Posts by worldrelief
Christmas Gift Guide
This holiday season, we’re celebrating change that lasts. Every day, we hear stories of lasting change as people like you step forward to create communities of love and welcome in the U.S., and as churches across the globe step up to serve vulnerable people around them.
We know you care about refugees, immigrants and vulnerable people, and we know you want your gifts to friends and family to be special. That’s why this Christmas, we’ve created a fun, tangible way for you to serve people in need while also giving your friends and family a meaningful gift they’ll love: our Christmas Gift Guide.
Each product and/or company in this guide supports refugees and other immigrants in vulnerable situations through advocacy, employing refugees or donating a portion of their proceeds to World Relief.
From books to candles, and everything in between, there’s sure to be something for everyone on your list. Create change that lasts this Christmas by shopping our gift guide today!
When You Can’t Go Home
This beautiful book is perfect for the avid reader and art lover in your life. Seattle-based artist Karisa Keasey spent two years interviewing refugees and painting their portraits. She combined the stories and artwork into a stunning book you can purchase on her website. 50% of the profits will be donated to World Relief.
Pen + Pillar
For the writer and kind-hearted giver in your life, shop owners Taylor and Justin have created a series of notebooks, greeting cards and art prints that your loved one is sure to enjoy. Each gift is inspired by Taylor and Justin’s love of nature, travel, community and warmth. Pine and Pillar also donates 10% of their profits to World Relief!
Anchor of Hope Box
For the person who loves getting surprised every month, this subscription box is the perfect match. Founded by a World Relief volunteer, Anchor of Hope Box supports refugees and other vulnerable people around the world by giving them a platform to sell their products and make an income. Purchase the monthly subscription box or shop the online store for jewelry, household items and more.
Welcoming the Stranger
This gift is perfect for the activist and fervent learner in your life. Written by World Relief’s Jenny Yang and Matt Soerens, Welcoming the Stranger moves beyond political rhetoric to offer a Christian response to refugees and immigrants. This book provides insight into the U.S. immigration system and policy analysis alongside real-life stories from displaced people in the U.S.
Hawa Images
Need to update your Christmas card photo? Not sure what to get your grandparents or in-laws for Christmas? Then Illinois-based photography studio, Hawa Images, is for you! “Hawa” is a Swahili word meaning “these.” Hawa Images is about sharing stories of these people: near or far, foreign or familiar, similar or seemingly different. A portion of the proceeds each month goes to support World Relief.
Knotty Tie
Need a gift for the men in your life? Knotty tie has got you covered! This small-batch manufacturing company employs refugees resettled in the United States and creates playful yet professional neckties, bow ties and pocket squares.
Vickery Trading Co.
For the person who loves handmade clothing for children, this shop will deliver. Vickery Trading Co. supports women refugees in the Dallas area by teaching them to sew, then employing them to make stylish clothing and accessories for women and children. All refugees receive a living wage while also having access to mentoring and counseling services. Shop their collection and support refugees in Dallas.
RefuTea
Calling all tea enthusiasts! RefuTea is an eCommerce based social enterprise that aims to bridge the gap between refugee resettlement and integration by employing refugees to package and serve their teas. All their teas are ethically sourced and naturally flavored. Ten percent of sales at the end of each quarter are donated to refugee resettlement efforts in the Greater Grand Rapids Michigan area.
Three Pines Collective
Bring the spa into your home with specialty soaps and scrubs by Three Pines Collective. Founded by three friends who have a heart to serve refugees in their community, Three Pines Collective sells handmade lotions, scrubs, paper goods and more. Send them a message on Facebook or Instagram, or email them at collectivepinesthree@gmail.com, to place your online order. 75% of every sale goes to support World Relief!
Rachel Clair serves as a Content Writer at World Relief. With a background in creative writing and children’s ministry, she is passionate about helping people of all ages think creatively and love God with their hearts, souls and minds.
World Relief Honors International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women
***FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE***
November 25, 2019
CONTACT:
Lauren Carl
Lauren.carl@pinkston.co
703-388-6734
World Relief Honors International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women
BALTIMORE – World Relief rejects any violence against women, and remains committed to fighting this violence by honoring the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women and giving equal opportunity to women through all its programming.
