Abara

Abara border encounters (also known as "listening trips") are three day educational immersion experiences designed for students, faith leaders, and groups of all stripes to re-humanize relationships outside the news cycle. These encounters are an invitation to listen, learn, and reflect on what the border can teach us, who we are meant to become, and how we can engage closer to home. Through a border encounter, we want hear differently as we connect across divides. We desire to sit with our neighbors, stand with one voice, and walk with those who sojourn over many miles in search of refuge, safety, and wholeness.

Abara is linked with 20+ migrant shelters on both sides of the rio grande. Abara partners with local leaders to facilitate connections through hospitality, advocacy, and friendship. Abara collaborates with faith networks, ngos, and residents who accompany asylum seekers. Team Abara is resourcing shelter leaders, welcoming new arrivals, and assisting migrant entrepreneurs.