Volunteer Training

On October 19^th, Jeanne hosted a volunteer training for both new and experienced volunteers.  Our guest speaker was Sue Winegar, a recently-retired Public Health Nurse who worked primarily with refugees.  She shared her hared-earned wisdom about the need for better-trained medical translators, about how often recently-arrived refugees misunderstand their health care providers’ instructions, how challenging it is for new families to learn who their primary health provider is and how to contact him or her, and, above all, how important it is for family volunteers to understand what kind of health care is available to their families and to know how to help them access it.

Ask your family, Sue said, who their doctor is.  Ask them if they know how to call their doctor.  If they know how to order medication refills.  If they know the difference between a routine health issue and an emergency health problem.  Keep asking, she suggested.  Write down the information for your family.  If the family wishes, go with them to their doctor and dentist appointments, at least once.  It makes a huge difference if a new family has an advocate with them.

At the end of the meeting, we talked about volunteers becoming health buddies for one or more families.  This led to a discussion about creating teams of volunteers for each family, instead of assigning one volunteer to one family.  Each team would consist of a language teacher, a homework helper, a health buddy, a recreation guide, and a case manager.

We also talked about developing volunteer-run wellness programs for refugees who are newly-arrived and for those who have been here for awhile.  We now have four active volunteers with extensive medical experience, and they are meeting soon to brainstorm how to create an effective program.

Stay tuned for further developments.

Interview with Jeanne Toal

How did you start working at Catholic Charities?

I moved to Portland four years ago, after spending twenty years working with homeless, mentally and physically ill, and elderly individuals in California.  Those years were an endless journey of discovery, one that I wanted to continue in Oregon.  Early on, I embraced the Dalai Lama’s phrase, ‘ selfish altruism’ as  my own.  In volunteering, then working, with people living on the margins of our society, I received so much more than I was ever able to give.  I also realized that , once my son was grown, I was in a position to accept only jobs that I would be willing to do on a volunteer basis.  All that figured into the equation when I was offered a position at Catholic Charities as a Resident Services Coordinator for disabled and elderly individuals living in low-income housing.  Two years later, I moved from the Housing Program to Refugee Resettlement.

What is your current position there, and what does it entail?

I’ve been working with refugees for almost a year and a half now.  I’m the assistant program manager and, currently, the coordinator of the volunteer program.  Several months ago, budget cuts necessitated eliminating the position of volunteer coordinator, so I took on those responsibilities.  It’s turned out to be one of the most enjoyable, and exciting, parts of my day.  Meeting new volunteers, and connecting with those who have been around a lot longer than I have, is a consistent pleasure.  More challenging is finding new ways to utilize that wonderful volunteer energy to further help our refugee clients, and developing an on-going  inservice training program for volunteers. As assistant program manager, I do whatever is necessary to support Cecilia Baricevic, our program manager, and our three case managers:  Laura Starushok, Niang Cing, and Brendon Robar.  We also have a Resource Coordinator, Joshon Miller, a Jesuit Volunteer, Sarah Dupont, and a PSU intern, Mai Vang.  All of us work with newly-arrived refugees, and all of us complete a lot of documentation and reports.

Can you briefly explain the function of the Refugee Resettlement Program?

Our program is charged with helping new refugees become self-sufficient in the Portland area within eight months.   This means we find them affordable housing before they arrive, meet them at the airport and take them to their new homes, orient them to western housing and western ways of living, help them get Social Security cards, health insurance, medical care, and refugee cash benefits, a monthly income based on family size that continues for eight months.  Each refugee arriving in Portland is also allocated $900 to be spent on their immediate resettlement needs.  Despite this funding, every new refugee and refugee family struggles to make ends meet.  They attend English and job training classes five days a week, and actively seek work with the help of an organization called IRCO.   After eight months, our case management services end, and refugees are on their own…hopefully with a firm foundation and a good understanding of western life.

What has been the most rewarding experience for you in work with the RR Program?

The first time I met a refugee family at the airport just about knocked me over.  There is something so awesome about greeting people who have been flying for two days, who have  no real sense of where they are in the world, who own nothing but what they could put into one bag, and who are nonetheless excite d and grateful to be walking through an abandoned airport at midnight with a stranger whose every word has to be translated.

What do you like the most about working here?

