A Heart for Newcomers

Terri Morris Downs

Before she was offered the role of Executive Director of the Immigrant Welcome Center and before the Immigrant Welcome Center even existed, Terri Morris Downs worked in Mayor Bart Peterson’s office. They created something called the Natural Helpers Program, which featured immigrant volunteers helping other immigrants and refugees transitioning to life in Indianapolis. “We were sure that we wanted this program to continue in perpetuity and beyond the Peterson administration,” says Terri. “We became a 501(c)(3) organization so that we could find grant funding to be able to grow the program and not use public funding for it.” And, thus, the Immigrant Welcome Center was birthed.

Since those early days, the Immigrant Welcome Center has maintained a robust partnership with Neighborhood Christian Legal Clinic. “We found that working with newcomers in Indianapolis, many of them had lots of legal needs. And we started doing a lot of referrals to the Clinic because of their reputation and because they were there to help people who otherwise could not afford legal representation,” says Terri. “I was drawn to the Clinic not just because of their Christian values, but the fact that they were one of very few legal aid organizations that would also help immigrants with their legal needs.”

This partnership took on a more personal connection for Terri and her husband Timothy over the years. “They are really committed to the dignity of every human being and making sure that their legal needs are getting addressed, consistently going above and beyond … And I just thought, ‘Where would our organization be without a strong community partner in legal aid?’ And so that’s why it was important to me to begin personally supporting the work of the Neighborhood Christian Legal Clinic.” Since that time, Terri and her husband have supported our work by making annual gifts and attending our Justice for All Gala. 

Although Terri is soon stepping down from her role as Executive Director of the Immigrant Welcome Center, ready for a change in her career, her heart’s purpose has not changed. “It’s very important to know that I will be able to continue to make some sort of social impact in human services because that is a core value of mine and who I am,” she says. “So I’m very, very grateful for all the time here at the Immigrant Welcome Center and what we have been able to do to really build Indianapolis into a community that includes and welcomes everyone.”

Terri encourages others to support those organizations and people who are similarly fighting for a better Indianapolis. “I see every day the need for low-cost legal services for so many people in our community who have rights and may not understand those rights or may not know how to exercise those rights and may be taken advantage of by other people,” she says. “And when there is an organization like the Neighborhood Christian Legal Clinic that does this life-changing work in such a compassionate manner, it is most certainly worthy of my financial support and yours too.”

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