Local nonprofit loses funding after Trump cuts program helping unaccompanied migrant children

SPOKANE, Wash. — A local nonprofit is struggling to serve the community after major funding cuts.

Manzanita House, an organization that helps support immigrants and refugees in Spokane, said it recently lost over $60,000 in funding, due to cuts made by the Trump Administration.

The funding was for a program that helps thousands of immigrant children who are in the United States alone navigate immigration court. It helps provide them with legal representation.

Manzanita House’s Samuel Smith said the organization serves eight unaccompanied migrant kids. While some of them have since turned 18 since they started the program, they all started off as minors. Their youngest client right now is 11-years-old.

“Through this program, we’re able to help a decent number of youth and a growing number of youth to find stability here in the United States and really live a life that we want all children to be able to live. The termination of this funding deeply threatens that for thousands of children across the United States,” he said.

Smith said many of these kids don’t have the capacity to understand what they are going through, and without legal representation, more kids will be deported from the U.S.

“They would want to live at home, but through a variety of factors, you know, family who’s not able to provide for them. You know, economic instability, violence in their communities, they were forced to leave for their safety to try to find a better life,” Smith said.

Manzanita House said it will find a way to help the clients it’s currently working with, but they are unable to take any new unaccompanied migrant children in need at this time.

For more information and to help support Manzanita House, click here.