One in three women has or will face physical abuse or violence during her lifetime – often at the hands of intimate partners. Much of this violence goes unseen, and oftentimes cultural shaming or broken systems contribute to ensuring those who suffer stay silent. To bring awareness, the U.N.’s General Assembly declared November 25 as a day for governments, NGOs and other international organizations to raise awareness of the plight of many women around the world.
Joanna Kretzer Chun, program resource team director with World Relief, commented: “According to the U.N., the cumulative effect of violence against women of reproductive age has caused more deaths than cancer and results in more ill effects than both malaria and traffic accidents. This is unconscionable. We can and must do better. At World Relief, we believe that women are created in the image of God. We are committed to fighting for a better future for women and girls around the world. We believe our world is a better place when women’s voices are heard, which is why in 2020 we are putting a new emphasis on women’s leadership locally and globally by ensuring they are at the table when decisions about program strategy, design and implementation are being made.”
During 2018 and 2019, over 11,000 women and men in Malawi and Burundi participated in World Relief’s couple strengthening groups, Families for Life, challenging long held norms that devalue women and improving couple’s communication. In 2018, through World Relief’s Savings for Life program, over 90,000 women gained tools to manage their finances. In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, nearly 4,000 youth were trained in sexual and gender-based violence awareness. In Rwanda, World Relief’s partnership with Starbucks empowered 13,000 women to flourish through clean drinking water, healthy homes, safe relationships and economic opportunity. And in FY 2019, 1,179 women and girls were resettled by World Relief through the U.S. Refugee Resettlement Program.
“Our programming and services are tailored to alleviate and prevent suffering around the world. Empowering women is one of the first steps to achieving this goal,” commented Jenny Yang, World Relief vice president for advocacy and policy. “Whether in refugee resettlement or through savings groups or Families for Life, when we equip one woman to take ownership of her health, resources and – most importantly – her voice, for herself and her family, that’s where we see flourishing take root.”
For more information about how you can partner with World Relief to empower women around the world, visit worldrelief.org.
Download the PDF version of this press release.
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About World Relief:
World Relief is a global Christian humanitarian organization that seeks to overcome violence, poverty and injustice. Through love in action, we bring hope, healing and restoration to millions of the world’s most vulnerable women, men and children through vital and sustainable programs in disaster response, health and child development, economic development and peacebuilding, as well as refugee and immigration services in the U.S. For 75 years, we’ve partnered with churches and communities, currently across more than 20 countries, to provide relief from suffering and help people rebuild their lives.
Learn more at worldrelief.org.
Friendly Soil
“…These victims of war and oppression look hopefully to the democratic countries to help them rebuild their lives and provide for the future of their children. We must not destroy their hope. The only civilized course is to enable these people to take new roots in friendly soil. “ – Harry Truman, 1947
A National Crisis
243 years ago, a vision for America was penned in our founding documents, couched in the truth that all are created equal and deserving of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. These values have been reinstilled and affirmed time and time again throughout our history, and though our nation has never perfectly reflected these ideals, at our best moments we’ve proudly lived up to, and drawn strength from them.
Today, our world is facing the worst displacement crisis since WWII, with over 26 million men, women and children fleeing violence, poverty and oppression. And yet, this year, our nation will admit less than half of 1% of those searching for a place to rebuild their homes. Contrast our history with these realities and it’s hard not to conclude that America is facing an identity crisis—one which threatens to undermine an identity painstakingly forged over hundreds of years as America became a haven of hope for those seeking a safer, more promising place to build a future.
We wish it were different. This crisis is heartbreaking. It’s exhausting. And it’s painful. But we cannot, and must not lose heart.
The Less Told Story
That’s why this holiday season, we want to tell you a different story. It’s a story of love, hope and perseverance. A story of flourishing communities and biblical welcome. A story that may not be making headlines, but which moves as a powerful undercurrent, creating lasting change in small pockets across our country. It starts with the profound conviction that we are all made equal in the eyes of God, and with the belief that beneath the weary faces of those fleeing violence and oppression, hope springs eternal. Most importantly, it starts with the knowledge that love is the catalyst that makes all things possible.
This season, we chose to celebrate this story. And while we mourn the state of our nation, we choose to press on with joy, and in faith, because this is a story worth rejoicing in. One which has the power to overcome the narrative of fear in our nation and heal our deepening divisions.
