The mayor of Bell, California, who came to the United States illegally from Mexico when he was 4 years old, has been working alongside officials and the Salvation Army to set up a temporary shelter for the young immigrants from Central America.

The nation's border states have been struggling in the past few months to find housing for the surge of children who made the long journey from Central America to cross the U.S.-Mexico border, seeking refuge from the violence that has plagued their hometowns.

"My senses tell me this is the right thing to do," Mayor Nestor Valencia said. "We're not a rich community, but we are wealthy in compassion and humanitarian."

A few weeks ago Bell's city officials began discussions with federal officials and the Salvation Army about establishing a shelter for the immigrants. If approved, the working-class city will become a temporary home for about 125 immigrants, Los Angeles Times reported.

Bell City Council is expected to discuss the plan later this month that would allow the Salvation Army to turn shipping warehouses in Bell's industrial district into the immigrant shelter.

The White House Office of Intergovernmental Affairs sent an email to lawmakers in early June alerting them that the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has struggled with "finding suitable facilities for unaccompanied children."

According to officials, since last fall, there have been an estimated 57,000 children that have traveled unattended to the U.S. from countries such as Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador.

Bell, which is known to be a predominately immigrant city, represents a major contrast in reactions from the hundreds of protesters in the Murrieta community who last week blocked buses carrying detainees from transporting them to a nearby facility.

The standoff made news headlines across the nation, but other communities in Southern California, which is home to the largest Latin American immigrant population in the country, have tried to do what it can to help the children immigrants.

Last week, the city of Coachella began accepting food and supply donations at its City Hall and Fire Department. A U-Haul truck filled with the donations was taken to an Imperial County shelter home.

"We certainly understand the dynamics when it comes to people wanting to better their lives," Coachella Councilman Steven Hernandez said. "Our city is 98 percent Latino. We have a lot of similar stories."