Another Refugee Resettlement Industry Letter to the President, Lutherans This Time

09/27/2020 ~ Ann Corcoran ~ Leave a comment

I know this is just another ho-hum letter to the Administration (for the media’s consumption) from the ‘religious’ Left insisting that the President admit 95,000 refugees to America beginning on Thursday—yes, this coming Thursday October first.

Krish O’Mara Vignarajah, president & CEO of Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service formerly worked for Michelle Obama

However, I am posting it just to be sure my archives are complete for this year’s Presidential determination lobbying campaign.

See my tag FY2021 for background and all of my archived stories on the subject.

This time it is Lutherans writing to the President as just one more publicity stunt on the part of the refugee contractors who fear the President might set this next year’s admission level at zero.

Here is the letter, but most importantly below are the 243 signatories (who signed on to the letter from Krish).

I thought you might like to have a look at who in your community is working to change America by changing the people. Lutherans especially might want to take note.

Dear Mr. President and Secretary Pompeo:

As bishops and ministers of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), a denomination of 3.5 million people of faith, and as the CEOs of Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service (LIRS) and Lutheran Services in America, we write to express our support for welcoming refugees and urge you to commit to resettling at least 95,000 refugees in fiscal year 2021.

Sincerely, Krish etc….

1. Rev. Jason Adams, Reformation Lutheran Church, Las Vegas, NV
2. Rev. Nancy Amacher, Northwest Synod of Wisconsin ELCA, Withee, WI
3. Rev. Michael D. Anderson, Member of University Lutheran Ch, East Lansing, MI
4. Bishop Jon Anderson, Southwestern Minnesota Synod ELCA, Redwood Falls, MN
5. Rev. Kirk Anderson, Grand Canyon Synod, Dewey, AZ
6. Rev. Annette Andrews-Lux, Peace Lutheran Church, Silvana, WA
7. Bishop Jim Arends, La Crosse Area Synod ELCA, La Crosse, WI
8. Rev. Joshua Auchenbach, Tanque Verde Lutheran Church, Tucson, AZ
9. Mr. Hilton Austin Jr., St John’s Lutheran Atlanta, Decatur, GA
10. Co-Executive Director Mark Back Holden Village Chelan WA
11. Rev. Kevin Baker, First Lutheran Church, Lone Rock & St. Paul Ev. Lutheran Church, Wauzeka, WI
12. Rev. Jayne Baker, Retired, Phoenix, AZ
13. Rev. Lindean Barnett Christenson, Christ the King Lutheran Church, Bozeman, MT
14. Bishop Tracie Bartholomew, New Jersey Synod, ELCA, Hamilton Square, NJ
15. Rev. Scott Bartlett, Southwest CA / Bethel Los Angeles, CA
16. Rev. Paul Bauman, Greater Milwaukee Synod, West Bend, WI
17. The Rev. Glenn Beard Jr, Lower Susquehanna Synod ELCA, Lititz, PA
18. Bishop Daniel Beaudoin, Northwestern Ohio Synod, Findlay, OH
19. Pr. Min. Andrew Beers, St. Paul’s Lutheran Church, Wichita, KS
20. The Rev. Dr. Chris Bellefeuille, St. Paul Area Synod ELCA, Stillwater, MN
21. Rev. Barbara Bengtson, Retired Clergy, Peoria, AZ
22. Rev. Paul Benz, Northwest Washington Synod, Everett, WA
23. Rev. Matthew Best, St. Stephen Lutheran Church, New Kingstown, PA
24. Rev. Elizabeth Bier, ONE in Christ Lutheran Parish, Greenwood, WI
25. Rev. John Biggs, Saved By Grace Lutheran Church, Pahrump, NV
26. Rev. Paul Birkedal, North Carolina Synod, Hickory, NC
27. Rev. Dr. John Bjorge, NW Washington Synod/First Lutheran Church of Richmond Beach,
Shoreline, WA
28. Rev. Paul Block New Song Church, Henderson, NV
29. Rev. Rebecca Boardman, Lutheran Campus Ministry at University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ
30. The Rev. James Boline, St. Paul Lutheran Church of Santa Monica, Santa Monica, CA
31. Rev. Ronald Bonner, SES, Atlanta, GA
32. Rev. Judy Brennan, Cross of Christ Lutheran Church, Bellevue, WA
33. The Rev. Steven Broome, Our Redeemer Lutheran Church, McMurray, PA
34. Rev. Dr. Robin Brown, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, Chicago, IL
35. The Rev. Allan Bruck, Northwest Washington Synod/Phinney Ridge Lutheran Church/Retired,
Bellevue, WA
36. Bishop Shelley Bryan Wee, Northwest Washington Synod ELCA, Seattle, WA
37. Rev. Abigail Byrd, Casa de la Luz Hospice, Tucson, AZ
38. Co-Executive Director Kathie Caemmerer-Bach, Holden Village, Chelan, WA
39. The Rev. Lauren Carlson, Calvary Lutheran Church ELCA, Morganton, NC
40. Rev. Ross Carmichael, St. Andrew Lutheran Church, Pittsburgh, PA
41. Rev. Joseph Castañeda Carrera, ADORE LA, Southwest California Synod, Los Angeles,CA
42. Pastor Mateo Chavez, Grand Canyon Synod – Iglesia Luterana San Juan Bautista, Tucson, AZ
43. Pastor Tim Christensen, Intentional Interim Ministry, Anchorage, AK
44. Rev. Carla Christopher Wilson, Lower Susquehanna Synod/Lutheran Church of the Good
