box 131597
Tyler, TX 75713
Office Address
401 E. Front Street
Suite 138
Tyler, TX 75702
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Crisis Response Ministry is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization. All contributions are tax deductible within guidelines of U.S. law.
