DACA participants alarmed by threats of mass deportation are making appointments with New Jersey advocates, to help renew their status and working papers.

The so-called Dreamers — undocumented immigrants brought to the U.S. as children — must file renewals every two years to remain in DACA, the Deferred Action For Childhood Arrivals program.

“I’m not sure. I really am not sure what can happen,” said Isela Coyotecatl, who sought help at a free clinic, run by Make the Road New Jersey in Passaic.

New Jersey is home to more than 14,000 undocumented immigrants enrolled in DACA. Coyotecatl’s parents brought her here from Mexico when she was just two years old. She graduated from Rutgers, got a good job and dreams that DACA will eventually offer a path to citizenship.

“We are here to stay, and to be part of the American dream,” she said, sitting at a desk covered in legal paperwork. “We have so many things that we want to do, that we want to complete, as Dreamers. And it is very, very emotional that we are now being in this situation of limbo — whether we have DACA today, and then tomorrow we don’t.”

Make the Road staff attorney Diego Gonzalez Cordero said he’s urging DACA participants to remain calm but file their paperwork promptly, even as the political rhetoric heats up.

“They’ve already lived most of their lives here. They’ve developed roots here,” he said. “They’ve had kids here, bought houses, made incredible businesses. They are doing everything they can to continue that life that they’ve already lived for so long.”

New Jersey is a “sanctuary state” for immigrants, and the state attorney general’s office has directed law enforcement not to participate in federal immigration raids. The office is involved in a federal court case before the Fifth Circuit fighting to defend DACA.

President Barack Obama created DACA in 2012 as a temporary program, hoping Congress would pass a pathway to citizenship. That hasn’t happened. The first Trump administration tried and failed to end DACA, but the president-elect sounded more conciliatory about Dreamers, during a recent interview on Meet the Press.

“In many cases, they become successful,” Trump said, adding he’d like to work out a way to let them stay. “They have great jobs. In some cases, they have small businesses, some cases they might have large businesses. And we’re going to have to do something with them.”

Whatever happens, Make the Road has vowed to support New Jersey’s undocumented immigrants. Its free clinic offers aid for DACA renewals, but participants must email info@maketheroadnj.org to pre-register for an appointment. Some 25 people had already scheduled help sessions in Passaic on Wednesday.