El Centro duties expanding
Town calls on outreach group
By: Sergio Tovar, Staff Writer
Issue date: 11/13/07 Section: Features
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The center, located in Suite 2F on the second floor of 110 W. Main St., opened its doors in July 2000 and employs only three full-time workers. The remainder of the staff is composed of volunteers.
"We do a lot of work with a very small, dedicated staff," said Ben Balderas, executive director of El Centro Latino.
Balderas said town officials from Chapel Hill and Carrboro have been cooperative to the organization.
"They're very supportive of us and the work we've been doing," Balderas said.
Last month, Carrboro officials asked El Centro to join the discussion about a proposed ordinance that would prohibit people from gathering at a day labor pickup site on Jones Ferry Road after 11 a.m.
But Balderas said he wanted to find a more long-term solution to the problem. Despite his limited resources, Balderas said this request hasn't been much of a burden.
The Board of Aldermen will vote on the ordinance at tonight's board meeting at Carrboro Town Hall.
At El Centro, each staff member is trained to answer any general questions that residents may have. These range from asking what the phone number is for the Guatemalan consulate in Washington to asking how to report spousal abuse.
"We're able to provide immediate assistance," Balderas said.
Busca de empleos - looking for a job - is the most common reason people visit the center. The phrase is scribbled repeatedly on the sign-in sheet at the front desk.
Two lawyers - one specializing in general law and the other in immigration law - are available for consultations every two weeks by appointment.
El Centro also offers English as a second language courses twice a week, as well as after-school programs for 20 children from McDougle and Frank Porter Graham elementary schools.
"Unfortunately we don't have the capacity that we need to have more kids in the program," Balderas said.
According to an estimate by the Census Bureau, 5.2 percent of the 120,100 Orange County residents are of Hispanic origin.
And more than 200 people, both Hispanic and non-Hispanic, visit the center for assistance each month.
El Centro receives most of its funds from government grants, as well as from donations from individuals, corporations and religious organizations.
The Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation and Hispanics in Philanthropy have contributed the most money to the center during the past few years, Balderas said.
Sophomore Alex Merritt, a Spanish major from Charlotte, is one of the volunteers at the center.
Merritt said working five hours a week at the front desk answering phone calls and interacting with visitors has helped him put a face on the issue of illegal immigration.
"Working here has given me an appreciation of what these people have to go through every day."
ATTEND THE MEETING
Time: 7:30 p.m. today
Location: Carrboro Town Halll
Info: www.ci.carrboro.nc.us
Contact the Features Editor at features@unc.edu.
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