This is not a singular story. It is one made up of hundreds of moments, milestones and achievements. It begins in English language classes in Chicago, legal services in Atlanta and job readiness training in Memphis. It gathers strength in community gardening projects in Seattle, trauma counseling in Winston-Salem and women’s sewing clubs in Spokane. And it overcomes all odds at college graduations in Durham, job promotions in Sacramento and citizenship ceremonies in D.C. It rewrites futures, rebuilds homes and restores belonging.
The Paradise Parking Lots
Perhaps nowhere is this story better manifested than in Kent, Washington, where a once small partnership between World Relief Seattle and Hillside Church has exploded into a transformational, citywide movement. Originally partnering with World Relief to provide space and volunteers to teach English language classes to immigrants, today the parking lot of Hillside Church, newly dubbed the Paradise Parking Plots, boasts a blossoming, 1-acre community garden.
Its community is made up of 47 families spanning 22 nations, over 1,400 volunteers, and a handful of local businesses, schools and government groups. Beyond the garden’s initial goal of providing refugees and other immigrants in vulnerable situations with a place to grow familiar foods, cultivate community and connect with the earth in their new urban environment, the Paradise Parking Plots are leading the way in Green initiatives, using rainwater cisterns to provide irrigation and addressing local flooding issues. Innovation around this project has won the Green Globe Award from King County, and provides environmental internship opportunities for local refugee high school students who then go on to mentor other youth in environmental science at World Relief’s Summer Camp. What’s more, Hillside church will soon open a commercial kitchen space for micro-enterprise cooking activities to take place, expanding opportunities and increasing the impact that the garden lots provide.
Perhaps most importantly, this project is providing a place for people from all walks of life to come together, fostering friendships between both new and long-term community members from every tribe, tongue and creed. Here, immigrants and native-born Americans are growing and flourishing together. They are finding a sense of unity, family and belonging. They are finding the community that makes ‘home’ feel like home.
A Vision for Lasting Change
The story of the Paradise Parking Plots is just one of the many parts that make up the story of what we’re doing together across the U.S., and it’s one you should feel proud to be a part of. It is a story of hope overcoming despair. Of unity over division. And of peace over fear. Above all, it is a story of love triumphing over hate. Though it’s quiet, and too often lost amidst the dominant political narratives, this story inspires us with vision and with hope. And it stands as a powerful reminder of what could be when we come together to create lasting change in our communities.
Lasting change starts with a shared vision of what could be possible, and calls people to that vision. It requires commitment and perseverance, but often the results exceed even our own expectations. This is what we hope and pray for as we work together to transform lives and communities across the U.S.
For over 40 years, we’ve welcomed and helped integrate over 300,000 refugees and other vulnerable immigrants to communities all across our nation, rebuilding lives and creating communities of love and welcome that we all feel proud to be a part of. We do so not only because we believe in this nation of immigrants, and the strength and power of America as a land of hope and opportunity for all, but because we believe it is our calling as Christians to welcome the orphan, the widow and the least of these.
Today, this calling faces more hurdles than perhaps ever before. Yet these hurdles gives us all the more reason to fight. And to fight harder. Because we believe we are called to such a time as this — to stand as light amidst the darkness, and to be the voice of compassion, justice and above all, love.
Francesca Albano currently serves as Director of Branded Content at World Relief. With a background in Cultural Anthropology and a graduate degree in Strategic Marketing Communications, she connects her interests in societal studies and global cultures with her training in brand strategy and storytelling. Francesca is especially passionate about grassroots community development and the treatment and advancement of women and girls around the world.
A Movement of Change
The overwhelming needs of our world can push us toward quick fixes that leave underlying problems unsolved. At World Relief, we believe God wants to use the church and his people to transform lives and end the cycle of suffering.
World Relief Urges SCOTUS to Support Dreamers, Congressional Solution to DACA
***FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE***
November 12, 2019
CONTACT:
Lauren Carl
Lauren.carl@pinkston.co
703-388-6734
World Relief Urges SCOTUS to Support Dreamers, Congressional Solution to DACA
Global evangelical humanitarian organization joins USCCB, leading faith & migrant advocacy organizations to sign amicus brief
BALTIMORE, Md. –As the Supreme Court opens oral arguments on three cases related to DACA, World Relief expresses support for the over 700,000 Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals recipients around the country and urges a congressional solution to create a legal pathway to citizenship. World Relief has joined the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), Association of Catholic Colleges and Universities, Catholic Charities USA, Catholic Health Association, Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Inc. (CLINIC), Center for Migration Studies and Council of Christian Colleges and Universities, to file an amicus brief in support of DACA recipients for the court to consider as they listen to arguments.