Shepherd, Lancaster, PA
45. Rev. Dr. Sandra Chrostowski, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, Pewaukee , WI
46. Rev. Barbara Condon, Northwest Intermountain Synod, Garden City, ID
47. Rev. Craig Corbin, Grand Canyon/ My. Olive Lutheran/Pastor, Lake Havasu City, AZ
48. Rev. Caleb Crainer, St. Andrew’s Lutheran Church, Los Angeles, CA
49. Rev. Gary Dalenius, Northwest Washington Synod, Faith Lutheran Church, Redmond, WA
50. Pastor Kristy Daniels, Northwest Washington Synod, Church of Steadfast Love, Seattle, WA
51. Bishop Suzanne Darcy Dillahunt, Southern Ohio Synod, Westerville, OH
52. The Rev. Amanda Diller Guida, Southeastern Iowa Synod/St. James Lutheran, Bettendorf, IA
53. Reverend Thomas Dunham, Streams in the Desert Lutheran Church, ELCA, Tucson, AZ
54. The Rev. Paul Eldred, Holy Cross Lutheran Church, Bellevue, WA
55. Rev. Joseph Ellwanger, Hephatha Lutheran Church, Milwaukee, WI
56. Pastor Joanne Elise Engquist, Gethsemane Lutheran Church, ELCA, Seattle, WA
57. Bishop Paul Erickson, Greater Milwaukee Synod, ELCA, Milwaukee, WI
58. Pastor James Erlandson, Lutheran Church of the Redeemer, St. Paul, MN
59. Rev. Tim Feiertag, Trinity Lutheran Church, Everett, WA
60. The Reverend Ali Ferin, St. Michael’s Lutheran Church, Roseville, MN
61. The Rev . Alan Field, Grand Canyon Synod, ELCA, Phoenix, AZ
62. Bishop Murray D. Finck, Southwest California Synod-ELCA, Santa Ana, CA
63. Rev. Jan Olav Flaaten, Retired Executive Director of Arizona Ecumenical Council, Phoenix, AZ
64. Rev. Dr. William Flippin, Jr., Director of Evangelical Mission, Southeastern Pennsylvania Synod,
Philadelphia, PA
65. The Rev. Dr. Susie Folks, SEPA, Pottstown, PA
66. Rev. Lara Forbes, Saint Andrew’s Lutheran Church, Bellevue, WA
67. Rev. Rock Fremont Jr., Shepherd of the Hills UCC, Phoenix, AZ
68. Bishop William Gafkjen, Indiana-Kentucky Synod, ELCA, Indianapolis, IN
69. Rev. Martin Galbraith, New Hope Lutheran Church, Freedom, PA
70. The Rev. Dr. Margarethe Galbraith-Cordes, Emmanuel and St John Lutheran Churches, Freedom,
PA
71. Rev. Dr. Jeffery Gallen, Christ Evangelical Lutheran Church, Goodyear, AZ
72. Rev. Douglas Gebhard, Trinity, Sewickley, PA
73. Bishop Michael Girlinghouse, Arkansas-Oklahoma Synod , Tulsa, OK
74. Bishop James Gonia, Rocky Mountain Synod – ELCA, Denver, CO
75. Rev. Melissa Gonzalez, Minneapolis Area Synod/Tapestry, Richfield, MN
76. Bishop Erik Gronberg, Northern Texas-Northern Louisiana Synod, ELCA, Dallas, TX
77. Ms. Ann Hafften, Messiah Lutheran Church, Northern Texas-Northern Louisiana Synod, ELCA,
Weatherford, TX
78. Rev. Susan Halvor, Hospital Chaplain, Alaska Synod, ELCA, Anchorage, AK
79. The Rev. Linda Hanus, Mount Cross Lutheran Church/Grand Canyon Synod/ELCA, Payson, AZ
80. The Rev. Meredith Harber, Christ Lutheran Church-Alaska Synod, Soldotna, AK
81. Ms. Ruth Harris, Holy Family Lutheran Church, Chicago, IL
82. Rev. Laura Harris-Ferree, Luther Memorial Lutheran Church, Seattle, WA
83. Bishop Regina Hassanally, Southeastern MN Synod, ELCA, Rochester, MN
84. Rev. Phil Hausknecht, Ph.D., Retired – Grand Canyon Synod, Henderson, NV
85. The Reverend Katherine Hawks, Our Redeemer’s Lutheran Church, Seattle, WA
86. Bishop James Hazelwood, New England Synod ELCA Lutheran, Worcester, MA
87. Rev. Anja Helmon, NWWA Synod/Northlake Lutheran Church, Kenmore, WA
88. Rev. Steve, Herder, Ascension Lutheran Church, Thousand Oaks, CA
89. Rev. John Hierlinger, ELCA, St. Paul Area Synod, Saint Paul, MN
90. Rev. Lester Hoffmann, Grand Canyon Synod, Scottsdale, AZ
91. Rev. Mark Holman, Grand Canyon Synod – ELCA, Mesa, AZ
92. Bishop Mark Holmerud, Sierra Pacific Synod, ELCA, Sacramento, CA
93. Rev. Carolann Hopcke, Zion Lutheran Church, Albion, NE
94. Rev. Libby Howe, La Crosse Area Synod, La Crosse, WI
95. Bishop Deborah Hutterer, Grand Canyon Synod-ELCA, Phoenix, AZ
96. Rev. Dr. Rodney Hutton, Grand Canyon Synod, Tucson, AZ
97. Rev. Keith Ingle, Retired, Tucson , AZ
98. Rev. Sarah Isakson, Faith La Fe Evangelical Lutheran Church, Phoenix, AZ
99. Bishop Richard Jaech, Southwestern Washington Synod, Tacoma, WA
100. Sister Annette Janka, Christ Our Savior Lutheran Church, Anchorage, AK
101. The Rev. Lisa Jester, Emmaus Road Lutheran Church, Levittown, PA
102. Rev. Joshua Johnson, Faith Lutheran – Little Rock, AR
103. Pastor Michael Johnson, Christ the Lord Lutheran Church, Carefree, AZ
104. Rev. Jocelyn Johnston, St. John’s Lutheran Church, Pittsburgh, PA
105. Pastor Hans Jorgensen, St Timothy Lutheran Church, St Paul, MN
106. Mrs. LaDonna Jurgensen, Holy Trinity Lutheran Church, Littleton, CO
107. The Rev. John Kautz, Grand Canyon Synod, ELCA , Tucson, AZ
108. The Rev. Dr. Marjorie Keiter, Slovak Zion, Nesquehoning, PA
109. Ms. Vernita Kennen, Lutheran Advocacy-Minnesota, Roseville, MN
110. The Rev. Erik Kindem Northest Washington/Peace Lutheran, Seattle, WA
