World Relief: Helping Refugees Feel at Home

My name is Ava Bruggeman, and I'm a student at the University of Washington. I'm working with World Relief, one of ten non-profit agencies under agreement with the Department of State to sponsor refugees and asylum seekers in the U.S.. World Relief provides reception and placement services to newly arrived immigrants. This includes assistance with transportation, language, employment, housing, health, legal aid, and more. Our work often includes ensuring that newly arrived families have safe and comfortable living conditions, and providing household items, clothing, school and work supplies, etc. All of the proceeds from this fundraiser will go towards purchasing goods to distribute among our participants and their families. In the current political climate, and with abrupt changes to the immigration process and admittance into the U.S., it is especially important to show newly arrived immigrants that they have a caring community that believes in their right to find safe refuge.