Written by Melissa Dalton-Bradford
Their Story is Our Story information evening served as the grand finale to a densely-packed USA visit. From last weekend spent at my church's biannual conference, throughout five university lectures I was invited to give, interspersed with time spent with my three university kids Claire, Alessandro and Dalton, it was all a joy. Thank you Jacqueline White for hosting a successful gathering, and Elizabeth Benson, Twila Davis Bird, Garrett Wesley Gibbons, Trisha Bird Leimer, Lindsay Allen Silsby and Morgan Rhys Gibbons, all inspiring co-members of TSOS Refugees, for the artistry, intelligence, and soulfulness which hold this work aloft. And thank you to all of our heroic Syrian, Afghan, Iraqi and Iranian friends. We care deeply about you and your families and want the world to know you as we do.
Why consent matters to us (and why it should matter to you too).
It is especially important to provide accurate information as to how a photo will be used and obtain consent when working with refugees.
Stories are Changemakers: An Instagram Live with Sarah Kippen Wood
Sarah Kippen Wood, Former Executive Director of Their Story is Our Story (TSOS), shares how stories connect and lead to change in an interview with Darien Laird, our Director of External Media. Sarah gives us an inside look at how TSOS functions and shares how telling her story helped her fight a stage four cancer diagnosis.
Uniting for Ukraine: U.S. Sponsors Needed
Just as citizens in Europe and the U.K. have heroically supported displaced Ukrainians by opening up their homes or securing other housing, assisting with school enrollments, employment needs, and language learning, Americans now have the opportunity via the Welcome.us Sponsor Circles program to directly help newly arrived Ukrainians. The United States has committed to welcoming 100,000 Ukrainians temporarily for a period of two-years and the ability to apply for employment authorization in the U.S. as long as they have a U.S.-based sponsor to petition for them.