111. Co-Executive Director Stacy D. Kitahata, Holden Village, Chelan, WA
112. Rev. Joseph Klinger, Redemption Lutheran Church, Philadelphia, PA
113. The Rev . Patsy Koeneke, Grand Canyon Synod ELCA, Tucson, AZ
114. Ms. Kathryn Koob, Zion Lutheran Church, Waterloo, IA
115. Rev. Diane Krauszer, Trinity Lutheran Church Palmer, AK Alaska Synod ELCA, Palmer, AK
116. Rev. Marissa Krey, Mission Funding Director, ELCA, Durham, NC
117. Bishop Kristen Kuempel, Northwest Intermountain Synod, Spokane, WA
118. Bishop Kurt Kusserow, Southwestern Pennsylvania Synod, ELCA, Pittsburgh, PA
119. Rev. Peter Lai, Grand Canyon Synod, Las Vegas, NV
120. Rev. Chad Langdon, Christ Lutheran Church, Wichita, KS
121. The Rev. Henry Langknecht, Christ the King Lutheran Church, Great Falls, VA
122. Rev. Dr. Mari Larson, Reformation Lutheran Church, Wichita, KS
123. Rev. Dr. Duane Larson, Christ the King Lutheran Church, Houston, TX
124. Rev. Dustin Lenz, Alaska, Christ Lutheran Church ,Fairbanks, AK
125. Rev. Dr. F. Lichner, N.E. PA. Synod, Macungie, PA
126. Pastor Keith Lingwall, Abounding Grace Lutheran Church, Tucson, AZ
127. Rev. Kathleen Lotz, Community of Grace Lutheran Church, Peoria, AZ
128. Rev. Elizabeth Lowry, Lutheran Church of Hope, Anchorage, AK
129. Rev. Barbara Lundblad, Grace University Lutheran Church, Minneapolis, MN
130. Rev. Jonathan Lynn, Emmanuel English Evangelical Lutheran Church of Etna, PA
131. Pastor Deb Mach, Holy Cross Lutheran Church, NWWA Synod ELCA, Lake Stevens, WA
132. Pastor Carl Mangold, Retired, Scottsdale, AZ
133. Rev. Gregory Mannel, Grand Canyon Synod, Tucson, AZ
134. Deacon Cathy Mannel, Grand Canyon Synod, Tucson, AZ
135. Bishop Gerald Mansholt, East Central Synod of Wisconsin, ELCA, Appleton, WI
136. Rev. Christian Marien, Ascension Lutheran Church, Waukesha, WI
137. Rev. Brenda Martin, Holy Trinity Lutheran Church, Greenville, PA
138. Rev. Tim Maybee, Our Savior’s Lutheran Church, Saint Paul Area Synod, Circle Pines, MN
139. Pastor Gary McCluskey, University Lutheran Church/Lutheran Campus Ministry, Tempe,
AZ
140. Rev. Jenny McLellan, Lutheran Church of the Redeemer, Atlanta, GA
141. Rev. Corey Meier, Grand Canyon, Mesa, AZ
142. The Rev. Kevin Meyer, Grand Canyon Synod/Covenant Lutheran Church, Buckeye, AZ
143. Rev. Dr. Russell Meyer, Lutheran Urban Parish of Tampa , Tampa, FL
144. Pastor Stuart John Michles, Trinity Lutheran Church, Circleville, OH
145. Rev. Pamela Miles, Pointe of Grace Lutheran Church, Mukilteo, WA
146. Dr. Stephanie Mitchell, Emaus ELCA, Kenosha, WI
147. Rev. Donald Moeser, ACSW ELCA Southern Ohio Synod, Retired & Former Executive
Director LSS of NJ, Portsmouth, OH
148. Deacon Lauren Morse-Wendt, Edina Community Lutheran Church, Edin, MN
149. Pastor Fred Nelson, Grand Canyon Synod/New Spirit Lutheran, Tucson, AZ
150. Rev. Kelly Nieman Anderson, Greater Milwaukee Synod, Milwaukee, WI
151. Rev. Paul Ninnemann, Grand Canyon Synod, Rio Verde, AZ
152. Rev. Myron Nysether, Grand Canyon/Retired, Apache Junction, AZ
153. The Rev. Dr. Peggy Ogden-Howe, SWT TX, Georgetown, TX
154. Rev. Tim Oleson, Edmonds Lutheran Church, Edmonds, WA
155. Dr. Kenneth Olson, Metropolitan Chicago Synod Mission Interpreters, Schaumburg, IL
156. Pastor Abigail Orellano, Christ Lutheran Church, Libby, MT
157. Rev. Elizabeth Orling, Southwest Washington Synod, Port Ludlow, WA
158. Rev. Dr. Dennis Orsen, Emmanuel Lutheran Church of Eastmont, Pittsburgh, PA
159. Rev. William Ottum, Alaska Synod / River of Life Lutheran Church, Chugiak, AK
160. Rev. Kaitlin Pabo-Eulberg, Alaska Synod- Epiphany Lutheran-Episcopal Church, Valdez,AK
161. Rev. Sally Padgett, First English Lutheran Church, Columbus, OH
162. Rev. Dr. Duane Pederson, St. John’s Lutheran Church, Stamford, CT
163. Rev. Peter Perry, St. John’s Lutheran Church, Glendale, AZ
164. Rev. Dr. Eugene E. Perry, Grand Canyon Synod, Retired Minister, Scottsdale, AZ
165. Pastor Lucas Peters, Alaska Synod, Fairbanks, AK
166. Pastor Harold Peterson, Grand Canyon Synod, Sun City, AZ
167. Rev. Lee Ann Pomrenke, All Saints Lutheran Church, Eagan, MN
168. Rev. Lydia Posselt, Family of God Lutheran/ SEPA/ ELCA, Doylestown, PA
169. Rev. Scott Postlewait, Advent Lutheran Church, Mill Creek, WA
170. Rev. Jane Prestbye, Kent Lutheran Church, Kent, WA
171. Rev. Chon Pugh, Texas/Louisiana Gulf Coast Synod; Memorial/First, Texas City, TX
172. Pastor Ryan Pusch, Hebron and St Paul’s Highfield Lutheran Churches, Leechburg, PA
173. Rev. Elisabeth Pynn Himmelman, Campus Lutheran, Kearney, NE
174. Rev. Stephen Quill, ELCA Gulf Coast Synod, Missouri City, TX
175. Pastor Philip Ramstad, First Lutheran Church of Apollo, Apollo, PA
176. The Rev. Ray Ranker, Chaplain, University of Maryland, College Park, MD
177. Rev. Kimberly Rapczak, SWPA/Specialized Ministry, McKees Rocks, PA
178. The Rev. Barbara Rapp, Retired, GCS, Member, New Spirit Lutheran, Tucson, AZ
