AURORA — At a church in Aurora on Sunday afternoon, U.S. Rep. Mike Coffman told a standing-room-only crowd of roughly 800 that he was in favor of legal status for illegal immigrants and a path to citizenship for their children.

Coffman, a Republican who has proposed anti-immigration legislation in the past, said his change in stance was personal because of interaction with various families. Coffman previously has proposed legislation that would force Colorado’s ballots to be English-only and supported a bill to strip natural-born citizenship from children of illegal immigrants.

Coffman’s comments Sunday echo a GOP platform on immigration reform that has shifted in recent weeks after generally low support from Latino voters in the 2012 election.

Also present at the public meeting, which took place at 3:15 p.m. Sunday afternoon at St. Therese Catholic Church, were U.S. Rep. Jared Polis and U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet. All three legislators were asked whether they supported legislation detailing a path to citizenship that is not contingent on a secure border.

Coffman acknowledged that his stance on the issue is changing. While he supports a path to citizenship for immigrants who were brought to the U.S. as children, he has not come to a further conclusion.

“I haven’t resolved the question about a pathway to citizenship for (adults) who’ve overstayed their visa or crossed the border illegally,” Coffman said.

Bennet, one of eight senators crafting new immigration legislation, said now is the most opportune moment for immigration legislation that he has witnessed as a politician but that a secure border will be necessary for any bill to retain bipartisan support.

“What is equally important to me is to make sure that this pathway is still secure and is a real pathway,” Bennet said, “that it’s not just putting something off into the future that we can’t depend on.”

Polis agreed, saying, “Border security is a critical component of any comprehensive package. However, short of a comprehensive package, I am for any and all improvements to the current situation.”

Polis was the only one of the three lawmakers who gave unqualified support for a path to citizenship that is not contingent on a secure border.

Coffman, a veteran who served 21 years with the military, also discussed the Military Enlistment Opportunity Act, which he introduced to Congress on Jan. 29. The bill, if passed, would provide immigrants who have resided in the U.S. legally for two years or those defined as Deferred Action Childhood Arrivals the opportunity to enlist in the U.S. military and thus gain a path to naturalized citizenship.

Mike Whitbeck, a leader at St. Pius X Catholic Parish who spoke at the event, said he is looking forward to working with Coffman in the future.

Whitbeck said, however, that he would have preferred a more definitive answer from Bennet.

“You would like to see your (senator) get up and actually give you a commitment and say, ‘You know, we’ve got 11 million people here, we got this place packed … here’s a commitment,’ because that’s what our people need. And we didn’t get that,” Whitbeck said.

Nic Turiciano: 303-954-1223 or nturiciano@denverpost.com