“For many DACA recipients, America is the only home they have ever known,” said Scott Arbeiter, president of World Relief. “We urge SCOTUS to support the DACA program which has allowed thousands of men and women who came to the U.S. through no choice of their own to have more stability and security in the U.S.”
Though young, DACA recipients are contributing members of America’s communities. As of 2017, 93.3% of DACA-eligible individuals were actively employed, and as of 2019, around the country, DACA recipients pay $5.7 billion in federal taxes, not to mention the $3.1 billion contributed in local and state taxes.
The three cases in question, Trump v. NAACP, McAleenan v. Vidal, and Department of Homeland Security v. Regents of the University of California, address the legality of the administration’s decision to end DACA. Following the hearing in November, a decision is expected from SCOTUS in the spring of 2020.
World Relief CEO Tim Breene, commented: “By choosing not to protect DACA recipients, we would be failing to demonstrate moral leadership by caring for all members of our community. Many DACA recipients have contributed tremendously to our country. We urge Congress to pass legislation like the DREAM Act to protect DACA recipients.”
Though President Trump has previously expressed willingness to compromise and create a pathway to citizenship for Dreamers, bipartisan legislation such as the DREAM Act remains pending. World Relief urges Congress and the president to act now to create a legislative solution.
To learn more about DACA and the DREAM Act, visit World Relief’s blog. For more information about how you can help, World Relief’s refugee resettlement work and other projects, visit worldrelief.org.
Download the PDF version of this press release.
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About World Relief:
World Relief is a global Christian humanitarian organization that seeks to overcome violence, poverty and injustice. Through love in action, we bring hope, healing and restoration to millions of the world’s most vulnerable women, men and children through vital and sustainable programs in disaster response, health and child development, economic development and peacebuilding, as well as refugee and immigration services in the U.S. For 75 years, we’ve partnered with churches and communities, currently across more than 20 countries, to provide relief from suffering and help people rebuild their lives.
Learn more at worldrelief.org.
Presidential Determination
Late Friday night, President Trump signed the annual presidential determination of the maximum number of refugees who could be resettled to the United States in the upcoming fiscal year. The number, 18,000, is historically low. By comparison, in 1980 the refugee ceiling was set at 231,700, and in 2016, it was set at 110,000. With 25.9 million refugees in the world, the largest number in recorded history, we’re saddened that the U.S. is doing less than ever to offer safety and freedom to refugees.
Among those shut out by this decision are many individuals who have been persecuted because of their faith, Christians included. In Fiscal Year 2015, more than 15,000 Christian refugees were resettled in the U.S. These Christian refugees came from the ten countries the U.S. State Department identifies as “countries of particular concern” for egregious violations of religious freedom, including Iran, Pakistan and Burma. By Fiscal Year 2018, that number had declined to just 3,048 Christian refugees.
The reduction in the overall number of resettled refugees also negatively impacts other persecuted religious minorities, including Yezidis who are persecuted in Iraq and Syria, Jewish refugees persecuted in Iran and Muslim refugees – including the Rohingya – from Burma.
Of the 18,000 refugees who might be allowed to be resettled in Fiscal Year 2020, the president’s determination allocates 5,000 for all religious minorities, ensuring that this year – as was the case last year and the year before – the U.S. will resettle far fewer persecuted religious minorities than our historic norm, turning our backs as a nation on those persecuted for their faith.
We encourage you to reach out to your Member of Congress and ask him or her to support legislation that would restore the U.S. refugee resettlement program so that the U.S. would once again receive at least the 95,000 refugees annually that represents the average refugee ceiling since 1980.
Matthew Soerens serves as the U.S. Director of Church Mobilization for World Relief and is the coauthor of Welcoming the Stranger: Justice, Compassion and Truth in the Immigration Debate (InterVarsity Press, 2018). Follow Matthew on Twitter.
President Trump Signs FY 2020 Presidential Determination, World Relief Responds
***FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE***
November 4, 2019
CONTACT:
Lauren Carl
Lauren.carl@pinkston.co
703-388-6734
President Trump Signs FY 2020 Presidential Determination, World Relief Responds
BALTIMORE, Md. – Late Friday night, the president signed the Fiscal Year 2020 Presidential Determination, setting the cap for refugee arrivals at the lowest level in U.S. history – 18,000. World Relief, the National Association of Evangelicals’ humanitarian arm and a refugee resettlement agency, remains dedicated to their commitment to serve and protect those seeking refuge in the U.S.