That’s a tough one to answer.  I enjoy any interaction with our clients, no matter how long they’ve been here, or whether or not we can communicate in words.  Unfortunately, I’m not able to get out and meet people as often as I would like.  However ,the people I work with in the office are incredible.  Two of the case managers were refugees themselves, and the rest of the staff also have “a heart for refugees.”  They all have met extraordinary demands on their time and energy with grace and a willingness to do whatever is necessary to help our clients feel safe and settled in their new home.

What message would you like to give to the volunteers of the program?

I’d like to invite everyone to open themselves to new experiences, new ways of seeing things we take for granted.  I’d like to encourage us all to contemplate how we might go about offering help without making the person we’re helping a “helpee.”  I’d like to suggest we continue to look at the difference between sympathy and compassion, and to realize that everything we give away we are actually giving to ourselves.  No matter what one’s faith, volunteering can be a spiritual practice of the highest order.  And, it is fun!  Even in the most dire of situations there can be shared laughter as well as shared tears.  It’s simply a wonderful way to be in the world. 

Introduction

Hello, Catholic Charities Refugee Resettlement volunteers!

Because this is the first, this entry will simply be an introduction.  It is your introduction to me, the important work that Catholic Charities Refugee Resettlement Program does, and the general way in which this blog will operate.  So, we will start off with a quick introduction to me:

My name is Jordan Pahl, and I am a senior at St. Mary’s Academy in downtown Portland, Oregon.  Until this summer, I had never had any connection with a refugee.  I was awarded a fellowship by the State Department to participate in an exchange program hosted at George Mason University, with ten high school students from the United States, and thirty-five from South and Central Asia.  During the program two of us learned that one of the Pakistani students wanted to - needed to - seek asylum in the U.S.  His mother called him, telling him that it was unsafe to return to Pakistan, and he needed to do whatever it took to remain in the United States.  Joyce, the other US student, and I spent hours and hours on the phone, emailing, researching, and simply doing anything we could possibly think of to help him.  It was maddening to be told to call back in a month, when his visa expired in a fifteen days.  Our friend was lucky, he had two fiercely determined, though completely inexperienced, American students working the phones and navigating the system for him.  Currently, he is working through the asylum process, staying with the host family that he met through our summer program, and attending high school in Virginia.

This experience is why, after returning to Portland, it was important for me to get involved and help those in similar situations, but who don’t have Joyce and me on their team to make the phone calls and send the emails for them.  Just knowing that Joyce and I were able to get him to this point is such an empowering experience.  That is why I am volunteering here at Catholic Charities Refugee Resettlement.

Other tidbits about me: I am starting an internship at the Oregon Historical Society this fall, am captain of the mock trial team at St. Mary’s Academy, have attended Catholic school since the second grade, am in Model United Nations, and am the president of the SMA Politics without Borders Club.

Now that you are a little bit more familiar with me, we can move on to a little introduction of the program.

For those not familiar with the Refugee Resettlement branch of Catholic Charities, it is the program of Catholic Charities that helps refugees resettle to their new home here in America.  Many of these refugees come to this country with little to no money, few possessions, and even fewer resources, as well as working to reconcile their culture with American culture. Refugee Resettlement program does what they can to help these refugees.  For more information on the Oregon division, visit this link: http://www.catholiccharitiesoregon.org/services_refugee_resettlement.asp.

This blog is for CCRR volunteers and anyone else who would like to get to know this program better.  We will be interviewing refugee families, other volunteers, and caseworkers, as well as Catholic Charities staff.  This blog is also a great place to stay updated on things like workshops, free children’s events, etc.  I will be working closely with Jeanne Toal, Assistant Program Manager and Volunteer Coordinator for the Refugee Program.  Possible blog topics include (but are not limited to) the following:

- A family’s first week experience,

- Caseworker anecdotes,

- Tips from veteran volunteers,

- Worst case scenarios,

- Unexpected challenges,

- Any more you can think of!

If you have any stories or topics you feel should be included, please feel free to contact us.

A quick word about how the blog will function:

- This blog will be updated with a new entry approximately every two weeks.

- We are always looking for new stories to include.  If you have anything that you would like to see on the blog, please pass along any information you have.

- Our email is ccrrvolunteer@gmail.com

I am excited for the opportunity to write this blog, and to spread awareness about an issue that has become so near and dear to my heart.

That is all for this introductory entry.  Please check back soon for our first real entry!