Blog

We interviewed Elizabeth Gregg as part of our World Refugee Day event. Elizabeth was first connected with the refugee cause through a Facebook post. One of her friends was creating a sponsor circle for the influx of refugees coming to their community of Seattle, WA. After deciding that participation was possible for their family, Elizabeth got involved.

As part of our World Refugee Day Event, we had the privilege of interviewing Dr. Uzma Jafri. She fills many roles, including physician, business owner, medical director, and most importantly, mother of four. It was during the first few months of her fourth child’s life when Dr. Jafri became interested in refugees. During the countless sleepless nights that accompany newborns, Dr. Jafri would watch coverage of the Syrian refugee crisis. Dr. Jafri felt a pull to help those in the crisis.

During our World Refugee World event, we were able to interview Adrianne Coleman, a volunteer who works with English Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL). Adrianne’s journey to help others started in 5th grade, when a young boy from Iran was in her class. This boy didn’t speak a single word of English, and Adrianne saw how difficult it was for him to integrate into the classroom. Adrianne felt that she could help him, and others like him.

Their Story is Our Story applauds the Biden administration for granting temporary legal status to our Venezuelan neighbors.

It is often our individual talents and passions that lead us to story projects. That was the case when a local organization Nova RAFT (Resettle Afghan Families Together) told us about a group of Afghan youth who were using art to express their experiences from evacuation to resettlement. That germinated an idea of hosting an Art Workshop with TSOS DC-Community Liaison, Annie Gedicks, who teaches art at Nova Community College.

The Emerald Project is a Utah-based organization that carefully designs dialogues to engage with non-Muslims to make Salt Lake Valley a more welcoming home to Muslims. As many of our refugee friends belong to the Muslim faith, we applaud opportunities that foster understanding and were pleased to support The Emerald Project’s 3rd annual “Slam the Islamophobia” event on February 15th.

Refugees often risk their lives crossing deserts, jungles, and oceans all in the search for shelter, freedom, or happiness. Yet, even once they’ve reached physical safety, mental mountains emerge that make daily life an uphill climb. At the November 2022 conference for the Utah Chapter of the Society for Public Health Education (USOPHE), presenters Shurooq Al Jewari and Sasha Sloan discussed mental health and inclusion, focusing on immigrants and refugees.

Holidays are an important time to include newcomers. Newcomers are often aching for the traditions and holiday magic they knew at home - and the connections with family and friends. The Garcias* came from a strong family and community that knew generous and giving holiday traditions. I knew, when I met our new friends from Venezuela, the rich bond we would have; this was a kindred spirit family. Even though we have been bad at communicating (Google Translate is such a false hope), it was easy to find connections that helped us love each other.

We know there are stories in Kansas City that need to be told. So, we sat down and made a plan. We listed individuals, nonprofit organizations, and resettlement agencies that we have relationships with. Then we listed ways we could weave these stories together by topic: connected communities, housing, resettlement, etc. Our list grew and grew, and before we knew it we had a roadmap.

In April, I had the pleasure of volunteering with one of the nonprofit organizations providing much-needed humanitarian assistance to people seeking asylum (“asylum seekers”) along the United States and Mexico border - Team Brownsville. Founded in 2018, Team Brownsville serves immigrants, primarily those who are seeking asylum, who arrive in Brownsville, Texas or who are waiting in the Mexican cities of Matamoros or Reynosa for entry into the United States.