The Immigration Institute of the Bay Area (IIBA) has launched a campaign – called I’M IIBA – uplifting what we know to be the true character and positive contributions of immigrants and advocates for immigrants in the Bay Area.
This week we highlight the inspirational story of IIBA volunteer and Pro bono Attorney Shelli.
I’M SHELLI
I grew up in Hawaii and have lived in Santa Clara County for a little over 10 years. At one point I lived in Shanghai, China, where my husband was working. As a child, I was surrounded by a diverse, vibrant community in Hawaii shaped by generations of immigrants. I spent many weekends taking part in Bon dances with my family, dancing the hula at Ho’olau’leas (Hawaiian festivals), and eating Filipino lumpia at school carnivals (in addition to spending a lot of time at the beach!).
I have a background as a lawyer. Before we had kids, I was a partner in a corporate law firm in San Francisco. In the back of my mind, I think I was always interested in immigration law. I was introduced to immigration law while I was a law clerk to a federal judge in Hawaii. While a clerk, I helped out reviewing appeals of immigration cases, and then when I became a law firm associate, I would do pro bono work on immigration cases.
I’M A PRO BONO ATTORNEY
It just so happened to be around 2022 and things were changing. With immigration in the back of my mind, I always knew I wanted to get involved. About two years ago, I Googled ways to volunteer near me, and happened to find IIBA’s citizenship classes out of Redwood City.
I started out helping with practice interviews and then filling in as a substitute for the civics classes. With the change in administration, I asked if there’s any other ways that I could help out, and I was put in touch with Amanda Alvarado Ford to help her out with asylum cases.
It’s really important to give back to the community, but particularly to immigrants who are such an important part of our community and don’t get the recognition that I believe they deserve. They work so hard and they add to our American culture.
And I feel like particularly in the current climate, it’s even more important to show immigrants that they’re seen, supported and valued. IIBA provides a meaningful way to do that through volunteer work, hands-on service and education.
I’M STILL LEARNING ABOUT THE LAW
Asylum is a new area of law for me. Amanda has been incredibly generous with her time, allowing me to shadow her asylum consults and learn how to then conduct them. She’s always there for me whenever I have any questions. I’m now helping handle procedural things, like motions to change venue and to consolidate. In the asylum process, I have to focus more on the smaller wins because with asylum cases, it’s such a long and uncertain process.
I’M LEARNING SPANISH
After this experience, I realized I could add much more value if I could speak Spanish. So this past winter I signed up for Spanish classes at De Anza Community College. I’m now in Spanish three. If I can even just use one word or two words to help our consultees when I’m helping them in the practice interviews, to me, that’s also rewarding for me.
I’M IIBA
I just hope I’m making a tangible difference, even if it’s just a little bit. By assisting someone through the daunting asylum or citizenship process, I’m hoping that person takes a significant step toward securing a more stable or better future in the US.
It can be a life-changing moment for individuals to have the ability to vote or the ability to travel back and forth in the U.S. Having legal rights also brings a sense of belonging. It’s really rewarding for me to know that I’ve helped someone achieve a dream that they’ve worked so hard for.