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Good-hearted military people help some Afghans, Iraqis enter U.S.

Several months ago, I received a call from a friend, Lt. Col. Robert Milmore, who is assigned to U.S. Central Command.

Milmore was my battalion executive officer when I was a National Guard battalion operations officer. He was a member of an elite fire department rescue unit in New York City. He was fortunate to have the day off on Sept. 11, 2001; nearly every other member of his firehouse died that day.

Our Guard battalion served as headquarters element for Task Force World Trade Center in the weeks after 9/11 and I watched him search for the remains of his friends during the day and serve as the National Guard officer in charge at the WTC site in the evening.

He is the type of guy who would give you the shirt off his back if you asked. (And from what I understand, his son, a recent graduate of West Point, is very much like him.)

When he called me, Milmore asked about how I could help an Iraqi translator get a new start in the U.S. As it turns out, Milmore, a devout Catholic and active member of the Knights of Columbus Baghdad chapter, was gaining praise from Pope Benedict XVI as well as the U.S. ambassador to Iraq for helping Iraqis who served as translators for American forces.

In his off-duty time and with the assistance of other members of the Knights of Columbus, Milmore assisted combat unit commanders in getting well-deserving Iraqis “special immigrant visas,” also known as SIVs.

A SIV would allow an Iraqi (or an Afghan) who helped U.S. forces leave his country for a new start in America. Milmore asked if I would help “Sarah” (the name Americans have been calling her since she started working for the Army shortly after the invasion) navigate the U.S. legal immigration process.

No problem, I thought — this was the least I could do for a man whom I deeply respect. He said he was also looking to provide her with housing, food, and help getting a job when she came to the U.S. After speaking with my wife, we agreed to help.

I am now becoming an expert on the laws pertaining to the immigration of Iraqis and Afghans to the U.S. as my family shares our house with Sarah.

While SIVs are the most common way for service members to help an Iraqi or Afghan enter the U.S., that’s not the only way. They may also immigrate via the Refugee Program.

I’ve found that via an informal network of well-intentioned military members like Milmore, the quickest way for a national to get into the U.S. is the SIV program. Unfortunately, that program does not pay to support these immigrants once they arrive in the U.S., and it often takes three to nine months for these people to get Social Security numbers, driver’s licenses, apartments and jobs.

Again, via another informal network of well-intentioned service members and the U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants, these immigrants receive help to get on their feet in a country for which many risked their lives.

Getting a SIV for your translator maybe difficult because it relies heavily on an informal network of people “in the know” who help facilitate the necessary general officer letter of recommendation that is required.

And it’s only going to get tougher. The SIV program allows for only 500 Iraqi and Afghan translators working for the U.S. military to be eligible in any given fiscal year. However, as the law now stands, that number will drop to 50 in fiscal 2009.

If you’d like to learn more about the efforts of the Knights of Columbus in Iraq, feel free to contact Robert Milmore at Robert.J.Milmore@us.army.mil.

If you have specific questions about how to help an Iraqi or Afghan who has helped our country, please drop me an e-mail. The life of the translator who saved your life or the life of a member of your unit could depend on you.

The information in this column is provided for informational purposes only and is not intended to constitute legal advice. Readers are encouraged to seek the advice of an attorney or other professional when an opinion is needed.

Mathew B. Tully Esq. is a field artillery officer in the New York National Guard and a veteran of Operation Iraqi Freedom. He is also the founding partner of Tully, Rinckey and Associates (http://www.fedattorney.com), a law firm in Albany, N.Y. E-mail your legal questions to askthelawyer@militarytimes.com.