Midwest Association of Farmworker Organizations (MAFO), 1979

This collection contains materials which document the efforts of the DeKalb County Migrant Ministry from 1964 to 1979, and other organizations which aided migrant and impoverished farm workers in the DeKalb County area from the mid-1970's to 1980. Joan Hallaron became involved in the migrant ministry in 1969 through her church, St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Sycamore, Illinois.  Her involvement as a board member and office holder throughout the 1970's with the DeKalb County Migrant Ministry led to her working and corresponding with a variety of local and state organizations and committees which provided assistance to migrant farm workers and their families. These organizations include: the Children’s Learning Center, DeKalb 4-C, DeKalb County Welfare Services Committee, Illinois Committee for Migrant Children, Illinois Farm Worker Ministry,  Illinois Inter-Agency Committee on Migrant Affairs, Illinois Migrant and Seasonal Farm Worker Ministry, Regional Advisory Committee of the Illinois Migrant Council, Health Advisory Committee of the Illinois Migrant Head Start Policy Council, Illinois Welfare Association, Midwest Association of Farmworker Organizations, National Farm Worker Ministry,  Project H.E.L.P., and the Spanish Speaking Peoples Study Commission.  The majority of the materials relate to the DeKalb County Migrant Ministry, DeKalb 4-C, and the Illinois Migrant Head Start Project. The  materials found in this collection run from meeting minutes and personal notes on meetings, to membership lists, to newsletters, correspondence, conference materials, reports, policies, by-laws and constitutions, to newspaper clippings, brochures, and other publications.  Although there are not complete records for every organization, the variety of materials in this collection provides a good overview of the resources available to help migrant workers and their families in the 1970's.