When Sarah Jackson (she/her) visited the US/Mexico border in 2012, it changed the course of her life. She spent time with people who’d been deported, listened to their stories, and learned about their reasons for migrating and the dangers they’d faced. She also witnessed families being separated.
Her own family is super close—the kind of tight-knit family that looks forward to every minute together. They also believe in treating others compassionately. So, when Sarah saw families being torn apart, she couldn’t look away. She returned to Colorado, but there was no going back to normal.
Back home, Sarah took stock of her resources: a one bedroom apartment, a love for volleyball, and a belief that families belonged together. It wasn’t much but it was enough. She opened Casa de Paz and started Volleyball Internacional, a volleyball league that donates 100% of its profits to pay for operating expenses of the hospitality home. She’s been hosting and helping to reunite families ever since.
If you ask Sarah how she does it, she’ll laugh and say it’s not rocket science. For the thousands of people whose isolation has been eased by the Casa de Paz community, it’s something even better. It’s love.
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Casa de Paz began in 2012 as a small, one-bedroom apartment offering hospitality to families separated by immigrant detention. Our work has always been to host families whose loved ones are being detained and individuals who have been recently released. In 2017 we moved into a larger, rented house with more space so that we would not have to turn people away.
Today, Casa de Paz provides visits, shelter, meals, transportation and emotional support. Detention is a difficult time that tears families apart and creates a financial burden, so we have always offered our services free of cost.
Detention is a difficult time that tears families apart and creates a financial burden, so we have always offered our services free of cost. Since we first opened our doors we’ve hosted 3,1112 immigrants from seventy seventy countries and the need only continues to grow.
Casa de Paz is the only organization in Colorado offering shelter to released immigrants and their families. If we don’t do this, we don’t know of anyone else who will. Casa de Paz is a promise - a promise that as long as detention centers keep families apart, there will also be a welcoming home with our doors wide open.
When we think of doing this alone it seems impossible, but when we think of doing it together we know it will work.
Here is a link to her book :The House that Love Built" CLICK HERE
https://www.casadepazcolorado.org/book