Honoring TNJFON’s Leaders During Women’s History Month
By: Alyssa Curran | 2021 Board Member
At our first internal lunch and learn event last week, as a nod to Women’s History Month, the TNJFON Board of Directors invited our founders, Katherine Dix and Jan Snyder, to discuss why and how they founded TNJFON in 2008.
We enjoyed hearing Katherine and Jan share memories from the past and learning how their passion for affordable, legal assistance blossomed into the thriving organization that TNJFON is today. But one of the most compelling parts of the session was realizing how since its founding by strong women, TNJFON continues to uplift and empower women internally and externally alike.
TNJFON had humble beginnings, first as Katherine and Jan’s passion project, then as a full-time job, with a rollercoaster of years in between. Our founders talked fondly of setting up the first legal clinics, working closely with neighboring nonprofits to grow the organization, and the bear that was soliciting funding to ensure the organization could survive another year.
Some of the fond memories shared included ones about their first TNJFON office space, which was a small dusty room in the Belmont United Methodist Church attic. Katherine, Jan, and young attorney at the time, Adrienne Kittos, would work on cases to the sounds of “Hot Cross Buns” as the handbell choir practiced just steps from their office.
The TNJFON team grew, they added interpreters, legal advocates, volunteers, directors and additional support. They also added more legal clinics, grew their caseload, extended their reach to continue touching the lives of countless immigrant families in a sustainable way.
Eventually, the TNJFON team even moved to our current office space in Casa Azafran, and with that move, they further solidified their place in the community. Although the tiny office in the church attic was a distant memory, the mission remained the same: to provide compassionate immigration legal services to our neighbors seeking humanitarian relief.
“As we celebrate Women’s History Month, it’s an honor to be connected to an organization that was founded by women, is run by women, and uplifts women. ”
Over a decade later, Katherine and Jan remain connected to TNJFON as volunteers and friends. We’re so grateful for their passion for and commitment to founding this special and important organization. Their work has and continues to change so many lives.
Today, the organization is being led by two more strong women, Executive Director, Tessa Lemos Del Pino and Legal Director, Bethany Jackson. As we celebrate Women’s History Month, it’s an honor to be connected to an organization that was founded by women, is run by women, and uplifts women.