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In early 2025, Months after Khalida*, a wife and mother from Afghanistan, was welcomed to the U.S. by World Relief Sacramento, her life took a rocky turn when she started experiencing problems with her health.
Unfortunately, as her physical health declined, her mental health began to spiral as well. Already facing culture shock and loneliness, she felt as though her world was shutting down.
“I didn’t want to leave the house, I avoided neighbors, I avoided life,” she said. “The world outside scared me, and inside I felt like I was fading away.”
The Journey to Whole Person Care
Thankfully her neighbor, Sakina*, stepped in. When she saw Khalida in distress, Sakina recommended she look into World Relief Sacramento’s Afghan Women’s Program, an initiative focused on English as a Second Language (ESL) literacy and cultural integration.
“I said ‘no’ right away,” Khalida said. “I didn’t have the energy, the will or the hope.”
But Khalida’s husband overheard the conversation and eventually convinced her to join.
At first, Khalida was uncertain if the program could help her. “I logged into the Zoom classes three times a week as required, camera off, saying nothing,” she said. But slowly, something shifted. The teachers began making an impact. “Their kindness, their love and the stories we shared in class began to reach me, little by little.”
Through her new cohort, Khalida found teachers, volunteers and friends ready to support her for the long haul as they walked alongside her on the journey from welcome to belonging. Instead of only supporting her language skills, the Afghan Women’s Program took a broader approach.
“In the World Relief program, we talked about self-care, about healing and wellness,” Khalida said. “I started walking outside. I went to the park, I breathed fresh air again, and now, I never miss my daily park time.”
The cohort also helped Khalida learn how to navigate the U.S. medical system as she experienced illness. “The lessons on navigating healthcare — learning the difference between the emergency room, urgent care, regular doctor visits and how insurance works — changed everything,” she said. “I finally understood what was happening with my own health. I could advocate for myself.”
Now, though Khalida still battles sickness, she walks with her head held high. “I’m no longer lying in the dark,” she said. “I am standing, I am walking and I am fighting.”
Building Communities of Belonging
Khalida is just one of thousands of refugees and other immigrants we’ve walked alongside since the U.S. began welcoming refugees in the early 1980s. Since then, we have spent decades bringing holistic, culturally-informed, long-term support to refugees and other immigrants in the U.S. through integrated programs of care.
This past year alone, this emphasis took shape in different ways:
- In Chicagoland, our staff recognized some unique challenges Congolese young adults in their area faced. They collaborated with World Relief counselors to create a cultural orientation program that integrated mental health topics while also addressing the particular needs of Congolese participants adjusting to life in their new home.
- World Relief Memphis created a Mother’s Day healing event specifically for Cuban mothers separated from their children. The gathering was intentionally designed as a therapeutic, relationship‐building space, offering comfort, community and emotional support.
- And in Sacramento, our team created an Afghan Women’s Driving Permit Program, which incorporates stress‐management techniques directly into driving skills training. These strategies helped participants manage fear, stay calm in traffic, and build confidence behind the wheel — an essential step toward agency and stability.
At a time of intense instability and hostility toward refugees and other immigrants, you helped us partner with churches, volunteers and community members to go beyond short-term resettlement programming to deliver a simple message: You matter and you belong.
Believing in Belonging
Across the U.S. today, thousands of people like Khalida are on a journey to belonging. But increasingly, this journey has become at risk.
Over the last several months, U.S. refugee resettlement for the most vulnerable families has virtually stopped. Some refugees already rebuilding their lives in the United States have lost access to essential benefits that help families cover basic needs as they work to establish their lives in a new country. Meanwhile, vital international aid funding that supports families displaced by violence, disasters and other crises has been drastically reduced.
Our response at this moment is crucial: Will we continue to believe in belonging for people like Khalida? For refugees and other immigrants across the U.S. and beyond?
Your gifts to World Relief will ensure families across the U.S. and around the world continue finding their way to communities of belonging. Together, we can ensure:
- Refugees and other immigrants already in the U.S. have opportunities to find belonging and pursue brighter futures
- Those displaced by conflicts and disasters around the globe receive life-saving aid
- Advocacy efforts on behalf of the world’s most vulnerable reach lawmakers to create more just, compassionate policies.
Now more than ever, we believe in belonging for refugees and other immigrants. Will you join us?
*Pseudonyms have been used to protect individuals’ identities.
Samuel Heard serves as a content specialist at World Relief. His writing has appeared in a variety of outlets, including Baptist Press, Mere Orthodoxy, the Center for Faith and Culture and elsewhere. He lives in Upstate South Carolina with his wife and three children.