We started and ended our day with a “divide and conquer” plan of attack. In the morning, by splitting the team in half so that one could search while the other repaired water stations. At the end of the day, by tackling the grocery store run at breakneck speed before going to get food at one of the few restaurants still open until 10pm here.
Erica painting new barrels
Erica and I were on the water station repair team with Eddie. After painting a handful of new barrels and running to Walmart for 100 gallon jugs of water (we had to ask for a pallet of cases), we loaded up the truck and headed out. After the huge accomplishment of the whole team building 13 stations on Monday, the three of us were pretty proud of ourselves for doing a route refurbishing and refilling 12 existing stations. Although Eddie had checked it just last week, we still ended up putting out 30 jugs of water – which means the barrels are well placed to be seen and used by migrants. Since most of the barrels were put on the route almost 5 years ago, we also spent a lot of time updating them: replacing barrels, cracked lids and dried out ropes, and stabilizing them with T-posts while taking down old flag poles for repair back at the STHRC.
Tuesday has been both the hottest and longest day we’ve had yet, starting with our alarms going off at 5:30 am. Wednesday, predicted to be even hotter, will start bright and early at 5am so we can get out on the ranch and continue searching as soon as there’s enough light.
Day 4!
You can tell we’re halfway through the trip and starting to feel it, in the quietness at mealtimes and in the car as everyone conserves their energy and thoughts. For me, the mental strain is almost as strong as the physical – but while my body can be replenished fairly rapidly with food, water, and shade, being hyper-alert and mentally active for such long periods of time leaves me snatching moments of peace and quiet when I can find them to just “be”, without trying to remember all the things I feel like I keep losing track of, or constantly watching the brush for signs of human presence.
Two more days of work, and then a day of travel. Though it will be tough, I have no doubts our energy and sheer tenacity of will will carry us through these last few days. Wish us luck!
Another day in Falfurrias has passed us by and what a productive one it’s been! We started at the human rights center this morning to meet up with Eddie and discuss the day’s activities. Today was the day we would be going on to the Ranch to build all of the water stations that we fundraised for. We packed up all of the supplies we needed, headed out to the ranch, and was first met with a lot of cows! We saw them throughout the day everywhere we went, and while they were curious they kept their distance.
The team setting up a flag indicating a water station location
We then began building our first water station from scratch. It was slow going at first, but with each station we became more proficient and became comfortable with our individual roles during the process. After about six water stations we headed back to the human rights center to eat lunch and gather more supplies. We wasted no time getting back on the ranch and right back to work, timing how fast we could build a water station as if we were part of a pit crew in our own version of the Indy 500.
Deputy Don stuck “Deep in the heart of Texas”
The second half of the day brought us to a section of the ranch that was too sandy for our vehicle, so Rachel and myself traveled with Eddie and Don in their trucks to put up a water station there while the rest of the crew searched another area. Setting up the water station went well but when we tried to leave Don’s truck got stuck in the loose sand! It took a bit of team work, some digging, a lot of sticks, and a tow strap but we were finally able to move out of the sand and back to the rest of our team.
Happy with our recoveries!
We then all loaded up in the trucks and drove to a less sandy area to set up our final water station. By the end of the day, we surpassed our goal of setting up ten water stations reaching a total of thirteen! We were also so excited to leave the Ranch with our arms full of bones from cow skeletons we found throughout the day.
Today we were able to experience a little bit of everything: we built water stations in the ever-present Texas heat, searched through sections of sandy soil, dealt with spiders, bees, chiggers, and ticks, and we saw, identified and collected quite a few (cow) bones. We are so proud of all we were able to achieve, but the reason for our work here has not been lost on us. The water stations we built today may save lives. The searches we conduct may help bring loved ones back to their families. Did we put in a lot of work today? Absolutely, but our work here is not finished. We’ve reached one goal but we’re only just getting started.
We are nearing the end of Day 2 of our trip and my-oh-my has this experience been so unique from my previous experiences in South Texas! Because our goals are so different than a normal field or lab season, we have had the wonderful opportunity to converse and work closely with some of the individuals who live, work, and breathe the immigration crisis every day. Through this work and all of these conversations, I have already learned an incredible amount about some of the nuances of what it is like to live and work in Brooks County from multiple perspectives in just the last two days, and I can’t imagine what the rest of the week has in store for us.
Preparing new water stations at the STHRC
Yesterday began at the South Texas Human Rights Center (STHRC)where Eddie led a conversation about the work that he does every day and the obstacles he faces along the way. What really struck me during this conversation was how complex the social and political environment is in South Texas and just how many different organizations are involved in the humanitarian crisis here. Each of these organizations, such as Border Patrol, the Sheriff’s Department, and the STHRC, has their own goals and, therefore, their own perspective, complicating their ability to coordinate their efforts. Furthermore, each organization also has their own experience and areas of expertise, which can make it difficult to understand each other and work together. This point was made clear as I listened to Dr. Latham explain to Eddie the reasons behind the amount of time it takes to obtain DNA results from bone samples, as DNA is one of Dr. Latham’s areas of expertise and is something that Eddie likely has not had direct experience with. Until having this conversation with Eddie, I had not fully realized just how political the relationships between organizations can be and how difficult it can be to navigate those relationships. While listening to his words, I reminded myself that, although the UIndy team is here to volunteer for a week, Eddie’s passion for helping migrants drove him to come out of retirement to volunteer all of his time to this cause through the creation of the STHRC, and that he lives this crisis every day.
Eddie checking one of his water stations
Our team has also had the opportunity to spend time and converse with “Deputy Don,” a local sheriff department Deputy who has been accompanying us. Yesterday, Don rode in the mini-van with some of us (and with his big gun) as we checked the water stations on various ranches in Brooks County, and filled the time in between each stop with stories of some of the experiences he has had searching for, rescuing, and recovering the remains of migrants in and around Falfurrias. As we drove along, Don pointed out very specific locations where he had discovered both living and deceased migrants, often associating each location with a detailed memory of the circumstances that surrounded each recovery. Some stories had a happy ending, where an individual was found on the brink of death and was saved; other stories were much more difficult to hear. Listening to his stories, I realized that Don could recall details about each and every recovery, an indication that this is not just a job for him. Similar to Eddie, Don lives with this humanitarian crisis every day and is working within his organization to not only do his job, but to help save the lives of those in peril and to help give a name back to those who have already perished.
“Deputy Don” and his big gun
As we were driving through the ranches both yesterday and today, I also happened to notice that Don knew the location of all of the water stations that Eddie had set up on these ranches, a fact that surprised me. This was obviously not Don’s first time visiting the water stations. To me, this was a great example of two very different organizations with different goals working together; the Sheriff’s department, run by law enforcement employees, and the STHRC, run by a very dedicated volunteer. Though their immediate goals, personal experience, and areas of expertise may differ greatly, and though those differences may sometimes cause friction, there was an obvious respect and a mutual understanding of the nature of the humanitarian crisis and the work that needs to be done to help solve it. I feel that I am only beginning to scratch the surface of understanding the complexity of the political and social environment that surrounds this humanitarian crisis, and hope that our continued work with both Don and Eddie this week will bring more insight into life as a humanitarian in Brooks County.
