Unaccompanied immigrant children who have fled violence in their home countries and arrived in Chelsea will benefit from a substantial private donation to the Chelsea Collaborative and Greater Boston Legal Services (GBLS). As approximately 300 of an estimated 600 such minors prepare to enter the local public school system this year, the $40,000 gift from immigration and higher education advocate Bob Hildreth will fund shelter, meals, and legal assistance for these young people who crossed the US border over the past two years.
The Chelsea Collaborative, which has coordinated the community’s response to this influx, received the donation alongside GBLS. According to Gladys Vega, Executive Director of the Chelsea Collaborative, “fblikebutton_button” the organization recognized the urgency of the situation from the start. She explained, “fblikebutton_button” “When deciding to help, we only thought about what we were witnessing: we saw so many children coming through our doors in need. We knew that in order for a mother to make or to send her children on this journey it was because they were facing unimaginable violence in their country.”
Public education for each student costs approximately $13,000 annually, according to experts. Chelsea, already a low-income community, faces significant challenges in educating these immigrant children without additional resources, yet the city has committed to providing support. Hildreth aims to strengthen that commitment and is urging others to contribute as well. He stated, “fblikebutton_button” “These children are all of our responsibility. My donation will hopefully spur people in rich towns to join me in helping cities like Chelsea pay for the assistance they so willingly offer to immigrant children.”
Hildreth’s track record demonstrates sustained personal investment in addressing immigrant needs throughout Greater Boston. His connections to the Chelsea Collaborative stem from his involvement with FUEL Education, while his relationship with GBLS developed when he helped bail out immigrants detained in the Bianca raid in New Bedford seven years ago.