Jumping Over Hurdles

Seth Horton turned around at the bottom of the airport escalator.  Niyimpa Schadrack and his family stood at the top, terrified.  They had never seen a moving walkway before.

For this newly arrived refugee family, the escalator was just the first hurdle to be overcome in their adjustment to life in the United States.

Schadrack fled Burundi as a three-year-old boy in 1972. 

He has been fleeing ever since.

His family bounced around from refugee camp to refugee camp.  Eventually they landed in Rwanda only to be uprooted again by the genocide in 1994.  As they fled Rwanda, Schadrack and his parents and siblings were separated.  He never saw them again.

Since 1994, Schadrack has made his home—a tarp and some sticks—in a camp in Tanzania.  His entire life was lived behind the gates of the camp.  During the day, the UN meted out food rations.  At night, bandits entered the gates and stole what little the refugee families had.  Work outside the camp was forbidden, and providing enough to survive was difficult.

But, in spite of dire conditions in the camps, people continued to live.  Schadrack met his wife, they were married and had children.

Shadrack and Vedastine arriving at the airport.

Last month, Schadrack’s family came to High Point, North Carolina.  The continued to face an uphill battle as they adjust to a drastically different culture.  But Seth Horton – a local staff member with World Relief – is there to walk with them. 

As they faced the first daunting challenge—the airport escalator—Seth carried each boy down the escalator, one at a time.  Another staff member held the mothers hand, easing her onto the escalator—and into life in the United States.

After years of living in the camps and surviving on handouts, the family was overwhelmed by the grocery stores.  Seth walked with them through the aisles, showing them how to find the best deals and how to check out.

“Schadrack, as most refugees are, was overwhelmed by the amount of food in our local grocery store,” recalls Seth.
A teenager from Congo who arrived in the United States in April showed the family how to use the stove and the dishwasher in their apartment – a far cry from the open fire and water pump they were used to. 

For their first three months in the United States, refugees fill out paperwork and wait in line, navigating a myriad of legal and social service networks.  They must apply for a social security card and get a state-issued identification card or driver’s license.  They must register children in school, find doctors, and get a telephone.  World Relief’s case managers, like Seth, help refugees cope.

The government gives refugees about three months to find a job and be moving towards self sufficiency.  Most take almost the entire time to orient themselves, receive their social security card and begin to work. 

Schadrack is miles ahead.  He knows some English, and he has worked hard.  After only six weeks, he is working and providing for his family.  World Relief helped connect Schadrack with Loft Goods, where he assembles furniture.
Pauline, a Congolese interpreter, introduced Shadrack and his family to a local church home.  They have been embraced by a community of believers.  

The family continues to have high hopes for the future.  Schadrack dreams of becoming a nurse.  He and his wife Vedastine dream of a new life for their three sons and the child Vedastine is carrying. 

And they are grateful for the support they have received.  They thank God for bringing them out of the camps; they thank Seth for everything he does; and they thank anyone who will listen for helping them overcome the hurdles they face.

Join us as we walk with refugees through their transition to the United States.  Click here to donate.

Want to volunteer to help refugees? Click here for list of volunteer coordinators in our local offices across the United States.