Ajo Samaritans Newsletter - Winter 2024

​Dear Supporters of Ajo Samaritans,
The summer of 2024 brought record breaking heat to the Arizona borderlands. Despite this, a small group of intrepid volunteers continued providing humanitarian aid.

In the Ajo corridor, between July 1 and November 30 the Ajo Samaritans with the support of many allied individuals and groups hiked into the desert and left 137 gallons of water along with food, medical supplies and other humanitarian aid
items. We maintained the Ajo humanitarian aid office open hours on most Friday and Saturday mornings, allowing residents and visitors access to humanitarian aid information.

In addition to the heat this summer, Ajo experienced an extreme wind event that damaged the roof of “the barn” which is a humanitarian aid station maintained by the Ajo Samaritans and used by many groups and individuals. We were able
to have the roof repaired in order to continue to provide a staging place for humanitarian work in our area, thanks to your donations and ongoing support.

The Ajo Samaritans collaborate with many other groups. Sadly, the extreme weather in our area causes some desert travelers to get lost or left behind. Across the summer several Search and Rescue groups including the Aguilas del
Desierto and the Blue Armadillos came to the Ajo corridor to look for individuals who were known to have gone missing in our area. Individuals from the Ajo Samaritans joined in some of these searches. Here is a link to a news story about one of those searches which gives you a sense of the vastness and heat of the summer Sonoran Desert as well as the heartbreak of the families missing their loved ones.

In October, the Ajo Samaritans welcomed a group from Brophy College Preparatory in Phoenix. The eight students and 2 staff members accompanied Samaritan facilitators on a desert water drop and left 17 gallons of water to help prevent migrant suffering and death. Hosting groups like these helps us to focus on the part of our mission which is educating ourselves and others about the need for a humanitarian rather than a militarized response in our borderlands. As we gear up for the busy winter season in Ajo, we will begin monthly public trainings and orientations in December. These trainings provide information to visitors, community members and potential new volunteers about the humanitarian needs in the borderlands and how we, as an organization, choose to respond. We focus on our values of nonviolence, consent, transparency, solidarity and respect for human rights and we encourage like-minded individuals to join our work.

Now, as we approach this holiday season, we hope that you’ll consider donating to help us continue our work. Your donations help us buy food, water and medical supplies. They help us maintain our humanitarian spaces. They allow us
to support the groups like the Search and Rescue groups mentioned above. Donations keep our vehicles repaired and fueled up. And, in particular, if you are interested in donating or helping to fund the purchase of a desert worthy vehicle
(reliable 4 wheel drive and high clearance, functioning air conditioner, room for both passengers and gear), please let us know! You can get in touch with us at [email protected] . You can donate via our website: https://www.ajosamaritans.com. You can also mail a donation to: Ajo Samaritans; PO Box 793; Ajo, AZ 85321

The Humanitarian Aid Office
Also, as we continue to add to our volunteer base, the Ajo Samaritans, in collaboration with many other humanitarian groups (Border Angels, No More Deaths Phoenix, No More Deaths Tucson, Border Relief Collective) are working to set up advanced first aid trainings for our groups. Since our work often takes us into remote desert locations, we encounter individuals with a variety of medical conditions. We support our members in becoming certified as Wilderness First Responders. This involves online work as well as taking a week-long in-person intensive training course, and is a great opportunity for different aid groups to learn life-saving skills together. If you are interested in supporting humanitarian workers receiving this training, please consider donating at: https://gofund.me/cd4add1f

And whether or not you are able to donate, we hope you will help change the narrative about people moving through our borderlands. In these days, in which so much language in the press and even by public officials is demonizing individuals that are migrating in search of a safe and stable life, we hope you will encourage your friends, family and others you may engage with to remember that all humans are worthy and deserving of basic human rights and dignity.
​
Love and Peace,
Ajo Samaritans