179. Rev. Dr. Gail Rautmann, Gloria Dei Lutheran Church, Lynnwood, WA
180. The Rev. Michael L. Reed, Holy Angels Church, Southwestern Pennsylvania Synod, ELCA
Wilmerding, PA
181. Rev. Patricia Reimer Lowe, Emmanuel Lutheran Church, Prescott Valley, Grand Canyon
Synod ELCA, Prescott Valley, AZ
182. The Rev. Amy Reumann, ELCA Advocacy, Washington, DC
183. Rev. Kristin Rice, All Saints Lutheran Church, Phoenix, AZ
184. Rev. Sharon Richter, Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church, Pasadena, CA
185. Reverend Elwood Rieke, Eastern North Dakota Synod/St. John Lutheran, Fargo, ND
186. Rev. David Rinas, Refugee Immigration Ministry, Pepperell, MA
187. Bishop Michael Rinehart, TX-LA Gulf Coast Synod, ELCA, Houston, TX
188. Rev. Rachel Ringlaben, ELCA Young Adults in Global Mission, Hattiesburg, MS
189. Bishop Peter Rogness, South-Central Synod of Wisconsin, ELCA, Madison, WI
190. Rev. Jennifer Rome, Pilgrim Lutheran Church, Saint Paul, MN
191. Rev. Sarah Rossing, St. James Lutheran Church, Youngstown, PA
192. Rev. Sandra S. Rudd, Alaska Synod – Sitka Lutheran Church, Sitka, AK
193. Rev. Ron Rude, Grand Canyon Synod/Our Saviour’s Lutheran/Retired Pastor, Tucson, AZ
194. Rev. Elaina Salmon, Bethany Lutheran Church, Lemont, IL
195. Ms. Janet Santiago, Emmanuel Lutheran, Prescott Valley, AZ
196. The Rev. Dr. Craig Alan Satterlee, Bishop of the North/West Lower Michigan Synod
ELCA, Lansing, MI
197. Reverend Frank Sayford, Southeastern Pennsylvania Synod/Family of God/Member-
Retired, Warrington, PA
198. Rev. Blake Scalet, St. John’s Lutheran Church, Summit, NJ
199. Rev. Marty Schaefer, Sierra Pacific/Christ Lutheran Church/Retired Clergy, El Cerrito, CA
200. Rev. Robert Schaefer, The Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, Monroeville, PA
201. Rev. Dr. Clint Schnekloth, Canopy NWA/Good Shepherd Lutheran, Fayetteville, AR
202. The Rev. Eric Shafer, Mt. Olive Lutheran Church, Santa Monica, CA
203. Rev. Amanda Simons, Gustavus Adolphus Lutheran Church, St. Paul, MN
204. Rev. David Sivecz, Grand Canyon Synod, Celebration Lutheran Church, Peoria, AZ
205. Rev. Ruth Sorenson-Prokosch, Prince of Peace Lutheran Church, ELCA, Roseville, MN
206. The Rev. John Spangler, St. John’s Lutheran Church, Parkville, MD
207. The Rev. Dr. Judith Spindt, Southwestern Texas Synod, New Braunfels, TX
208. Pastor Sarah Stadler, Grace Lutheran Church, Phoenix, AZ
209. Rev. Glen Stadler, Grand Canyon Synod, Gilbert, AZ
210. Rev. Tari Stage-Harvey, Shepherd of the Valley, Juneau, AK
211. Rev. Paula Stecker, Christ the King Lutheran, Colorado Springs, CO
212. Rev. George Steele, St. Mark Lutheran, Hagerstown, MD
213. Rev. Stephanie Steele, Chaplain Diakon Lutheran Social Min Maryland, Hagerstown, MD
214. Rev. Arthur Stees, Trinity Lutheran Church, Freeport, IL
215. Rev. Wendy Steger, Shepherd of the Valley Lutheran Church, Apple Valley, MN
216. Rev. Fr. Randy Steinman, Redeemer Church (ELCA), Neptune, NJ
217. Rev. Kimberly Sternet, Lord of Life, Sun City Wedt, AZ
218. Rev. Melissa Stoller, Southwestern PA Synod, ELCA, Pittsburgh, PA
219. Bishop Kevin Strickland, Southeastern Synod, Decatur, GA
220. Pastor Rebecca Sullivan, Lakeview Lutheran Church, Maplewood , MN
221. Bishop Ann Svennungsen, Minneapolis Area Synod, Minneapolis, MN
222. Rev. Rachel Swenson, Grace Lutheran Church, Des Moines, WA
223. Rev. Cara Tanis, NWWA Synod, Emmaus Table, Seattle, WA
224. Rev. Dr. Andrew Taylor, Pacifica Synod, Santee, CA
225. Rev. Andrew Tengwall, Hope Lutheran Church, Saint Paul, MN
226. Rev. Linda Theophilus, Emmanuel Lutheran Church of Eastmont, Pittsburgh, PA
227. Reverend Erik Thone, South Canyon Lutheran Church, Rapid City, SD
228. Pastor Kris Tostengard Michel, Bethlehem Lutheran Church, Minneapolis, MN
229. Rev. Erika Uthe, Southeastern Iowa Synod, Iowa City, IA
230. Reverend Daniel Valasakos, Grand Canyon Synod of the ELCA, Tucson, AZ
231. Pastor Vernon A. Victorson, Grand Canyon, Tucson, AZ
232. Rev. Kathryn Warn, Zion Lutheran Church, Manheim, PA
233. Bishop Shelley Wee, Northwest Washington Synod, ELCA, Seattle, WA
234. Bishop Shelley Wickstrom, Alaska Synod ELCA, Anchorage, AK
235. Mr. Brynn Wiessner, Rocky Mountain Synod, Denver, CO
236. Rev. Bonnie Wilcox, First Lutheran Church, Columbia Heights, MN
237. Rev. Michael Wilker, Lutheran Church of the Reformation, Washington, DC
238. Rev. Gregory Williams, Grace Lutheran Church, Hendersonville, NC
239. Interim Bishop Lawrence Wohlrabe, Eastern North Dakota Synod ELCA, Fargo, ND
240. Rev. Dr. Annette Woodman-Howe, Southwestern Pennsylvania, Retired, Perryopolis, PA
241. Rev. Ron Zielske, Sierra Pacific Synod, St. John’s Lutheran, Sacramento, CA
242. Deacon Dr. Janice Zimbelman, Grand Canyon Synod, Prescott, AZ
243. Rev. Krista Zimmerman, Mount Pleasant Lutheran Church, Racine, WI

