Family Reunification
Ensuring that migrant children are safely released from US detention centers and reunited with their familyEach year thousands of children, without a parent or guardian, migrate to the US to escape violence and abuse, or to reunite with their family.
Through our partnership with Lutheran Immigration and Global Refuge, we help ensure that unaccompanied children are safely released from detention and reunited with loved ones who are well-equipped to care for them, giving them every opportunity to grow and thrive.
Safe Release Support
We assist families when they are at their most vulnerable—when they need guidance through the complex process to reunite with their children. To ensure children are reunited into safe and secure homes, their caregivers must first be thoroughly screened. Potential caregivers in northern CA come to our site for the following services, free of cost:
- Fingerprinting and help with the Family Reunification Packet
- Referrals for much-needed resources such as immigration legal services, health care, mental health services, and enrollment in school.
The appointment with our staff is an opportunity for caregivers to be open about their confusion, concerns, and needs around the reunification process, without the stress of interacting with a government entity.
Post-Release Services
After reunification, particularly vulnerable children and their families are referred to us to ensure that the child is safe, cared for, and adjusting to their new surroundings.
We provide Extended Case Management support including home visits and and regular follow-ups with the child and family, along with Supportive Service Coordination in the areas of: placement and stability, immigration proceedings, guardianship, legal services, education, medical + mental health services, family stabilization + counseling, substance abuse, and gang prevention – as needed.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who are unaccompanied children?
An unaccompanied child is someone who is under the age of 18 years old, has no legal status, and has no parent or legal guardian in the United States, or the parent or legal guardian is unavailable to provide physical custody or care.
Why are children arriving on their own?
Rampant poverty and violence are driving young people from Central America, with Guatemalans, Hondurans, and Salvadorans accounting for 85% of detained unaccompanied children. Another 12% come from Mexico, where the homicide rate hit a new high in 2019, in the midst of a long-standing war against drug cartels. Many children hope to reunite with relatives in the United States, but others deliberately leave their families behind, fleeing domestic abuse, criminal gangs, or local corruption.
– Council on Foreign Relations
What happens to detained children?
Most unaccompanied children are detained at or near the U.S. southern border, often turning themselves in to authorities. Under the Homeland Security Act of 2002, the Departments of Homeland Security (DHS) and Health and Human Services (HHS) share responsibility for unaccompanied children. These agencies must uphold the 1997 Flores Settlement outlines standards for the care of both accompanied and unaccompanied minors, including access to food and water, emergency medical services, bathroom facilities, and ventilated, temperature-controlled surroundings.
HHS must place children in the “least restrictive setting” possible, which often means group homes, foster care, or other facilities equipped to provide long-term childcare. HHS’s Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) then seeks to release children to sponsors, preferably parents, whom the agency screens for criminal history and fitness to provide care.
– Council on Foreign Relations
How can I refer a child/family for Family Reunification services?
At this time, we are only able to receive case referrals through LIRS and ORR-run shelters for unaccompanied migrant children. If you know of a child who was reunified with a sponsor and is in need of support, or of a family attempting to sponsor a child, please direct them to the ORR National Call Center.
With profound sorrow and outrage, we announce the unprecedented closure of two of our core Family Reunification programs: Fingerprinting and Case Management.
For over 22 years, our Fingerprinting Program has played a vital role in safely placing children in immigration proceedings with their loved ones. For six years, our Case Management Program has provided direct support to families navigating a complex and often inhumane immigration system. Due to drastic federal funding cuts impacting The Women’s Building, these essential programs are being forced to shut down—leaving countless children and families without critical support.
Let us be clear: these cuts are not just numbers on a budget sheet. They represent women and children fleeing domestic abuse, gang violence, gender-based violence, and human trafficking—all seeking a legal path to safety and stability in San Francisco and Northern California that now can’t be accomplished. These cuts do not just affect individuals; they endanger entire communities fighting against systemic violence and dispossession. The forced closure of these programs means many unaccompanied children will now be left alone to navigate a system that was never built to protect them.
The loss of these programs also means the loss of our beloved
compañeras, our allies, our friends—the dedicated staff who have worked
tirelessly to reunite families and provide stability in an increasingly hostile landscape.
We are operating in an economic and political climate that is actively working against us. Our resources are stretched thinner than ever, with more people needing urgent assistance while fewer staff and funds are available to help.
For over half a century, The Women’s Building has been a refuge and a force for resistance. We will not back down. But we cannot do this alone. We need your support—now more than ever.
We are calling on our community to come together and act now. These devastating cuts threaten the safety and well-being of countless women and children. But together, we can fight back. Your urgent financial support will help sustain this critical work—providing stability, protection, and a future for those most at risk.
We refuse to allow political attacks to dismantle essential services. No budget cut, no border, no policy shift can erase our histories, our solidarities, or our steadfast commitment to justice.
We will not back down. But we need your help.
Donate now to ensure women and families have access to the safety and support they need.
In solidarity,
Tania Estrada
Executive Director
The Women’s Building
P.S. Monthly donors help sustain our work beyond the crisis. Join us today.
Family Reunification Staff
Volunteer
Great volunteers make all of our services possible. If you have a few hours a week, you can help people with a wide range of skills and services that can change their lives for the better!