Clear public resource hubs before crisis mode.
I help immigrant-serving organizations, coalitions, community groups, libraries, funders, and local partners build privacy-focused public resource hubs that help people find trusted next steps under stress.
This work is not just web design. It grew out of direct field experience: coordinating mutual aid, printing and distributing resource materials, building supply routes, supporting families, speaking in public civic spaces, and learning what breaks when fear, enforcement pressure, resource scarcity, language barriers, and scattered information all arrive at once.
The work behind this
I created Rapid Mutual Aid MN after Operation Metro Surge to help neighbors in Dakota County and the South Metro find local next steps for food, housing, health care, immigration legal support, detention guidance, know-your-rights materials, laundry help, volunteer paths, and safety resources.
The site was built to be calm, fast, mobile-first, and privacy-focused. It does not use ads, analytics, cookies, accounts, public intake forms, or unnecessary tracking.
I also created Meet Your Reps, a nonpartisan civic information tool that helps residents understand local elected officials, public records, city authority, voting timing, and source-backed corrections.
Together, these projects show the model: practical public information, local routing, official-source discipline, privacy, and calm design for people who need the next safe step.
How this work actually started
At first, I was trying to respond quickly to what I saw in the community.
One early need was printed safety information. I used my own money to buy bulk supplies, researched examples from Chicago and other communities, helped adapt those ideas locally, bought office equipment, printed and laminated flyers, helped make zines and kits, and supported distribution across the Tri-District area.
Then the needs grew.
People needed food, diapers, formula, wipes, medication, utility help, rent support, and basic supplies. What began as safety material quickly became direct support for families.
At the same time, the same resource information kept getting reshared in Signal threads, often while people were stressed and trying to move quickly. There were also real safety concerns about flyers, aid information, and resource details being copied or misused in ways that could put people at risk.
The website became one way to reduce that risk. It gave people a safer, more consistent public place to find resources, updates, and support.
Lessons from field work
- People under stress do not need a giant directory. They need the next safe step.
- Flyers, websites, hotlines, legal referrals, food support, diaper access, church partners, nonprofit routes, and civic information are all part of the same response system.
- Privacy is not a technical feature. It is harm reduction.
- Resource hubs need to work for people who are scared, busy, translating, on a phone, and trying not to share more personal information than necessary.
- Legal pages should route to legal intake, not give legal advice.
- Food, rent, utilities, diapers, medication, and transportation needs often rise at the same time as immigration-related fear.
- Public information has to be verified, dated, and maintained, or it can send people to closed doors.
- Communities need this infrastructure before crisis mode, not after everyone is already overwhelmed.
The structure of a good hub
A preparedness hub can be built for a city, borough, county, coalition, nonprofit network, or funder-supported region.
A good hub does not replace trusted local organizations. It makes them easier to find.
Privacy is part of the design
A preparedness hub should not become a surveillance tool, rumor feed, or public intake database.
The public site should not collect:
- Immigration status
- A-numbers or case numbers
- Names of minors
- Home addresses or private contact details
- Raw media uploads or photos of documents
- Public detention reports or public incident reports
- Private chats or sensitive family stories
- Browser location
- Analytics or behavioral tracking data
The goal is to route people to trusted help, not collect private information from them.
Who a preparedness hub can support
Community Resource Readiness Audit
I offer a Community Resource Readiness Audit for immigrant-serving organizations and coalitions.
The audit reviews whether your public-facing information is ready for a surge in urgent questions.
It checks:
- Can someone find the first step in under 30 seconds?
- Is legal support easy to find?
- Is detention guidance clear and safe?
- Are know-your-rights resources visible?
- Is information available in the right languages?
- Are phone numbers, forms, hours, and links current?
- Are external links clearly marked?
- Does the site avoid collecting sensitive information?
- Is it usable on a phone?
- Are resource limits and verification dates visible?
- Does the site reduce confusion instead of adding more?
- Is there a correction path when something changes?
The result is a short readiness memo with practical next steps, quick fixes, and a recommendation for whether a fuller preparedness hub would help.
Start a conversation
For partnership conversations, preparedness audits, or funder-supported hub builds:
TJ
Rapid Mutual Aid MN & Meet Your Reps
Suggested subject line: Preparedness hub conversation
Share only the minimum needed. Do not send names of minors, immigration status, A-numbers, case numbers, or private community details by email.
You do not need to have the whole project figured out before reaching out. The first conversation can simply be about what breaks first when people need urgent, trusted information, and whether a preparedness hub could help your community before crisis mode.
Or use the contact page if you prefer.