“While we’re grateful to the administration for putting back into motion the refugee arrival processes that have stalled for a whole month, we continue to advocate resettlement levels commensurate with the global need,” said Scott Arbeiter, president of World Relief. “We will continue to serve those in our care with joy, but we mourn the lives who will not find a haven from the many global conflicts as a result of this reduction in the refugee ceiling.”
Due to the delay in signing the Presidential Determination, October 2019 marked the first month in nearly 30 years in which zero refugees were resettled, according to World Relief’s records. The previous average refugee arrivals for the last five Octobers by all refugee agencies have been 4,945.
World Relief CEO Tim Breene, commented: “We remain concerned for the persecuted religious minorities who will not be allowed into the U.S. in FY 2020. From 2016-2019, the number of Christian refugees resettled from 50 countries on the Open Doors USA World Watch List plummeted by 64.8%. We believe the cap’s 5,000 reserved spots in 2020 for persecuted religious minorities grossly underestimates the global need and forfeits the U.S.’s urgent responsibility to provide global leadership in this area.”
For more information about how you can help, World Relief’s refugee resettlement work and other projects, visit worldrelief.org.
Download the PDF version of this press release.
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About World Relief:
World Relief is a global Christian humanitarian organization that seeks to overcome violence, poverty and injustice. Through love in action, we bring hope, healing and restoration to millions of the world’s most vulnerable women, men and children through vital and sustainable programs in disaster response, health and child development, economic development and peacebuilding, as well as refugee and immigration services in the U.S. For 75 years, we’ve partnered with churches and communities, currently across more than 20 countries, to provide relief from suffering and help people rebuild their lives.
Learn more at worldrelief.org.
World Relief Laments Zero Refugee Admissions in October 2019
***FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE***
November 1, 2019
CONTACT:
Lauren Carl
Lauren.carl@pinkston.co
703-388-6734
World Relief Laments Zero Refugee Admissions in October 2019
Leading refugee resettlement organization urges administration to resume refugee admissions as soon as possible
BALTIMORE, Md. – World Relief, a leading faith-based relief and development organization, today mourns the fact that as of yesterday. the U.S. has resettled no refugees for a full month. For at least as far back as World Relief has records, nearly thirty years, there’s never been a month when the U.S. did not receive a refugee – until October 2019. The number is due to a pause placed by the State Department on admissions that has resulted in hundreds of canceled flights and thrust thousands of hopeful refugees back into a state of uncertainty. For the past five fiscal years, the average number of refugees resettled in October by all refugee resettlement agencies has been 4,945 refugees. This news comes on the heels of reports that the Trump administration plans to cap the number of resettled refugees for Fiscal Year 2020 at 18,000 – the smallest number since the advent of the modern refugee program.
“This isn’t just heartbreaking – it’s unjust,” said Scott Arbeiter, president of World Relief. “Withdrawing our troops from Syria meant unleashing chaos in the region and forcing even more people to flee their homes. To refuse to open our doors is to abdicate responsibility for a scenario to which we as a nation have contributed. I urge the administration to reconsider its approach and set a cap that better represents the compassion and hospitality of the American people.”
Of the hundreds of flights canceled as a result of the State Department’s pause on admissions, 126 were scheduled to carry refugees whom World Relief was to have resettled. Almost all of those were expecting to be reunited with family members already in the U.S. Additionally, some of the refugees scheduled to enter the country in October face expiring security checks, and may not be able to enter once the pause is lifted until they are again cleared after another round of security protocols.
“It’s a shame that at a time when we’re facing the world’s worst refugee crisis since World War II, and we’re seeing the ongoing new displacement of Syrians, Rohingya and others, that the U.S. has accepted zero refugees this month, for the first time in our records,” said Jenny Yang, vice president of advocacy and policy at World Relief. “We should be doing more, not less, and keeping the door open to protect the persecuted who have no safe place to go.”
