The Lives of Refugees in Southwest Kansas

Over the past year, from June 2019 to June 2020, Catholic Charities welcomed 26 refugees, including 13 children, to their new home in Southwest Kansas. As refugees, their plight means that their journey to the US is often not very direct but ultimately, five of these travelers are Rohingya, 1 Somali, 4 Karen, 9 Congolese, and 7 Sudanese.

In each case, our staff members greeted the travelers and helped them get started off on the right foot by arranging for furnished housing, food, basic necessities, legal documents, interpreters, and English language classes. They worked intensively with the refugees in order to teach them how to secure a job, register their children for school, access medical care and health screenings, manage their home and finances, access transportation, and become contributing members of the community who are knowledgeable about US laws and policies and their rights and responsibilities in the United States of America. 

To date, 92% of the adults have found employment within 90 days and became self-sufficient. We couldn't be more proud of the progress they have made! Here are some of their stories.