SALT LAKE CITY — The congressional budget office estimates 3.3 million immigrants will come across U.S. borders this year, and the government assigns many of them a court hearing to determine if they’ll stay and where they’ll go.
As I found out, this is a major undertaking, especially in cases where immigrants from south of the border don’t speak any common languages like English or even Spanish.
That’s where a former missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints found a niche.
Jace Norton served an LDS mission to Guatemala in 2010 and began in thE Spanish language, but was quickly assigned to speak a Mayan language called Qeqchi.
"It was an amazing experience, being able to learn Qeqchi. being able
to access this culture that most people have never heard of," said Norton. "They're amazing people."
When he returned to the U.S. in 2012, Norton thought he might not ever use the language again, until he heard of the demand for an interpreter for anyone who knew any of the 22 or more Mayan languages.
"They were flying me out to New York City, Miami, Houston, San Francisco, pretty much every major city, I was doing six-to-10 cases per week for them all over the United States," he explained.
The demand is so high that Norton was asked if he could get a bigger group together to help.
"So I said, Well, you know, I know a lot of guys just like me who are returned missionaries who served in Guatemala who have learned Kechi, and I can do something about it," Norton said.
Norton went on to start a company called Maya Bridge Language Services. They do much of their work with unaccompanied minors, where Office of Refugee Resettlement caseworkers have the tough task of ensuring a child’s U.S. sponsor is a safe person to be with and that they won’t wind up in human trafficking.
"Those kids just, you know, can end up in foster care," he said. "There's no way for them to communicate. Who are you supposed to go with,
right? Or who is this person? So, they might not be able to get reunified
with somebody that otherwise know where they're going.
"These populations, indigenous speakers, they're the ones that
are coming most frequently to the United States. Because they're the ones that are the most impoverished, they have the least opportunity. And they are the ones that are most desperate for a change."
The interpreters have to be legally authorized to work in the United States, which is a tough task when indigenous languages are only spoken in isolated parts of Central America.
Maya Bridge now employs dozens of former missionaries who speak most of the dialects, and some Mayans who now live in the U.S. legally who’ve learned English.
Former missionaries like Francisco Jesus from central Guatemala. His native tongue is a little-known language called Kanjobal, spoken only in his town of Soloma, Hueheutenango.
Jesus came to the country 16 years ago to work and help support his mother and sisters in Soloma.
"It's because it's better because of the opportunity of United States," he said. "People we come here and we work so hard."
Now with a family of his own to support in the U.S., Jesus still sends back at least 30 percent of what he earns.
"We have to send some some money for for everything, even if they need to go to the doctor for food for this for that. So that's what we
do," Jesus explained.
Norton says he feels a calling to help with a language so rarely spoken.
"I mean, it's incredible, and it's definitely the most heartwarming
part of this job," he said. "All of a sudden, you have somebody that can speak their language. You know, they're obviously very excited. Especially if it's somebody like myself, who doesn't look like I should be able to speak their language, they're kind of surprised and I think it's kind of funny."
Norton says Maya Bridge has helped thousand of children and adults communicate in the court system, many of whom may not be able to stay in the United States, but he hopes all of them understand decisions made and can communicate their real story when their case comes up for a hearing.
