GRAND HAVEN — Recent actions by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, leading to nationwide protests and demonstrations, have strengthened a resolve already present for Rev. Jared Cramer and St. John’s Episcopal Church in Grand Haven.
“We believe we are called to see Jesus Christ in the face of those immigrants,” Cramer told The Sentinel. “We’re called to respond … with the same devotion we would (use to) respond to Christ.”
St. John’s immigrant relief fund has existed since the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. It was created to aid families who couldn’t accept federal or state assistance because it would affect their ability to gain legal status or wasn’t otherwise available. In the first year, the fund provided nearly $72,000 in aid between 180 applications in Ottawa County.
Now, the fund has been revitalized for a different cause.
“It’s a deeply challenging time for immigrants, but now in an entirely different way,” Cramer said, saying the need for legal assistance in the path to citizenship wasn’t necessary in the past.
St. John’s has also started an immigrant advocacy fund.
“We have people in our community, particularly mixed-status families, where there’s fear about going to work, even going to events at church,” Cramer said. “We’re needing to find ways to ensure that we can help those families figure out what to do.”
So far, the fund has helped dozens of documented and undocumented immigrants with everything from holiday presents to medical fees to legal assistance. It’s also covered interpretation services for immigration appointments and family reunification.
“It’s hard (for them) physically, emotionally and financially,” said Latino Ministry Communications and Equity Coordinator Abby Teasley.
Teasley immigrated to the United States in 1999, and had to navigate the system when her mother was detained in 2009.
“I know the desperation these families are feeling right now,” Teasley said. “You don’t even know where to start.”
St. John’s has partnered with Lakeshore Rapid Response and assisted with supply trips to a detention center in Baldwin, providing aid to those recently released.
“We want to ensure that anyone (released) is greeted with a friendly face, a backpack of supplies and whatever we can offer to get them back with their family,” Cramer said. “We are demonstrating to the people who are released that, even though the administration is treating them so poorly, we value them, as people created in the image of God.”
In August 2025, St. John’s unanimously approved a resolution to become a Sanctuary Church. The resolution affirms the church’s commitment to offer temporary refuge to immigrants under imminent threat of deportation.
“This is such a huge issue that’s going to require all of us to respond,” Cramer said. “We need people to stand together, to stand against the current policies of this administration and say, this isn’t who we are.”
“Despite the rhetoric of some Christians, I don’t believe this is what it means to be a follower of Jesus Christ,” he added.
To make a donation, visit tinyurl.com/pa6yyja5. To get involved, contact Peter Kurdziel at pkurdziel@sjegh.com.
“This is a humanity issue,” Teasley said. “We don’t have to agree on everything, but we must agree that we’re all humans and we should support each other, because what’s happening, it’s very dark right now.”
— Cassidey Kavathas is the politics and court reporter at The Holland Sentinel. Contact her at ckavathas@hollandsentinel.com. Follow her on X @cassideykava.
This article originally appeared on The Holland Sentinel: ‘We value them’ St. John’s of Grand Haven takes action to aid immigrants
Reporting by Cassidey Kavathas, Holland Sentinel / The Holland Sentinel
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