Since 1979, World Relief has resettled approximately 300,000 refugees. Throughout that time, it has advocated for an approach to resettlement that combines security and compassion. The Refugee Act of 1980, which established federal procedures for security and background checks, has successfully met those criteria: Since its passage, more than 3 million refugees have been resettled to the U.S. by all agencies, but not one has taken the life of a U.S. citizen in a terrorist attack. Even in the immediate aftermath of the September 11 attacks, the State Department resumed admissions after just a short pause, allowing those fleeing violence around the globe to find safe haven on our shores. World Relief urges our federal leaders to adhere to a model that has served us so well and raise the ceiling for admissions to its historical levels.
For more information about World Relief’s refugee resettlement work and other projects, visit worldrelief.org.
Download the PDF version of this press release.
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About World Relief:
World Relief is a global Christian humanitarian organization that seeks to overcome violence, poverty and injustice. Through love in action, we bring hope, healing and restoration to millions of the world’s most vulnerable women, men and children through vital and sustainable programs in disaster response, health and child development, economic development and peacebuilding, as well as refugee and immigration services in the U.S. For 75 years, we’ve partnered with churches and communities, currently across more than 20 countries, to provide relief from suffering and help people rebuild their lives.
Learn more at worldrelief.org.
World Relief to Implement Reconciliation, Stabilization and Resilience Trust Fund Project in South Sudan
***FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE***
October 24, 2019
CONTACT:
Lauren Carl
Lauren.carl@pinkston.co
703-388-6734
World Relief to Implement Reconciliation, Stabilization and Resilience Trust Fund Project in South Sudan
Group to lead working group including CARE, Danish Refugee Council and Mercy Corps
BALTIMORE, Md. – World Relief was recently awarded a grant from the new Reconciliation, Stabilization, and Resilience Trust Fund (RSRTF) for South Sudan. World Relief will lead a consortium including CARE, Danish Refugee Council and Mercy Corps in this two-year, $5.2 million grant focused on Koch County, South Sudan, which will directly affect 3,070 beneficiaries and 77,886 indirect beneficiaries. This project is the first to be funded through this new trust fund and is expected to be a model which can be extended to other counties as implementation of the peace process continues.
The 2018 revitalized peace agreement brought about a notable decrease in political violence as a result of the conflict across South Sudan. Localized insecurity such as revenge killings, intra-communal fighting and sexual violence, however, have continued or even increased. Program partners in Koch conducted participatory field research in which residents identified gaps in the lack of rule of law, limited options for youth, continued ethnic division, gender disparity and the lack of basic services. Following the assessment and consultation with the Area Reference Group, four humanitarian partners proposed strategic interventions to facilitate reconciliation, increase stability and encourage resiliency in Koch County.
These partners – World Relief, CARE, Danish Refugee Council and Mercy Corps – bring both a wealth of technical expertise to the project, but also years of experience of operating in Koch and local relationships. While the project’s efforts are focused in Koch, it is with the understanding that the stability of this location has implications for the surrounding areas. The partners will coordinate with other stakeholders, including United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) and government actors, for key activities such as protection and access to justice.
“We are honored to work side-by-side with some of the wisest and most talented in the industry to meet these pressing needs,” commented World Relief president Scott Arbeiter.
The project is designed to achieve the following key outcomes:
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Individuals, particularly children and women, are facing less violence at the community and local level.
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Communities have effective mechanisms in place that meaningfully include women and youth to resolve conflicts peacefully.
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Justice sector actors are more effectively delivering justice, even in areas with previously limited or no judicial infrastructure.
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Community resilience is strengthened through increased economic opportunities and sustainable livelihoods.
To realize these outcomes, a broad range ofactivities will be used to meet the identified needs related to reconciliation, stabilization and resiliency. Local justice mechanisms (chiefs’ courts) will be supported to provide appropriate and inclusive access to justice and referrals for higher crimes. A secondary school, second chance education center and youth vocational skills center will be established to give opportunities for disaffected youth who might otherwise turn to violence. Resilient livelihoods, particularly for women, will be supported, including the development of two key value chains. The lives of women and girls will also be improved through activities around gender and sexual violence. Housing, land and property (HLP) issues will addressed as a key concern for potential returnees. Peace committees will be formed to negotiate intra- and inter-communal violence and improve stability.
Download the PDF version of this press release.
