LIMA, Ohio — Andy and Amy Schafer live with their five children in a reliably conservative corner of rural Ohio, where they hit the pool in the summer and attend high school football games Andy coaches in the fall.
The Schafers said two of their children, recently adopted from crisis-torn Haiti, would be struggling without the help of another Haitian immigrant, Marc Rocher, a science teacher and translator who has become “a lifeline” to the family.
The two boys, Francion, 13, and Jean Luckson, 11, have exhibited trauma-related behavioral issues and language barriers upon arriving in the U.S. in May 2024, they said.
Last month, in a quiet room at the Elm Street Church of the Nazarene in Lima, Rocher appeared somber as he spoke with NBC News about possibly having to return to Haiti when his legal status in the U.S. ends, according to a directive from the Trump administration.
Rocher, 32, arrived in the U.S. in 2023 through a humanitarian parole program, after the kidnapping of a close friend became the final straw in his decision to flee the escalating violence in his hometown.
Once here he was granted temporary protection status, or TPS, along with a work permit, which allowed him to fill critical teaching and translating roles in an area of Ohio with teacher shortages, particularly for Haitian Creole-speakers, according to Andy Schafer, who is also a teacher. Springfield, Ohio, was thrown into the spotlight during the presidential election last year as Haitian immigrants have come to northwest Ohio with the promise of housing and job opportunities. This quick population boom created some housing shortages and strains on health care facilities, according to local leaders.
On June 27, the Trump administration announced that it would terminate TPS for Haitians effective Sept. 2, amid intensified deportation efforts. Days later, a federal court in New York blocked the order, allowing TPS for more than 500,000 Haitians to continue until its original expiration date, Feb. 3, 2026. Now, with just months left to that deadline, Rocher remains uncertain about his future.
To his surprise, he said, his situation has created an unexpected surge of community support. In Putnam County, where a decisive 83% of voters backed Trump in 2024, the story of Rocher — a church volunteer who has become a bridge between Haitians and longtime residents — is challenging some to grapple with their party’s hard-line immigration views.
Back in Haiti, gang violence has taken over Port-au-Prince, the capital, since the assassination of its president in 2021 left the country without a firm government. Four years in, gangs now control about 90% of the region, with 1.3 million people homeless and pushing toward famine, according to the United Nations. While the Schafers did not want to disclose details of the boys’ tumultuous time in Haiti, they said it’s clear the children are still dealing with the effects of trauma.
When the kids first arrived in Columbus Grove, the Schafers sought the help of Jonathan Burkey, pastor at Elm Street Church of the Nazarene, who connected them with Rocher, who was volunteering at the church.
“Marc had no idea who we were, but he dropped everything and came over,” Andy Schafer said, adding that Rocher’s involvement was a game-changer, drastically improving communication and significantly reducing the boys’ anxiety and emotional struggles.
The transition to school initially presented a new challenge for the children, who were entering a predominantly white school district with no Haitian Creole-speaking staff — until the school hired Rocher as their tutor.
“Marc’s been a godsend, both for the school and for the two Schafer boys,” Columbus Grove Schools Superintendent Nick Verhoff said.
In a regular school year, Rocher typically starts his mornings teaching math and reading in English to Francion and Jean Luckson. In the afternoons, he tutors at a significantly larger district, Lima City Schools, located 30 minutes away.
Many have become invested in Marc’s story through the Schafers, who are vocal about the powerful role he played in their adopted boys’ life. Once Rocher’s TPS became uncertain and then terminated, Andy Schafer said a lot of people in Columbus Grove started to show concern. “When you actually show a face to a situation, it’s a lot different than hearing it on the news,” he said.
At Columbus Grove High School, senior Katie Schumacher, 18, took action after learning about Rocher’s situation. As part of a government class assignment, she and other students wrote a letter to Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem advocating on his behalf.
“It was both upsetting and confusing,” Schumacher told NBC News. “He was doing such great work with the boys — it just made sense for him to stay.”
Several teachers joined students, writing to Republican senators and other officials pushing back on his deportation.
For many locals, Rocher’s case casts a light on the complexities of immigration policy.
“People ask, ‘Why don’t you just apply for citizenship?’ and, ‘Can’t you just buy your citizenship?’” Rocher said. “They’re trying to help, but they don’t really know what it takes, they don’t really know about immigration.”
With Rocher’s TPS nearing expiration, Verhoff said Columbus Grove Schools are working with attorneys to sponsor Rocher for an H1-B visa, exploring ways he could serve multiple districts.
“Marc’s services are so needed,” the superintendent said. In fact, the need for translating services could become more prevalent.
“The increase of Haitians in the area has been significant. It’s gone from a handful to thousands in a very short period of time,” said Katie Sielschott, director of development at Connecting Borders, a local nonprofit founded in 2024 to address the influx of immigrants to the area. The rise of immigrants in northwest Ohio aligns with increased business investment and an aging local workforce.
“The employers that we work closely with understand the value that these immigrants bring to their companies,” Sielschott said.
Last Friday, Gov. Mike DeWine, a Republican, said in nearby Springfield that the state is preparing for potential mass layoffs of immigrant workers as a result of TPS ending. He said “it’s not going to be good” for workers or employers.
Beyond economic measures, Burkey said church attendance from the Haitian congregation has dropped significantly in the last few months. Many feel so discouraged by the probable end to their legal status in the country, that they cannot muster the energy to worship in church, he said. Regardless, he said he will keep welcoming immigrants.
“I believe that sanctuary is actually an important value,” Burkey said.
Other churchgoers have voiced their opposition to welcoming immigrants — one since-deleted comment among many hostile responses to a Facebook post advertising Haitian Creole translation, read, “I don’t understand why you’re catering to these people. They’re all illegal and they should be deported.”
Burkey said that while those comments do not represent everyone in the community, they do reflect lingering resistance.
“Most of the people that you see extending their hand, in my opinion, understand their identity as a Christian or a follower of Jesus or a member of the kingdom of God, to supersede their political alliance,” the pastor said.
He pointed to instances where Haitian church members have hosted and cooked dinners for the church’s wider community as signs of incremental progress and a shift in tone.
“You have all of these staunch Republican men feasting at the table of Haitians, like, that’s the kingdom of God,” he said. “And that’s what changes people’s hearts.”
Verhoff said Rocher’s influence on the community might sway some to at least be more understanding of immigrants like him.
“I think people see Marc for who he is,” Verhoff said. “My hope is that this opens the eyes of people who unfortunately can blindly just follow the verbiage that comes from political leaders just because they may have an ‘R’ in front of their name. And instead make a judgement on their own, on the merits.”
With school out for the summer, Rocher spends his days working at the church and the local food pantry preparing meals for the homeless. He’s eager to start the school year in a few weeks, remaining cautiously optimistic about the uncertain path ahead.
“We’re all people, and if you only put your differences aside — political and cultural — and get to know people and live among them, everything is possible,” Rocher said. “I feel like a lot of this has helped change the dynamics of people, a lot of them want to help. A lot of them want the Haitian community to still be among them, which is a good thing.”
This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
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