This page provides updates from our church staff regarding immigration enforcement activities and resources for our community, including updates for the congregation, ways to support immigrant families in our area, contact information for our state leaders and a sample letter to email and/or mail. The work we do as a community makes a difference. Thank you!

May 22, 2025 

Dear Friends,

We at First UMC have been dedicated to assisting immigrants and refugees for decades—from supplying office space and resources for the Cambodian congregation to providing time, energy, and resources to so many families arriving to pursue dreams of stability as they flee war, famine, and poverty in so many regions of the world. We assist because we know that each person is a beloved child of God and deserves dignity, respect, and the possibility of abundant life.

These past days we have witnessed an increase in ICE activity that we believe violates our biblical mandate to welcome the stranger. Earlier in the week we received news that ICE had detained a father of three children, and his brother and sister-in-law. This left the three children with their mother who had just returned from surgery the day before. The 12 year old daughter is now trying to manage caregiving and running the household. We have joined with many others to provide for their immediate needs—several have covered utilities, and advocates are requesting food and Wal-Mart gift certificates. First UMC is covering their rent with funds from our Refugee Ministries account.

On Tuesday, 11 ICE vehicles pulled into the parking lot of Central UMC on Albemarle Road as the children in the bilingual preschool were about to be dismissed. The staff brought them back inside, and each parent came in one by one to retrieve their child. One car was pulled over and the person questioned for about 30 minutes, and then allowed to continue on. The intimidation tactic succeeded: a third of the children did not come back to school on Wednesday.

Our Metro District Superintendent called a clergy meeting Wednesday morning to brief us on this incident and to help us prepare for possible ICE presence on our campuses. We already have a policy in place that only the ministerial staff is allowed to speak to ICE agents, and they are not allowed in any of our private spaces—which include our parking lots, CDC, offices, etc. If they want to worship, we can ask them to leave their weapons and badges in their vehicles. If they do come in, the main requirement is that we record everything, and go on record as denying them access if they don’t have the proper documentation. We now have new signs around the building designating our campus as private space.
 
We are in some chilling times! But there are some hopeful signs: our County Commissioners decried the actions of ICE around schools and churches, and are uniting with other groups to find alternatives to this intimidation and lack of due process.

Please join with others in our denomination in contacting our elected officials and requesting their support of efforts to limit the activity of ICE agents in our county, and in our country.

Blessings,
Val

The Charlotte Observer online, By Ryan Oehrli, May 23, 2025

Methodists to ICE in Charlotte: Our churches are not your staging ground

A local Methodist conference criticized Immigration and Customs Enforcement for its presence at an east Charlotte church this week. Armed agents “staged an operation” at Central United Methodist Church when preschoolers were being picked up, according to a statement from the Western North Carolina Conference of The United Methodist Church.

“While no one was detained and the agents eventually departed without incident, their presence on sacred ground disrupted the peace and instilled fear among staff, children, families, and congregants,” the statement said. Carolina Migrant Network, an organization that provides legal services, notified the public about ICE’s presence there on Tuesday. At a county commission meeting that evening, Commissioner Susan Rodriguez-McDowell called on ICE to “respect sensitive locations,” including the church. A spokesperson for ICE has not commented on the agency’s presence there. The Charlotte Observer again reached out Friday morning. “ICE enforcement activity on our church property interferes with our ability to welcome the stranger, serve our neighbors, and carry out the ministries that are central to our faith,” the conference said. “Churches should not be staging grounds for law enforcement. They are sacred spaces where the hurting find healing, the hungry are fed, and families — regardless of immigration status — come seeking peace.” Conference is already suing In February, that Huntersville-based conference joined dozens of Christian and Jewish denominations in suing the federal government.

The conference “faces an imminent risk of an immigration enforcement action at its churches,” according to the lawsuit. “Several of WNCC’s congregations have a heavy percentage of immigrant members and immigrants who benefit from social service ministries — such as ESL classes, soup kitchens, food pantries, clothing pantries, mobile showers, and tutoring programs — that they provide on their church campuses.” The conference has said it joined the lawsuit not for partisan reasons but because ICE of rescinding a policy that protected churches, and put congregations “at imminent risk of ICE raids that would disrupt worship, community service, and pastoral care.”

NC Governor Josh Stein


NC Senator Thom Tillis


NC Senator Ted Budd


NC Representative Alma Adams

NC General Assembly Main Contact Information

  • General Information: (919) 733-4111

  • Website: www.ncleg.gov

NC Key Leadership Contacts

Charlotte Mayor Vi Lyles

Sample letter to the NC leaders; feel free to copy and/or edit

As members of the United Methodist Church in North Carolina, we write with deep concern about reports of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operations targeting schools in our communities. We urgently request your immediate action to protect our children and preserve the sanctity of educational spaces.

Schools must remain safe havens for all children, regardless of immigration status. When ICE conducts enforcement activities at or near schools, it creates an atmosphere of fear that disrupts learning, traumatizes students, and undermines the fundamental purpose of education. Children should never fear that attending school could result in family separation.

We ask you to:

  • Publicly oppose ICE enforcement activities at schools, school bus stops, and school-sponsored events

  • Work with federal authorities to reinstate and strengthen sensitive locations policies that protect educational institutions

  • Support legislation that formally designates schools as protected spaces

  • Advocate for comprehensive immigration reform that addresses root causes of family separation

Our faith calls us to welcome the stranger and protect the vulnerable. Every child deserves to learn in an environment free from fear. We trust in your leadership to stand with our communities and ensure that North Carolina's schools remain places of safety, learning, and hope for all children.

We respectfully request a response outlining the steps you will take to address this critical issue affecting our students, families, and communities.

In faith and solidarity,