Saturday, June 16th, from 1:00-5:00pm, the local community of refugee service agencies will host World Refugee Day-Houston at the Baker-Ripley Center Neighborhood Center (6500 Rookin St). The event will celebrate refugees who have come a long way and have made Houston their home. This free event is open to the public and will showcase various countries through cultural performances, children’s activities, ethnic foods, a community resource fair, artisans’ market and educational exhibits.
Every year, there are approximately 2,200 refugees from all over the world who come to Houston through the U.S. State Department. These refugees are forced to leave their homes because of violence or fear of persecution due to race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group, or political opinion. Houston resettlement agencies ensure refugees are introduced to the society; children are enrolled in school and employable adults find employment and attend English classes.
“I worked as a Professor in History for the University of Baghdad, but after 2003 women were targeted by militia and I was forced to leave my country,” says Abeer Shawi, an Iraqi Refugee who resettled to the US in 2009. She now works for Interfaith Ministries for Greater Houston as a case worker and continues to work with fellow refugees.
“Many clients have a fear inside them when they first arrive, but when you see them later in life and the families are doing well, the kids are good, they have a car and a job and things are great,” says Shawi. “It is a wonderful feeling to know that they are doing well and many of the children greet me like we are old friends.”
Houston World Refugee Day is a collective effort, made possible by the Houston Refugee Consortium and numerous community partners. The Consortium consists of the Alliance for Multicultural Community Services, Bilingual Education Institute, Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston, Houston Community College, Interfaith Ministries for Greater Houston and YMCA International Services. Other community partners include Amaanah Refugee Services, Bhutanese Community of Houston, Chinese Community Center, Community Cloth, Epiphany Community Health Outreach Services (ECHOS), HK Capital Management, HOUmanitarian.net, Houston Grand Opera, City of Houston’s Office of International Communities (OIC), Nations Sport, Neighborhood Centers Inc., Partnership for the Advancement and Immersion of Refugees (PAIR), Refugee Services of Texas, Texas Children’s Health Plan, Titan Management and The Great Physician’s RX.