Foreign-owned BIG MEAT Conglomerates Changing America by Changing the People

11/10/2019 ~ Ann Corcoran ~ 6 Comments

A few days ago the Washington Post ran a lengthy feature story about how the Brazilian-owned meat giant—JBS—was getting federal taxpayer dollars as part of an agricultural bailout from the Trump Administration.

Of course the premise of the story, which featured the obligatory photo of the President, was that Trump was somehow responsible for a foreign-owned company ripping-off the US consumer by consolidating its holdings in America and creating a monopoly.

This is JBS headquarters in Greeley, CO Photo credit: Me! Taken on my 2016 tour of US meatpacking towns that have been changed by refugee labor.

It sure does look like JBS has a growing share of the meat industry.

The Washington Post tells us that JBS’s growth has been rapid following its first purchase of a US meatpacking business in 2007:

In 2007, JBS bought pork and beef producer Swift and Co. In 2008, it purchased the beef operations of Smithfield Foods. In 2009, it acquired poultry producer Pilgrim’s Pride. In 2015, JBS bought Cargill’s pork division. And in 2017, the company purchased poultry producer GNP Co.

But in the extremely long and damning expose there is not one word about JBS’s voracious appetite for immigrant labor that includes refugee workers provided to the company by the US State Department’s resettlement contractors!

As longtime readers know I have been interested in the role BIG MEAT plays in changing the character of American towns with its use of low wage immigrant labor since I saw a report in 2008 about how Bill Clinton brought refugees to Iowa to make his meatpacker pals happy.

