Earlier this year, three St. Louis-area mothers found themselves preparing for childbirth while also navigating the detention of their husbands by immigration authorities. For volunteers with nonprofit Abide in Love St. Louis, the question was simple: What would they need if they were in the same position?
For volunteer Kaitlyn Gresham, the answer started with a single diaper delivery. She responded to a request to bring supplies to a pregnant mother who couldn’t easily leave her home. “It was an easy thing to jump in and do,” Gresham says.
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The need quickly grew well beyond a single delivery, and a much larger effort took shape. Volunteers collected diapers, formula, and baby clothes; organized a community-wide, virtual baby shower; and assembled care packages for the three expectant mothers. As more families were referred by school social workers, immigrant advocacy organizations, and other community partners, those deliveries evolved into ongoing relationships with families navigating immigration detention.
“We thought, ‘Oh my goodness,’” Gresham recalls. “What a wild situation to be in where your husband is recently detained, you have other kids, and a baby on the way very soon. Many of us are moms, too. We had to help.”
A volunteer network built around practical support
Founded in October 2025, Abide in Love St. Louis is a volunteer-led nonprofit that supports immigrant families affected by immigration detention, deportation, and displacement. An affiliate of the original Abide in Love organization in Rolla, the St. Louis chapter works directly with families to provide what it describes as wraparound support during times of crisis. The organization does not ask about the immigration status of the families it serves.
That support looks different for every family. Volunteers deliver groceries, diapers, and household necessities. They help cover rent and utility bills when possible, connect families with legal and community resources, provide transportation, and assist parents as they navigate everything from locating a detained loved one to preparing for a new baby.
“We really come alongside families on a one-on-one basis to troubleshoot whatever it is they’re experiencing during this time of transition and crisis,” Gresham says.
For the three expectant mothers, volunteers quickly began gathering newborn essentials. Gresham also reached out to Women of Welcome St. Louis, a network of women from various faith backgrounds, with an idea: Host a baby shower.
Members purchased items from a list of requested supplies, wrote encouraging notes to the mothers and assembled care packages that volunteers later delivered.
“We’ve all welcomed babies ourselves,” Gresham says. “We know what a vulnerable time that is in general. Stepping in to fill that gap was really the goal.”
When one parent disappears overnight
The number of people being held in ICE detention at the Greene County Jail in southwest Missouri has risen in recent weeks. According to data compiled by the Southern Missouri Immigration Alliance and community leaders, 362 people were being held there in ICE detention as of July 13, up from 290 on June 30—a nearly 25 percent increase in less than two weeks. The organization reported that 350 of the 362 detainees had no charges listed against them.
Gresham says many of the families Abide in Love serves experience immediate financial and logistical challenges after a parent is detained. In many cases, the detained parent was the family’s primary wage earner. The remaining parent may suddenly be responsible for several children while facing housing insecurity, transportation challenges, and limited access to public assistance.
“They’re facing eviction really quickly,” Gresham says. “All of a sudden they’re realizing, ‘I’m not going to make next month’s rent. I’m going to be evicted with my kids, and I have a newborn or a baby on the way.’”
Many families also spend days trying to determine where a loved one is being held. “When people are detained and taken, they’re not even told where they are or how to find them,” Gresham says. “Families sometimes go days not knowing what has happened.”
Abide in Love helps connect those families with organizations that can assist in locating detained relatives while volunteers work to meet more immediate needs at home.
More than a delivery
Although much of the organization’s work begins with tangible needs, Gresham says the relationships often evolve into something less formal.
The text messages she receives aren’t always about groceries or diapers. “Sometimes the texts are just, ‘My baby feels a little warmer than he should. Do you think this is a big deal?’” she says. “It’s those conversations that I’m having with my friends every day.”
Those exchanges remind her that, despite vastly different circumstances, many parts of motherhood are universal.
“As moms, we tend to see all kids as our kids,” she says. “We’re gathering around these families and these kids and supporting each other through this.”
Before volunteering with Abide in Love, Gresham spent years leading an international nonprofit that worked with families experiencing extreme poverty. That experience introduced her to many of the economic and political factors that contribute to migration.
She says volunteering locally has made those issues feel much more personal. “The only difference between me and these moms is that I was born two hours north of the border,” she says. “It changes the entire trajectory of our lives.”
She describes that realization as “the luck of geography.”
Although many of Gresham’s volunteer experiences are memorable, one continues to stand out. Gresham was part of a volunteer effort supporting the father of a 3-month-old baby after the child’s nursing mother was detained. Volunteers worked together to make sure the infant had everything needed while the family navigated the separation.
“It was like an army of mothers mobilized to step in where this mom had been taken,” she says. “If I were that mom and knew there was an army of moms around my baby, I’d feel at least a little bit better.”
Gresham recognizes that immigration remains one of the country’s most debated issues, but her hope is that people also take time to understand the day-to-day realities facing local families affected by detention. “I just encourage people to ask deeper questions,” she says. “Learn the context behind these issues.”
She also hopes St. Louisans remember that the families Abide in Love serves are already part of the community. “These families are contributing to our communities,” she says. “They’re hard workers. They love their kids. They want what’s best for their families and their neighbors.”
Abide in Love St. Louis is seeking volunteers to deliver food, transport supplies, help families navigate practical needs, and assist with fundraising as demand for services continues to grow. The organization also speaks to churches, schools, and community groups interested in learning more about its work. More information, visit abideinlovestl.org.
