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Marissa Flores Madden first met Uliana* at a community resource fair connecting locals to resources that could benefit newly arriving Ukrainians finding their way to Sedalia, Missouri.  

Since the Russian invasion of Ukraine and subsequent war, around eight million Ukrainians have fled their home country seeking refugee status across Europe and the United States.

Marissa Flores Madden first met Uliana* at a community resource fair connecting locals to resources that could benefit newly arriving Ukrainians finding their way to Sedalia, Missouri.  

Marissa is a Department of Justice (DOJ) Accredited Representative working on immigration cases in the Family Immigration Services program at Catholic Charities. Uliana is a Ukrainian who fled her homeland with her husband, against the backdrop of war, their three children in tow.  

Not long after meeting, Uliana called Marissa with disappointing news: the Temporary Protected Status (TPS) application the family had submitted had been rejected by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).  

Catholic Charities Family Immigration Services has worked with refugees from Ukraine and the surrounding region since 1989, but the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February of 2022 amplified the urgency – and frequency – of cases coming to Marissa’s desk.  

“While our staff have always been able to build meaningful relationships with clients over time, we’ve seen such an influx of cases from Ukrainian refugees, that I sometimes only have the chance to meet face-to-face with clients just once,” Marissa shared.  

And she makes each meeting count.  

Temporary Protected Status (TPS) is designated for specific countries and bound by a specific period of time by the U.S. government. As the name implies, the status temporarily protects recipients from being detained or deported and includes provision for work authorizations.  

The applications themselves can be tedious and challenging to complete correctly, even more so if the individual filing the application is not proficient in English. They also require a submission fee which can cost as much as five hundred dollars for each person.  

“In cases like Uliana’s, where an individual or family attempted to submit their own application without help from an immigration office, many times the application was rejected,” Marissa shared, “which is not only an emotional blow but also a strain on the family’s time and very limited finances.”  

Marissa met with Uliana and her husband in her office in Jefferson City, where the couple laid out their papers and the three of them got to work filling out the correct forms, including a fee waiver to help the family save precious dollars they would need for groceries, housing, and other expenses.  

Uliana’s family still has a long road ahead of them. Even if their TPS application is approved, it is set to expire in October of 2023. With little hope of returning safely to their home country, they can explore a very narrow pathway to permanent lawful residence or citizenship in the United States.  

“The immigration system is incredibly hard to navigate; it’s a painful and prolonged process,” Marissa said, “Uliana’s family are the ‘lucky ones’ who are here safely, with a plan; not all of my clients have the same comfort.”  

The immigration system is incredibly hard to navigate; it’s a painful and prolonged process.

– MARISSA FLORES MADDEN

While they await case updates, they are still faced with rebuilding their lives in a new country.  

“We’re accompanying them through this complex system, each step along the way, and trying to help them figure out the other systems that overlap with their immigration needs,” Marissa continued, “and while we hope for the best outcomes, sometimes the only thing we can do is wait – together.”