Lobbying for labor

And, I need to mention that then Senator Jeff Sessions fingered meatpackers in the lobbying gang pushing for that ‘Gang of Eight’ so-called Comprehensive Immigration Reform bill that passed the Senate in 2013.

As I had reported at the time, the refugee resettlement contractors were also pushing for passage of the ‘Gang of Eight’ amnesty bill that ultimately failed to make it through the House of Representatives.

Lutherans were being paid to find refugee labor for JBS!

Then I got the shock! I had always assumed that it was just happenstance that some of the nine refugee resettlement contractors hired by the US State Department to place refugees in US towns and cities had a casual relationship with industries looking for cheap and compliant labor, but I never dreamed there was a direct financial connection until this news broke in 2017.

(LOL! as I write this I sure am glad RRW has been recovered. There is a lot of history filed here!)

Remember this….

Foreign-owned Big Meat hires Lutherans to help them find and retain refugee labor

That is the crux of this story and not in my wildest dreams did I think that money was directly changing hands between the meat industry and a federal refugee contractor, in this case Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service headquartered in Baltimore, MD.

LIRS is headquartered here in Baltimore. This is their own description: The Lutheran Center (LIRS headquarters) is a six-story structure constructed in 1999 on property owned by Baltimore’s historic Christ Lutheran Church. The building is located near Baltimore’s Inner Harbor in the historic Federal Hill neighborhood, a charming area rich with history and an eclectic array of eateries and shopping venues.

I always assumed it was an informal relationship where the largely federally-funded ‘religious’ charity (LIRS is 96% funded by you and not via the collection plate) just happened to be bringing immigrant workers to small town America.

Now we learn that there is a formal (secret!), contractual arrangement planned for pilot projects in four states with JBS USA a Brazilian-owned company. And, it makes me wonder if this isn’t new and whether similar arrangements are being made with others of the nine federal refugee contractors.

The four states targeted for pilot projects in 2017 were Georgia, Texas, Iowa and Michigan.

Read it all! An insider at LIRS had revealed internal documents obtained by Leo Hohmann at World Net Daily.

To make a long story short:

A foreign company buys up major meat producing companies in the US then lobbies for and obtains refugee laborers with the help of a fake ‘religious’ charity funded largely by you, the taxpayers.

The immigrant laborers aren’t paid decent wages so they depend on welfare to make ends meet all the while disrupting the social and cultural make-up of small US towns and cities.

And, you, the US taxpayers, are paying for it all as they change America, one small town at a time.

Someone should write a book!

Heck, a lot of the research is done already! See my enormous archive on Meatpackers here.

Michigan: refugee contractors and employers boo-hooing; not enough cheap labor coming in

03/19/2018 ~ Ann Corcoran ~ Leave a comment

Ten years ago they hid the fact that those poor third worlders coming in to the US as refugees were providing a steady supply of cheap labor for big business, now they are admitting it right up front and trashing Trump because he has cut their supply.
Do you humanitarians out there really understand that the US Refugee Admissions Program is first and foremost for the pleasure of the Chamber of Commerce and businesses large and small which want to keep wages low? Why do you think the Republicans in Congress have made no serious move to reform the program?

And, secondly it is about giant ‘non-profits’ like Samaritas (formerly Lutheran Social Services Michigan) keeping their government funding flowing.
By the way Samaritas is a made-up word and why they dropped “Lutheran” is a mystery. (It is like HIAS dropping the “Hebrew” from its name!)
As I said here recently, if we have a labor shortage, let’s debate that, but then shut up about this being all about saving the downtrodden of the world and trying to silence those of us questioning the business model (cheap immigrant labor brought to the US and supported with welfare by THE TAXPAYERS!).
One of the things I’ve wondered for years is: do the refugees coming in understand that low wage, often very dirty and difficult, jobs await them?
The wailing has become deafening as the refugee flow to America has slowed in the last year.
Here is Crain’s Detroit Business with this headline:

Refugee clampdown hits local nonprofits

The subheadline should be: Businesses aren’t getting their steady supply of taxpayer-supported laborers!
Here is a bit of the story:

Nonprofit services to help refugees fleeing war or persecution resettle in Southeast Michigan are a shell of what they were a year ago.

Local resettlement agencies have laid off much of their staffs and closed offices, following revenue decreases tied to a federal clampdown that has significantly reduced the number of refugees coming to the U.S., especially those from Middle Eastern and African countries that have been the mainstay of local resettlement efforts in recent years. [Revenue decreases because they are paid on a per refugee head basis!—ed]

Screenshot (1285) — We need immigrant laborers in Michigan (to heck if we change America by changing the people)! Picture kind of reminds one of picking cotton (just saying!). Steve Tobocman, executive director of Global Detroit, a proponent of immigration as an economic development strategy. http://www.modeldmedia.com/features/tobocman060610.aspx

Crain’s goes on….

The slowdown in acceptance of refugees and increased vetting was ordered by the Trump administration over concerns about security. It has had an impact on not just nonprofits but also employers who were relying on resettled refugees as a source of labor, local nonprofits say.

Similar cuts have played out at similar agencies in other parts of the country, said Steve Tobocman, executive director of Global Detroit, a proponent of immigration as an economic development strategy.

“Ultimately, the current state of affairs impacts the services agencies can offer to integrate new refugees,” given the loss of economies of scale that come with larger resettlement numbers, Tobocman said.

[….]

