Posts by bclark
A Mother’s Love: Mother’s Day 2021
This Mother’s Day, we want to wish all of our mothers, in all stages of life, a Happy Mother’s Day. We know that motherhood is a blessing, but it’s not without its trials. For many of our families, mothers have made immense sacrifices for their children. Today, we honor and thank you for all that…
Read MoreSenior Spotlight: Gabriel Lenge is chasing the goal
This year, we have a number of students graduating from high school, many of them being the first ones to do so in their family. We wanted to take a moment to focus on some of our seniors as they prepare to enter into a new phase of their life. First up is future soccer pro Gabriel. As a…
Read More8 TED Talks to add to your summer watch-list
We know that sometimes it can be hard to cut through the noise that arises around the subject of immigration, asylum and refugees, and that’s why we’ve gone ahead and compiled a list of 8 TED Talks that can help break down the different subjects for you. They say that a picture is worth a thousand words, but hopefully these…
Read MoreA Good Neighbor
To close out Volunteer Appreciation Month, we spoke to one of our Good Neighbor Teams about their experience welcoming a family into the U.S. and walking alongside them as they start to rebuild their lives stateside. These teams of 6-8 people are often the first friends our newest neighbors will have when they arrive, and they…
Read MoreComing full circle: how sewing tied one volunteer back to her family roots
In 1949, a young Yugoslavian man left war-torn Europe with all that he had in the search of a better life. Rather than packing multiple suitcases like we would today, however, he had to build his own out of nails and wood. A Nazi prison camp survivor, he had spent the past five years of his life in a displaced persons…
Read MoreQ&A with local artist with Whitney Winkler
The Lord has continued to bless us this year, and we are so excited to announce that one way in which He has done so is through a donation from local artist, Whitney Winkler! We sat down with her to talk about what the process was like as she made the piece, what inspired it…
Read MoreHow one volunteer goes above and beyond for his fellow immigrants
One volunteer, Arrey, makes sure to give back to his fellow immigrants in any way we can.
Read MoreVolunteer Spotlight: Café English
When Ed Thompson took a business trip to France nearly five years ago, he didn’t think it would have such a profound impact on his life today. But this one experience of speaking a foreign language in a country that is not your own is in fact what spurred him on to become a volunteer at the Connect…
Read MoreInternship highlights the best of both worlds
“I grew up in a community of immigrants. Sometimes those immigrants were refugees that had to flee for various reasons, so I’ve always been interested in it,” said Madiha, one of our spring 2021 interns. A daughter of Pakistani immigrants, Madiha knows what it’s like to grow up with two cultures, or, as she would put it, the…
Read MoreWhy I serve: the story of Peace
As an immigrant, I know how it is to feel overwhelmed in a new place with no guidance. I have watched my parents come back home frustrated because they did not understand the system, and it was no fun at all. I eventually got used to going to school, relearning how to write, and learning…
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