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About World Relief:
World Relief is a global Christian humanitarian organization that seeks to overcome violence, poverty and injustice. Through love in action, we bring hope, healing and restoration to millions of the world’s most vulnerable women, men and children through vital and sustainable programs in disaster response, health and child development, economic development and peacebuilding, as well as refugee and immigration services in the U.S. For 75 years, we’ve partnered with churches and communities, currently across more than 20 countries, to provide relief from suffering and help people rebuild their lives.
Learn more at worldrelief.org.
I Survived the Vietnam War to Become a Proud American
I was born in Southern Vietnam in 1953. I grew up just like any other boy in my country and had a happy childhood.
Then news about war in Vietnam gradually appeared on the front pages of newspapers in the 1960’s, and things began to change
Like many young men in wartime, I reported for military service in South Vietnam at just 18 years of age. I learned we’d be fighting alongside our American allies, which filled many of us with hope. Little did we know, however, that the war in Vietnam would carry on for 19 years and four months. It finally ended in April of 1975, and I was sent to prison for a year for fighting on the South Vietnam side. Afterward, I was told to relocate to a wild area of the jungle called the “New Economic Zone.” Instead, I went to my mother’s hometown in the countryside and made my living as a farmer.
As a former South Vietnamese soldier, I knew I couldn’t stay in the country. My children would not be allowed to pass high school education. They would be barred from being successful people in society. But escape was difficult, very difficult. People who were caught trying to escape would serve long prison terms. After several failed attempts at escaping by myself, I paid a local fisherman to smuggle me out in his boat. Two days after we left, the boat’s engine failed, and a navy ship from Malaysia rescued us.
I was placed in a refugee camp in Malaysia, where I volunteered to work as part of the camp government. It was there I learned that because of my background, I would be resettled as a refugee in the West. As part of the U.S. refugee process, I was sent to the Philippines, where I learned that my future life would be in the U.S.
I finally entered America for the first time in August of 1989 and was welcomed by volunteers from a local church community. They gave me a room to live in and assisted me in acclimating to life in a strange new country.
At first, I was intimidated. Life was fast-paced, and there was a lot to get used to. For instance, coming from a tropical country, I was terrified of the cold. I didn’t have a TV so I never knew the weather report for the day. I would stick my hand out the window in the morning to see what it felt like so I knew what to wear. When winter came, I made the mistake of washing my winter coat and then hanging it outdoors to dry. When I brought it in at the end of the day, it had frozen to ice.
I was also mistrustful of Christians when I first arrived in America. To my knowledge, the Vietnamese kings did not like Christianity when it first spread to Vietnam. In the late 19th century, the French army came to “protect” new Vietnamese Christians from persecution, which eventually led to the French colonization of my country, and that lasted for almost a hundred years. Growing up a Buddhist, I was naturally suspicious of Christians.
But then I came to America, and people who didn’t share my religion or language – people who had nothing in common with me – went out of their way to help me.
They helped me simply because they cared about me, a stranger, and that caused something to change in me. I wanted to know what this religion was that inspired people to care for me like that so I began attending church. Eventually I, too, became a Christian.
Today, I am a leader in my church. I am also a father and grandfather. My son became a U.S. Marine and is now a junior pastor. I work as a social worker for World Relief, helping other refugees adjust to life in the U.S. I feel blessed to be able to do this work. I understand that many refugees have survived harrowing ordeals and are skeptical of receiving help at first. I use my experience to help them regain their trust in people. I love the work I do.
My brother and sister also became U.S. citizens, but my 94-year-old mother still lives in Vietnam. In 30 years, I have only been able to visit her there four times. My heart aches from missing my mother, but I still don’t feel safe going back there.
When I was in prison in Vietnam, defeated and suffering, I never imagined I could have this kind of life. I want Americans to know how truly blessed they are. Here, we pursue the ideals of freedom and equality. In this country, the poor and the rich shop side-by-side at Walmart. No one is above the law. If people disagree with the government, they can voice their opinions and not be afraid of retaliation.
This is the United States I love and am proud to belong to. I appreciate the opportunity to live in freedom. I hope that by coming together, embracing the American ideals of freedom and equality, and shouldering our societal responsibilities, we can assure the American public refugees and other immigrants are worth welcoming.
Some people say what I endured as a young man, and my experience as a refugee, is remarkable. But I disagree. Living in this country – a country where people are willing to step forward and help strangers simply because it is good and right – that is the remarkable thing.
Chau Ly is a former refugee and social worker at World Relief.
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