A Catholic ministry in El Paso, Texas, that has provided legal help to hundreds of thousands of immigrants over four decades says it is on the brink of shutting down because the Trump administration has withheld more than $765,000 in reimbursements.
Estrella del Paso, formerly known as Diocesan Migrant and Refugee Services, has seen its cash reserves depleted since payments stopped arriving in December 2025, according to executive director Melissa Lopez.
Lopez told EWTN News Estrella del Paso offers a broad range of services, providing every type of legal immigration representation, including aiding asylum seekers, those in immigration detention seeking to be released on bond, and people applying for residency and naturalization.
The organization serves more than 40,000 people annually and is one of the largest providers of legal services to unaccompanied immigrant children in the country.
The group is currently providing legal help to around 300 minors, though the number fluctuates frequently, Lopez said.
She warned that “a significant number of people will be impacted if the program ceases to exist,” leaving tens of thousands of immigrants without representation in complex immigration proceedings.
“Navigating the immigration system right now is incredibly difficult,” she continued. “Even when someone is represented, outcomes are not always ideal.”
Many of those currently being helped would face deportation and even worse consequences, Lopez said.
“The outcome of many cases without some form of legal assistance is very dire,” she said. “We are talking about life and death consequences for some individuals we currently provide services to, if we were to cease to exist.”
The ministry was founded in 1986 and began specializing in cases involving unaccompanied children in 2007. It operates as one of the primary nonprofit immigration legal aid providers in the El Paso region.
A preliminary injunction issued by U.S. District Judge Araceli Martínez-Olguín in the Northern District of California in April 2025 had blocked the Trump administration’s attempt to cut funding for legal services for unaccompanied minors. However, advocates say the government has continued to withhold payments in violation of that order.
Estrella del Paso and 10 other legal aid providers have asked Martínez-Olguín to hold the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) in contempt of court. A hearing on the request is scheduled for July 16.
A 2008 federal law aimed at protecting victims of human trafficking requires the government to ensure, “to the greatest extent practicable,” that unaccompanied children in the custody of the Department of Homeland Security have access to legal counsel in immigration proceedings. Without the access the law provides, minors would be responsible for navigating the immigration court system by themselves.
However, the Trump administration has argued that funding for these services is discretionary rather than mandatory.
The situation is particularly urgent because unaccompanied minors are reportedly being detained and deported at roughly three times the rate seen during the first Trump administration, according to a recent analysis by ProPublica.
Lopez emphasized the broader issues impacting not only minors but also “all of the vulnerable people who come to us seeking legal representation.”
“It is an issue of family unity, keeping families together, and ensuring people are treated with dignity and respect,” she said.
Estrella del Paso has launched an emergency fundraising campaign to try to bridge the funding gap caused by the withheld reimbursements.
Lopez said she hopes to raise about $500,000 through private donations as well as through grants and requests to philanthropic organizations.
“We don’t want people to feel they have to make a huge donation,” she said. “Even a small donation makes an impact.”
The Administration for Children and Families at HHS told EWTN News it does not comment on matters subject to ongoing litigation.