To continue providing services to refugees already here, resettlement agencies are seeking alternative funding such as grants from private funders.

And some are looking to local churches and community groups for help.

It is about time, why haven’t they been doing this (above)? Why? Because taxpayer funding was readily available, so why bother trying to raise private charity—that is hard work!
Crain’s continues….

VickieThompson-Sandy-mug-01_i — Vickie Thompson-Sandy, president of Samaritas makes over a quarter of a $million annually, according to a recent Form 990. Will she give up some of her salary to care for refugees who are down and out now?

“When we’re closing offices in Ann Arbor, where does a refugee go? They can no longer stop by our office to get basic support,” said Vickie Thompson-Sandy, president of Samaritas, a Detroit-based social services agency that counts refugee resettlement among its services.

[….]

Some local companies are feeling the squeeze in their workforces.

Local manufacturing and retail employers that relied on new refugees as employees are calling the U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants Detroit on a weekly basis, said Tawfik Alazem, director of its Dearborn office. [USCRI is another of the nine federal contractors*** the US State Department hires to place refugees in your towns and cities.—ed]

Among them is Reino Linen Service, a company that launders and returns about 50 million pounds of linens to area hospitals, health clinics and doctors’ offices each year.

The company’s location in Brownstown Township, where public transportation is an issue, leads to high employee turnover, said Mary Onifer, a corporate human resources specialist for the company. [Truly a sweat shop says one commenter, here.—ed]

Reino has turned to organizations like USCRI Detroit for the past nine years to engage refugees as employees.

Once again we see federal refugee agencies are contractors (head hunters!) for businesses while they collect federal dollars for their supposed good works!
There is much more here, I’ve only snipped a tiny bit.

Don’t cry for Samaritas!

Now just to show you how Samaritas (a subcontractor of Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service) is rolling in taxpayer bucks, and the head honchos are pulling down huge salaries, here are a couple of screenshots from a recent Form 990.
Here is there income page—$30 million from taxpayers!
Samaritas income

And here check out these huge salaries!

Samaritas salaries — Yikes! Ms. Thompson-Sandy’s salary isn’t even the largest! Doing well by doing good!

See more on Michigan by clicking here.
***The nine federal contractors you fund are here:
The number in parenthesis is the percentage of their income paid by you (the taxpayer) to place the refugees, line them up with jobs, and get them signed up for their services! From most recent accounting, here.

Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service trying to raise $5 million from private funding sources

10/27/2017 ~ Ann Corcoran ~ Leave a comment

It’s about time!

And, if they raise $5 million privately this year it will be an all-time high for the CEO Linda Hartke who took the reins in 2010 of a refugee contractor that is on average 95% taxpayer funded.

As the refugee numbers decline under Trump, LIRS, like all of the nine contractors*** are facing financial woes because of laziness and maybe mismanagement (there is a rumor along those lines at LIRS!) having become so dependent on taxpayer funding that most have made little or no effort to raise PRIVATE money for their charitable ‘good works.’

I notice that at LIRS website they have launched a campaign to raise a whopping $5 million in private money.

Screenshot (1021) — If LIRS raises $5 million this year from private funding it will be the highest in the last 6 years, maybe ever!

I’m wondering if those meatpacker contracts reported here recently are part of that $5 million goal? Foreign-owned BIG Meat hires LIRS!

Again, if they manage to raise $5 million in private money they will be doing better than any year under the stewardship of CEO Linda Hartke who arrived there in 2010.

Going back to Form 990’s beginning with the tax reporting document for 2011, this is what I noticed:

(By the way, I’m rounding numbers to make this easier on me and I didn’t get into side income/contracts including their travel loan deal with the State Department. Form 990’s (except for 2016) can be found on LIRS website, here. )

Most salary information is on page 7 or 8 and income on page 9.

Form 990 (2011)

Total gifts and grants (inc. government grants) $31.6 million, $1.3 million private money raised. Most of the other funding from the US Treasury (roughly 95% taxpayer funded)

Hartke’s salary: $182,000 plus $21,000 from other compensation

Form 990 (2012)

Total gifts and grants (inc. government grants) $40 million, $1.5 million private money. Most other funding from the US Treasury (roughly 96% taxpayer funded)

Hartke’s salary: $191,000 plus $23,000 from other compensation

Form 990 (2013)

Total gifts and grants (inc. government grants) $43 million, $2 million private money. Most other funding from the US Treasury (roughly 95% taxpayer funded)

Hartke’s salary: $203,000 plus $24,000 from other compensation

Form 990 (2014)

Total gifts and grants (inc. government grants) $57.8 million, $2.5 million private. Most other funding from the US Treasury (roughly 96% taxpayer funded)

Hartke’s salary: $210,000 plus $25,000 from other compensation

Form 990 (2015)

Total gifts and grants (inc. government grants) $53.8 million, $3 million private. Most other funding from the US Treasury (roughly 94% taxpayer funded)

Hartke’s salary: $274,000 plus $33,000 from other compensation

Form 990 (2016)

Total gifts and grants (inc. government grants) $67 million, $2.5 million private. Most other funding from the US Treasury (roughly 96% taxpayer funded)

Hartke’s salary: $293,000 plus $34,000 from other compensation.

Screenshot (1023) — LIRS headquarters building in Baltimore’s Inner Harbor neighborhood

Think about this, CEO Linda Hartke went from making $182,000 in 2011 to making $293,000 in 2016 running a RELIGIOUS charity funded largely by the US taxpayer. Stunning isn’t it!

