Our Immigration Legal Services (ILS) team is strengthened by volunteers who bring decades of wisdom, compassion and legal expertise to our clients. We’re thrilled to highlight two retired attorneys whose pro bono service is helping Catholic Charities meet growing needs with dignity and care.
(Pictured, Vincent Salvi, right and client, Sabrina Ibrahimkhai (left))
At Catholic Charities of Oregon, our volunteers make it possible to keep immigration legal help affordable and accessible to those who need it most. Among them are two retired attorneys who have chosen to share not only their time but decades of hard-won experience: Vincent Salvi and Suzanne Calver.
Vincent Salvi: Paying It Forward
After nearly five decades in law as a public defender, corporate counsel, legislative representative and attorney for the Oregon Department of Justice and other roles, Vincent Salvi could have taken retirement as a chance to rest. Instead, he followed a lifelong instinct to “pay back and do good.”
“I grew up in a household that quietly encouraged me to give back as part of my religious beliefs. My interest in law was part of that pay back,” he says.
A month into retirement, six months after the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, Vincent found his way to Catholic Charities’ Immigration Legal Services (ILS).
“I didn’t have a clear sense of what types of legal matters that I wanted to take on, but I wanted to help refugees,” he says.
Since early 2022, he’s assisted with Afghan asylum cases, motivated by his deep concern for social justice and a desire for connection.
“I knew something about asylum procedures from volunteering many years ago when I first became a lawyer. I wanted to see people, get to know people, and hear their stories,” he explains “I also felt great concern for those who had helped the Americans in Afghanistan but were at great risk once the Taliban took over the country. The image in August 2021 of people falling off U.S. military planes because they were desperate to escape haunted me.”
Vincent’s mother volunteered for many years at a thrift shop that gave its earnings to Catholic Charities in San Francisco. He says volunteering at CCO felt like a good fit because of the work ILS provides.
Vincent’s completed his ILS caseload last May, with all his clients and their family members granted asylum. Of his work with ILS, he says: “It’s been incredibly rewarding. My clients are very happy to be given the chance to create new lives in the U.S. It is particularly wonderful to see their joy knowing that they can go to school or work, and all are able to worship without fear of persecution. It also has been an honor to work with the very dedicated staff of ILS.”
Suzanne Calver: Fighting for Families
Suzanne Calver recently closed the books on her own 50-year legal career in family law and estate planning. Retirement, however, quickly turned into reflection about the future.
“I was motivated by the 2024 election and thought, what can I do as a family law attorney?”
Her answer came through Immigration Legal Services, where she now helps vulnerable families have peace of mind and protect their minor children by obtaining court-ordered custody and guardianships. She also assists Catholic Charities clients with executing simple delegations of parental authority to another person in cases where the parents are unavailable to care for their children due to normal life events or due to the detentions and deportations now occurring daily in the United States.
Suzanne also works on cases under Oregon’s Vulnerable Youth Guardianship Law, which allows undocumented youth age 18-21 who have faced abuse, neglect or abandonment by one or both parents to secure guardianships and qualify for Special Immigrant Juvenile Status, which is a pathway to a green card.
“Immigration work is a kind of natural tie-in with family law,” she says. “I was very strongly opposed to the family separation policy of the first Trump administration and the second Trump administration’s policy of deportations and detentions. I love kids. I love your kids. I love other people’s kids. Family separation is very triggering for me. That’s what happened in Nazi Germany.”
With six grandchildren, Suzanne speaks with emotion about the work that keeps her engaged. Turning 80 in December, she adds with a smile, “I intend to keep fighting.”
Experience That Changes Lives
Both Vincent and Suzanne bring lifetimes of expertise, empathy and energy to Catholic Charities’ mission. Their volunteer service strengthens our ability to meet rising demand while keeping costs low for clients seeking safety, stability and a future in Oregon.
This November, we’re especially grateful for volunteers like them — and for every person who gives time, talent or heart to keep hope alive at Catholic Charities of Oregon.
If you have professional or language skills and would like to volunteer with Immigration Legal Services, we’d love to hear from you.
Contact us at ils-intakes@ccoregon.org to learn how you can help.