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Indiana church expects more for immigration help

LOGANSPORT, Ind. - A northern Indiana church that's been helping immigrants achieve citizenship is preparing for even more requests for assistance after President Barack Obama's executive order for immigration system changes.

The Bridge Community Church in Logansport started its immigration legal clinic in February, helping clients with the paperwork necessary for citizenship applications.

Church members applied to the program offered by the U.S. Department of Justice's Board of Immigration Appeals because they wanted to assist people through the "confusing labyrinth" of the immigration system, Pastor Zach Szmara told the Pharos-Tribune.

Since opening, the clinic has helped more than 100 people in communities such as Logansport, Noblesville, Delphi, Monticello, Peru and Marion. Szmara said those people are from 14 countries, including India, Burma, the United Kingdom, Kenya and Colombia.

"Sometimes we're helping people cross the finish line" to citizenship, Szmara said. "Other times we're helping them get started and other times we're giving them the honest truth."

Obama's executive action is expected to shield about 5 million people from deportation. The measures would apply to parents of U.S. citizens or of legal permanent residents. Obama also expanded a program designed to extend deportation protections to immigrants who entered the U.S. illegally as children.

Szmara said more volunteers are being sought for the Logansport clinic to help handle more requests from immigrants who might be covered by Obama's orders.

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