This year, because the number of paying clients (aka refugees) will be lower than normal they HOPE to raise a whopping $5 million (to tide them over?).

For those of you feeling squeamish about reporting salaries, remember this is not a private corporation or a true non-profit, it is a quasi-government agency which we all pay for.

Government salaries are known to the public for members of Congress ($174,000 for example) and even your local elected officials, so it is our right to know and comment on salaries being paid to the nine federal refugee contractors.

If you are a Lutheran, check out the LIRS leadership page here. See if there are people you know! Let them know how you feel.

See LIRS subcontractors here. Is there one near you? Remember they work for LIRS in Baltimore! LIRS in Baltimore is sending refugee cases to your towns and cities! Hello St. Cloud!

*** The nine federal refugee contractors that monopolize all refugee resettlement in America are here. Hartke’s salary isn’t even the highest of the nine. That honor goes to David Miliband of the International Rescue Committee whose salary is approaching $600,000! Doing well by doing good!

Pay attention! Your town could become St. Cloud too!

10/20/2017 ~ Ann Corcoran ~ Leave a comment

As St. Cloud goes, so goes the nation!

…..that is if you don’t do something now to stop it where you live.

I’ve been arguing that the national media is doing a great disservice by not showing the true picture of a city and a state undergoing a dramatic demographic change thanks to forces arrayed against us—against regular folks, American citizens.

Most Americans would be stunned if they had any idea of what is happening in Minnesota!

dayton — Mogadishu first! Minnesota governor Dayton said earlier this week that he would light the governor’s mansion blue (Somali flag color) because of the terrorist attack there recently that killed hundreds. Did he light the governor’s mansion in any color when the Somali refugee terrorist attempted to kill shoppers at the St. Cloud mall a year ago?

Topping the list of those changing America by changing the people are the global corporations seeking cheap compliant labor, and cheered on by the Chamber of Commerce, Democratic political activists looking for voters, ‘non-profit’ groups paid by taxpayers to place the third world in unsuspecting towns, Islamic supremacist groups like CAIR advancing the hijra and enabled by bleeding hearts in the media and the clearly frightened local elected officials.

The St. Cloud, Minnesota story will tell your community’s story next year, or ten years from now!

(See also, my St. Cloud post yesterday, here)

Here Leo Hohmann at World Net Daily pulls the threads together about St. Cloud. This is your future too!

A small city in the Midwest is becoming “ground-zero” for a long-simmering battle over refugee resettlement that could have a ripple effect across the United States.

“The long-term future of literally every city and town in America will be affected by who wins in St. Cloud and Stearns County, Minnesota,” says Ann Corcoran, one of America’s foremost experts on the resettlement industry through her website Refugee Resettlement Watch.

St. Cloud and the surrounding small cities of Central Minnesota have been the drop-off points for thousands of refugees coming from United Nations camps over the past 15 years.

[….]

If St. Cloud is successful in carving out a local role in determining refugee numbers flowing into its community, that will spread quickly to other cities, says Corcoran, who has followed the resettlement industry across all 50 states for the past decade.

But it’s an uphill fight.

One council member, Jeff Johnson, has decided to champion the cause and is expected to introduce a resolution on Nov. 6 calling for a moratorium on refugee arrivals until a study can be completed on the economic impact of the resettlements.

So far Johnson says he has only one other councilman who is willing to listen to his argument that economics matter, but he is hoping to convince others that they will be better able to make decision affecting the taxpayer if they have empirical data on refugee costs.

Citizens like Ron Branstner have become experts on the meat industry:

Branstner sees lots of winners when it comes to refugee resettlement. The meat-processing companies – Hormel, JBS Swift, Pilgrim’s Pride – all benefit from the cheap labor. The transportation industry makes money shuttling the refugees to and from work.

But the biggest loser is the taxpayer.

So-called “Big Meat” – with most of the companies foreign-owned – has plants scattered throughout the Midwest in Minnesota, Iowa, Nebraska, Indiana, Illinois, Missouri, the Dakotas, Kansas and Colorado. [States throughout the south are also affected. Big Meat/Big Poultry is in North Carolina, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas and more—ed]

“These corporations, in cooperation with chambers of commerce, nonprofits like the Blandin Foundation, Lutheran Social Services and Catholic Charities, have transformed town after town throughout southern Minnesota since 1990,” Branstner says.

He believes the taxpayer is subsidizing the meat industry’s addiction to cheap refugee labor.

So please don’t let anyone tell you this is about humanitarianism and thus any criticism by you means you are a mean, racist boob! That is just what they do to silence you!

There is much, much more, continue reading here.

See also my huge archive on ‘Meatpackers’ by clicking here.

Endnote: One of my great frustrations is that I will get readers/commenters on this post who will say—what should I do? Where is an easy petition to sign or an easy fax to send?

I understand that some of you might be new and this is the first time you are seeing RRW, but geez, for the rest of you, I tell you almost daily what to do and even have a category now entitled ‘What you can do.‘ Please have a look!

Sorry this isn’t going to be easy or fast!

Don’t miss my recent step by step prescription for some thing you can do, here. The gist of that post is that you must get involved locally as the people of St. Cloud are doing and ultimately get rid of mayors and councils who are operating in secrecy and facilitating the destructive demographic change we see here in the city that is the canary in a coal mine.

(Twin Falls, Idaho, as I have mentioned often, is right up there with St. Cloud as a lesson for what will happen to your town next!)