Senior Moments

By Audrey Larkin; Interim Senior Program Coordinator

Audrey@ipcboston.org

Call: 617-265-5300 Ext. 13

Cara Club

Our Brown Bag Auction at Cara Club created a bidding frenzy among the group on Monday afternoon, which brought great enjoyment to everyone present. One of our many regulars, Peg Daley, celebrated her birthday on Monday and received plenty of good wishes from all. Volunteer Kevin o’Sullivan once again provided great entertainment by telling jokes followed by a sing-song with lots of our members equally displaying their vocal talents, including Mike Finnerty and his wonderful rendition of “Delilah”.

Café Eireann

Seniors at Cafe Eireann enjoyed freshly baked breads on Wednesday morning before demonstrating their skills at bidding in the Brown Bag Auction. Once again, this light hearted event provided lots of fun and amusement. We would like to thank everyone at both Café Eireann and Cara Club who donated all items and to those who participated in the auction to make each one a great success and thoroughly enjoyable.

Monthly Mass and Luncheon at ICCNE

On Thursday we held our first monthly Mass and luncheon of 2015 at the ICCNE in Canton. This event is always well attended and we are very grateful to all the volunteers who help run it so smoothly. Next month’s Mass will be held on Thursday February 19, and we urge anyone who would like to attend to call the RSVP line early to put their names in the list. You can call the RSVP line on 855-479-2472.



Immigration and U.S. Citizenship News

By Kieran C. O’ Sullivan; Immigration Counselor

kieran@ipcboston.org

Call: 617-265-5300 Ext. 16

Immigration Reform & Legal Clinic: Feb. 3rd, Dorchester.

We will be having another workshop on deferred action on Feb. 3rd, 2015, and we are very anxious to hear from people who have questions on the deferred action announced by President Obama on November 20th, 2014. Among the key questions are the following:

Do you have a child born in the U.S.?

Deferred action allows eligible parents of children who are U.S. citizens or legal residents to obtain employment status.

Have you been present in the U.S. since Jan. 1, 2010?

Applicants for deferred action must be able to document they have been present in the U.S. since Jan. 1, 2010. Some people think that this might be difficult if you were residing here undocumented, but it is not. We have a number of strategies for people who need to document presence. Evidence could include items like bank statements/letters, school transcripts, medical/dental records, rent receipts, leases/tenant at will agreements, insurance policies, utility bills.

Applying for deferred action: The application forms have not been released yet but eligible parents are encouraged to attend our workshop and get more information on how easy it is to apply for this program.

Arrests and eligibility matters: Anyone with an arrest or convictions needs to present related paperwork to attorneys before applying for any kind of status. Undocumented immigrants who don’t have children are not eligible for the relief announced by President Obama in November. Undocumented immigrants who do have U.S. born children or legal permanent resident children but who entered the U.S. after January 1, 2010 are not eligible for this particular relief.

Advocacy groups are continuing to lobby for more comprehensive reforms. Stay in touch with the IPC because we will monitor progress on immigration reform in Congress. See our website and facebook pages for more information.

Travel Warning: It will be some time before applications are filed and approved and employment cards issued to eligible immigrants. Immigrants are always warned to seek advice before traveling overseas or applying for any immigration benefit.

U.S. citizenship and marriage immigration cases: We will continue to provide information and assistance at our monthly clinics on general visa topics, U.S. citizenship applications and legal permanent residency applications based on marriage.

WARNING – IRS SCAM

The IRS released a warning that a phone scam targeting taxpayers has been in operation. People impersonating IRS officials are attempting to defraud people by telling them they owe additional taxes to the IRS, in some cases, threatening arrest and try to get them to pay over the phone

Taxpayers should remember their first contact with the IRS will not be a phone call, but through official correspondence sent through the mail.

Please note also, the IRS

· Never asks for credit card, debit card or prepaid card information over the telephone.

· Never insists that taxpayers use a specific payment method to pay tax obligations

· Never requests immediate payment over the telephone and will not take enforcement action immediately following a phone conversation. Taxpayers usually receive prior notification of IRS enforcement action involving IRS tax liens or levies.

If you have received a call from, hang up immediately and contact the IRS yourself